‘The Pansies Are in Bloom’: Trafalgar Square tour, followed by a Q+A with leading Aids Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) activist, Andria Mordaunt, followed by a Q+A and book signing 6.30-8pm at Stanfords bookshop - please get your tickets here. All in partnership with OUTbound - TfL's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans (LGBT+) Staff Network Group.
Ever wanted to learn more about the queer history of Trafaglar Square? Dan Glass, author of ‘Queer Footprints: A Guide to Uncovering London’s Fierce History' , is here to guide you.
Highlights - tour stops include stories from campaigners that led to ‘Sexual Offences Act’ that partially decriminalised homosexuality in 1967; ‘The Order of Chaeronea’, a secret society of homosexuals; The Gay Ultradisco at Heaven Nightclub and the birth of the modern HIV / AIDS movement for justice; Oscar Wilde’s statue; politicians and activists that overturned ‘Section 28’ which banned the promotion of homosexuality in public institutions; first person testimony from trailblazing protests including ‘The Teenage Turn-in’ at Charing Cross police station; The Gay liberation front (GLF) Youth Demo against the unequal age of consent; AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP) ‘die-in’ protests at the height of the AIDS pandemic; London Trans Pride and more.
Andria Mordaunt is a long time grass roots activist of 45 years standing. She began her "trouble" making with the Women's liberation movement under the Guidance of Marya Efthimiou, who was busy resisting male violence in the 1970s. A decade-plus later, she became an AIDS Activist, promoting Harm Reducing Drug Policies internationally, (as opposed to Criminalising PWUDs-people who use drugs. She also served in the Welfare Working Group of OCCUPY London after her LSE MSc in Social Policy. By 2019, she needed to move sideways to protect herself from the constant HIV & Overdose-Related deaths. She has been more active with the Resistance Movement trying to make govt and corporations take the Climate Emergency seriouslyShe is 62, and has a wonderfully-savvy 15 year old daughter
Tour meeting point - Embankment Station
Nearest wheelchair accessible stations with platform access - Tottenham Court Road or Green Park
PRAISE FOR QUEER FOOTPRINTS PUBLISHED BY PLUTO PRESS - Pre-order here
The strength and the beauty of this book is its resolute and joyful nod to queer history, the multiplicity of our stories and the ongoing, transformative process of our queer footprints which continue to add layers onto the city I was lucky enough to grow up in. London, through the eyes of Glass, is ever-changing but always radical' - Juno Roche.
This electrifying book is an adventure book through London’s untold queer past. Every page is packed with inspiring, moving and downright hilarious secrets just itching to be uncovered - and with the riotously entertaining Dan Glass as your mincing tour guide - you’ll have an absolute blast as you do. A word of warning: after reading this, London will never seem the same again' - Sam Arbor, Film Director
Queer Footprints is your back pocket guide to our queer/LGBTQIA+ histories, full of joy and ammunition to claim without any shame our beautiful queer futures - Tash Walker, host of The Log Books podcast and Co-Chair of Switchboard LGBT+ Helpline (2018 - 2022).
