SlutWalk 2012

Today was the annual event of SlutWalk, an awareness event which aims to tell the public not to rape, rather than how not to be raped. It is a program that reaches out to rape victims as a support group, as well as people from different walks of life as they learn more about the aim of this cause. This year, the event was held in Hong Lim Park, near the speaker's corner at Clarke Quay. The event went pretty smoothly with non-stop entertainment and good music, and all the action didn't die down even when it started raining heavily. Instead, some people happily volunteered to 'usher' people from one booth to another or to and from the MRT station. Some of the booths included a free mocktail booth, a t-shirt booth, a muay thai booth an a photo taking booth. Though the event is not widespread due to poor advertising in the local media, the people who did turn up are all hyped up and enthusiastic, and you can tell that they are actually here to support the event, to be informed and not just to look around. I suppose the issue is quite controversial to some extent but the speakers who talked were very convicted and engaging, which supports the crowd very well, making everyone boo the negative response to certain rape target groups. Some of these groups include men, gay men, transsexual women, lesbian women and wives who have been raped. So clearly this event opens up to many from the above said groups who turned up as well.

That's the thing about SlutWalk that makes me enjoy attending it. It brings so many different people from various walks of life together and you can just see this convergence of colours, people who might otherwise be seen as queer by society, gathering together to support a cause. Just standing at one place, I could easily spot a guy with a bright orange mohawk (a real one, not those fake ones that people always pass as a mohawk), a Caucasian lady with bright red hair, leather clad women with full house piercings, queer looking photographers who look like they've probably been bullied their whole lives, people with dreadlocks and sporting hippie pants and colours that society's 'hipsters' can only dream of wearing, and many young queer people just like myself. And no, this isn't some underground wild event where people get drunk and fight and what not. This is a properly staged event open to families and children, where all these people gather not to wreck havoc as people might think, but to support one another and simply have fun. It is a platform for people to speak up as well as to make new friends. I myself have been introduced to quite a number of new people today, Vanessa and some other girls from muay thai, ashlee and her friend, introduced to us by Victoria, as well as Victoria's girlfriend. It's just a short intro, a firm handshake (I felt so old and formal just about then) and starting up a conversation immediately. I was taught a bit of boxing by Vanessa and we clicked quite well, then had our drinks spiked by Victoria's girlfriend too, with the bottle of whiskey she stashed in her bag. Apparently this muay thai girl (I think her name is Shane) has met me before, surprise surprise! Then afterwards got word of a big party at HomeClub going on tonight, Victoria said she could get us on the guest list to get us in but won't guarantee she won't be drunk hahah, too bad can't make it tonight though.

Now why I chose to write about this here is because I really felt safe and happy at this event. To know there are others like me around, to be in a place where no one looks at you weird, it just gives me this feeling of acceptance by strangers more than I feel from people I know. I feel as though all of us gathered there, at one point in life or another, have been looked at differently, judged and misunderstood just for being what they are. It's like there's this unspoken bond between all of us, an understanding only those who have experienced will understand. And to see so many of these people there, interacting, playing, having fun with friends, loved ones, and strangers, it helps me see what a lively community this is, and that it's okay to be who I am. And honestly speaking, these people are by far the most friendly, fun-loving, carefree, caring and accepting people I've seen. They talk to strangers like old friends no matter how that person is dressed or looks, they are very willing to help you even if you don't know them at all, and they do it sincerely because they enjoy it. To the judging eyes of society, these people gathering around the train station look like trouble makers, rebellious misfits, queer strange youth who have got to be detrimental to society, but once you take the step in, they welcome you like a blood brother and treat you just like family. As someone who has been judged all my life, I finally feel relaxed and at home in this sort of environment, like I don't have to be ready to put up my defences at any point.

The air that hung in that park felt raw, and beyond any masquerade that's so in season right now. It's a reality that lives behind the walls and it taught me to embrace the unique aspects of life. I'm definitely looking forward to any other events of the like.