Hannah Tiernan from Museum of Everyone fills us in on what to expect from the essential conversation series, Pride of Everyone

Inclusion is a word synonymous with the queer community. We pride ourselves on acceptance and diversity. We claim to welcome anyone who doesn’t identify as cis heterosexual and call them our ‘family’. But too often we misconstrue this inclusion for what in practice is merely tolerance.

Inclusion entails more than simply adding a few letters to the LGBT acronym. It’s not simply a question of just opening the door; it’s about widening the doorway and building a ramp. Claiming not to see the colour of a person’s skin may seem like acceptance but it is a form of denial and erasure; by seeing that colour, and learning what it is to live in that skin, we begin to understand the true nature of acceptance.

Using a person’s chosen pronouns is a small gesture of acknowledgement, but hearing the struggles and stigma faced by gender non-conforming people and using our voices to share those experiences is empowering. Inclusion is about empowering the members of our community on the margins; the ones whose voices aren’t heard and whose struggles aren’t seen. The Museum of Everyone’s Pride of Everyone series aims to do just that.

The Museum of Everyone is an inclusive portable platform for artists and creatives that aims to amplify a diverse range of voices and perspectives through both artist and community-led collaborative initiatives. It is a space for potential, collaboration, original thinking and action. Our ethos is simple; if you support your community, your community in return will support you.

To celebrate Pride Month, we aim to give voice to the minority groups within Ireland’s queer community. Through a series of conversations, we will highlight ways in which the community compounds stigma and exclusion. But by hearing directly from minority advocates, we will also explore ways in which we can create a more inclusive and supportive community. The talks will be moderated by the Museum’s Queer Program Manager, Hannah Tiernan, and each week will focus on a different topic.

For week one, Trans*, we will talk to invited guests from the trans and non-binary communities and from Intersex Ireland. We will explain the divergence within trans and non-binary identities as well as what it means to have an Intersex Condition and why that differs from trans identities. We will also explore issues affecting each of the communities, such as healthcare, understanding and acceptance.

The second week will consider (dis)Ability*. We will speak to guests representing just some of the diverse range of disabled people that make up our queer community. Through the discussion, we will consider ways that the wider community can begin to dismantle barriers disabled queer people face to being fully part of the community.

In the third week, we will be looking at Ethnicity*. We will highlight some of the challenges faced by LGBTQ+ asylum seekers within the Direct Provision system; explore prejudice and acceptance within the Traveller community; and what it means to identify as LGBTQ+ when that contravenes the teachings of your religion.

The series will conclude with a look at Sexuality*. We will be talking to representatives from Bi+ Ireland, the Asexual/Aromantic communities and the Polyamory community. We will explore some of the under-represented sexual identities that make up the queer community and the effects of erasure.

The Pride of Everyone series will air on the Museum of Everyone website Thursdays at 7pm (IST) throughout June. If you feel you might be able to contribute to this series, we’d love to hear from you. Please email [email protected] with the subject heading Pride of Everyone.