It’s Here and It’s Queer - the new Society on the Block
‘If they are able to unite other London university queer communities, this could have a very powerful result’
Louise van Randwyck, BA History of Art and Social Anthropology 28/10/2024
The Queer Society at SOAS is one of many new societies to make its debut this year. Previously, the Pride at SOAS society was the main LGBTQ+ representation on campus, however, it put on very few events throughout the year. There was also another platform for representation, the Queer Liberation society, with a more activist stance. Neither of these two societies now officially exist at SOAS.
This year, the Queer Society hopes to take on a more legitimate, official and permanent role at SOAS than either of its predecessors. The overarching aim this year is to create a community, not only within SOAS, but with the hopes of uniting other queer societies from universities in the London Bloomsbury area. They hope to do this by putting on a mix of day and night events, as well as sober and non-sober gatherings. This ranges from drag nights to karaoke, coffee mornings and craft sessions. There is also the possibility of a book club in the future, in collaboration with ‘Gays the Word’, a LGBTQ+ Book shop local to the SOAS Campus. In fact the book shop is already aware of the new society’s presence, as they lent the society pride flags for this year’s freshers fair.
Another branch of the society will focus on supporting academic research, as there are a number of post-graduate students pursuing gender and sexuality focused studies within SOAS. There are plans to host talks and lectures from external speakers throughout the coming year. This will be supplemented by seminar style group discussions, where people will be able to discuss their own research as well as that of others. This may eventually lend itself to the possible scope for a Zine or even a peer-reviewed academic Journal in the future.
While talking to Mo Findley, the president of the society, it was brought to light that the fourth section of the Queer Society is focused on activism. This branch will help support a variety of protests, including, but not limited to, anti-racism and pro-Palestine protests. The activism section will also help tackle any issues regarding homophobia or transphobia within the university. If they are able to unite with other London university queer communities, this could have a very powerful result.
There may be some people who feel that a queer society is not needed in 2024, but the fight for equal rights is still very recent in this country. Gay marriage was only legalised throughout the UK less then half a decade ago, with the law change only coming into effect in 2020 in Northen Ireland. Conversion therapy is still legal in the UK too, despite being promised to be banned by the last conservative government. Labour is now promising to end it as a part of their manifesto but this could be pushed back while they focus on other issues. Homophobia and transphobia are problems that many individuals face regularly so having a solid community and safe space on campus would be one of many steps needed to combat this problem.
