Brown Suga - Color Purple // International Queer Women Celebration

Overview

BROWN SUGA //International Queer Women Celebration // The Color Purple 🔥🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ Powered by Moonlight Experiences X Black to The Future X The Common Press X The Blacker The Berry Project. Saturday 23rd March @ 7:30 pm-1 am | The Common Press, 118 Bethnal Green Road, London E2 6DG We will donate some of our profits from the night to Sistah Space. 💜 PURPLE GIVEAWAY. details on @moonlight_experiences or @bttf_space. Winner to be announced at midday on 25th March. Pre-order the box below. Celebrate March's International Women's Day, with queer women and non-binary folx. Led and curated by queer Black and POC folx! For March, we are highlighting the timeless and impactful work of Alice Walker's book, "The Color Purple," along with its cinematic and musical adaptations. We will be having a Black to The Future discussion with topics surrounding Afrofuturism and Black women in the film industry with renowned writers, and actors from 7:30 pm. The evening will transition with an hour of Queer Kizomba class to get dancing (back due to popular demand) followed by DJs until late. For those unable to join us in person, we've got you covered! Tune in for a live stream of the panel discussion starting at 8 pm. We have been cultivating a good vibes-only and welcoming environment where folx can connect, mobilize, and nurture relationships. This evening provides the need for more spaces for QTIPOC, queer women, non-binary and trans folx. Whether you are arriving with friends, partner(s), or turning up solo. You are invited to our mixer hosted by our friendly team where you can meet some new people. Limited free tickets are available (for those who need it). Limited free tickets are available (for those who need it). 💙£7 Black + POC Entry Tickets (party only) 💙£10 General Entry Tickets (party only) 💙£12 - SOLD OUT - limited tickets on the door. 💙 Free Livestream tickets for panel discussion from 8 pm. 💙Limited tickets are available at the door. 💜 PURPLE SPECIAL BOX is also available to pre-order with 10% of sales going to @sistahspace_ https://blacktothefuture.space/shop/ols/products/nina-bombina-x-black-to-the-future-purple-box *NOTE: The evening will be taking place in The Common Press bookshop and downstairs. (Sadly, the downstairs event space isn't wheelchair accessible). There will be bars available in the bookshop and downstairs.

Highlights

Moonlight Experiences Team

The night will be hosted by Moonlight Experiences. An award-winning queer events and travel company dedicated to the celebration of diverse LGBTQ+ culture whilst uplifting marginalised voices.

Purple Giveaway

We have teamed with @irenosenokojie's @bttf_space and the incredible artist @nina__bombina to create a limited edition purple-tastic box to celebrate Women's History Month, The Color Purple and our International Queer Women celebration for Brown Suga. To enter our Purple Box giveaway (UK only) simply: ⭐️ Like this post ⭐️ Tag three magical and powerful women you know ⭐️ Follow @bttf_space @moonlight_experiences + @nina__bombina. The winner will be generated at random on Monday 25th March and notified via direct message. Good luck! The Purple Box is also available to pre-order via link in bio or below with 10% of sales going to @sistahspace_ https://blacktothefuture.space/shop/ols/products/nina-bombina-x-black-to-the-future-purple-box

Sophie Duker

Sophie is known for her sharp wit, thought-provoking, and hilarious shows. Her unique perspective on race, gender, and politics challenges audiences to think while they laugh. In 2023, Sophie won the PinkNews Award for Entertainer of The Year. She has also starred in multiple TV shows including Taskmaster Series 13 and Biscuitland (both on Channel 4), which were BAFTA-nominated.

Cherish Oteka - Film Director

Cherish Oteka (They/Them) is an award-winning documentary filmmaker, who won a BAFTA for Best Short Film in 2022. They are also winner of this year’s The Arts Foundation fellowship. Some of their notable work include "The Black Cop," "A Man Called Dad," and "Why I Call Myself a Witch." Collaborating with BBC One, VICE, and others, Cherish challenges false narratives and amplifies underrepresented voices. Recognized as a rising star, they've been part of talent schemes like the Edinburgh Television Festival's "One's to Watch." Their documentary, "Too Gay for God?" for BBC One, explores the LGBTQI+ experience in the Church of England. Cherish's commitment to inclusivity and authentic storytelling cements their status as a trailblazer in the industry.

Ama Josephine B. Johnstone

Ama is a Speculative Writer, Artist, Curator and Pleasure Activist whose praxis navigates intimate explorations of race, art, ecology and feminism, working to activate movements that catalyse human rights, environmental evolutions and queer identities. Usually based in London, Ama can also be found loitering around the fried egg stalls of Accra, or gallery bookshops in New York City.

Queer Kizomba with The Blacker The Berry Project (8:45pm-10pm)

Come join Queer Kizomba, a class suitable for seasoned dancers or those who have never tried Kizomba before. This workshop is perfect for you to immerse yourself in the beautiful rhythms and sensual moves of this Angolan dance style. Dance class by The Blacker The Berry Project.

Tashmia Owen

Tashmia Owen is a visual artist, writer, and long time VAWG campaigner and community builder with a background working with young people in vulnerable communities and schools, pushing for better sex education and mental health in her community. Tashmia speaks regularly at the WOW festival and other events regarding the barriers women from minoritised groups face in reporting violence and receiving medical care, also sharing her experiences through two years of cancer treatment. She has been involved in titles from HuffPost, Media Diversified, Sister-Hood to Gal-Dem giving interviews & writing articles, advocating for structural change to institutional frameworks in favour of equity.

C.L Clark

C.L. Clark is a BFA award-winning editor and the Nebula-nominated author of The Unbroken, the first of the Magic of the Lost trilogy, several short stories, and a few essays. When they're not imagining the fall of empires, they're trying not to throw their kettlebells through the walls.

Black to The Future

BLACK TO THE FUTURE is an Afro-Futurist celebration of outstanding Black artists, a space for visionary imaginings to thrive. BTTF begins as British Black History month ends; launching late October and running until US Black History Month in February 2024, to accompany the British Library’s upcoming major exhibition: Fantasy: Realms of Imagination. Curated, founded and directed by Irenosen Okojie MBE, in collaboration with the Royal Society of Literature and the British Library.

Donations to Sistah Space

Black and POC organisation disproportionately get less funding and donations. Sistah Space, support African and Caribbean women affected by domestic abuse whilst also ensuring that cultural factors are not only considered but understood. Through their work they aim to ensure that cultural barriers and biases are removed and that service users are given equal support.

DJ Sabs

Sabs mixes are very much influenced by the sounds of her upbringing including soul, disco, 90s R&B and Afrobeats. Sabs DJ journey has also meant she has developed a unique house sound of afro, amapiano, soul and tribal which she plays on her weekly radio show with Croydon FM as well as at various venues includings - Brixton Jamm, The Ned's Vault, Q Shoreditch and Golden Bee to name a few. If you haven't had a chance to see her in person make sure you either tune in to her next radio show or her mix series on Mixcloud and Soundcloud.

Jesualdo Lopes (DJ )

Jesualdo Lopes, born in Lisbon and raised in the municipality of Odivelas, is a filmmaker, curator, founder and creative director of The Blacker The Berry Project, a collective that aims to celebrate Black queer artists residing in the Diaspora, in Africa, in Caribbean and Latin America, having collaborated with more than 100+ creatives since 2021 in cultural events, parties, fanzines and the pioneering retreat 'The Blacker The Moses' in Castelo Branco, reported on GAY Times. With a BA (Hons) Filmmaking degree from Leeds Beckett University, Jesualdo aims to elevate marginalised voices through his work, creating safe and intentional environments mainly for the Black, young and diasporic community nationally and beyond borders.

Bookshop / hangout zone

The Common Press bookshop will be available all night for drinks as well as to hang out. The Common Press is a lot of things to a lot of people. As London's first consciously queer intersectional bookshop, it provide a safer space for our LGBTQIA+ community to exist both during the day and at night in social settings. The venue is a radical and independent space that stands up for what we believe in and champions books by authors from a wide range of marginalized backgrounds.

Black to The Future Panel Discussion (8pm - 8:45 pm)

Let's come together to unite, support, and unapologetically celebrate who we are. We thrive on the joy of nightlife while also delving deep into our queer Black stories with inspiring voices that uplift our community.