Mar 14
MattDesk Set Sponsored Events, Events from Other Orgs, From Our Guest Bloggers Dance Party, Que(e)ry
Que(e)ry III is coming up this Friday, March 18, at Blackout Bar in Greenpoint. We’re back with more exciting raffle prizes, great DJs, fancy queer-lit themed drinks, and nerdy gogo dancers. This time we’re raising money for the Library and Archive of the Transgender Foundation of America, and we thought you’d like to know a little more about it.
The TFA is a non-profit community-run organization founded in 2001. The TFA seeks to improve the quality of life for transgender people, through local and nationwide education, advocacy, and outreach efforts. Since 2008, the TFA has operated the Transgender Center in Houston, which provides community groups, social services, legal counseling, gender transition counseling, HIV testing and counseling, homeless assistance, and mental health services to the Houston trans community. The Center also facilitates social groups, studies, community action events, and serves as a watchdog against discrimination.
In addition, the Center houses the Archive of Transgender History and Transgender Research Library. The Archive, the only one of its kind in the world, collects a range of materials such as personal papers, ephemera, newspapers, magazines, rare books, photos, artifacts, and statuaryrelating to transgender people, including: trans activism and community life; medical, psychological, and legal developments; and depictions of trans people in film, art, literature, mythology, and popular culture. Items of interest in the collection are memorabilia related to Christine Jorgensen, the first widely known person to have undergone sex reassignment surgery and hormone therapy in 1952. 
Items range from diverse cultures and include books from as early as the 1600s, photos from the Civil War era, and artifacts dating as far back as the Roman Empire. The research library includes biographies, studies, journals and periodicals, both current and historical. Together, the archive and library seek to give a sense of history to the transgender community, and to counteract the misinformation and discrimination transgender people face on a daily basis. Both the library and archive are open to the public daily. You can learn more about their resources at their website.
Or check out their blog for updates on new acquisitions to the archive, and find them on Facebook and Twitter.
Your support, awareness, and time are greatly appreciated by the TFA and by all of us at Que(e)ry and the Desk Set. We look forward to seeing you on Friday! RSVP on Facebook
Can’t make it? You can still Make a Donation to the Trans Archive and Research Library.
Jun 23
MattDesk Set Sponsored Events, From Our Guest Bloggers Dance Party, Fund-Raiser, Que(e)ry
First of all, thank you to each one of you who came to Que(e)ry. You raised $2,400 for the Tom of Finland Foundation and the Le
sbian Herstory Archives, and we hope you had fun doing it!
Also, our gratitude goes out to all of our generous raffle prize donors, including: Babeland, Booklyn, Brooklyn Historical Society, Enid’s, Macmillan Books, ModHero, Purple Passion, Rizzoli Press, Roundabout Theatre, the Tom of Finland Foundation, Topher Gross of Arrojo Studio, and Word. Congratulations to all the raffle winners! We hope you’ll support these generous businesses and organizations!
Thanks to our fantastic DJs: DJ Marc Records (Mel Racho), DJ Emoticon (Lauryn Siegel), and DJ Adam E. Milksop (Adam White), and to our sexy gogo dancers Calvin Clamdigger, the Archivist, and Bloody Belle!
Kudos to all of our talented friends who volunteered to make decorations, decorate the bar, publicize the party, sell tickets, collect donations, take photographs, announce prizes, and clean up after the party!
And of course, many thanks to Blackout Bar for hosting us!
In addition to raising money, events like Que(e)ry also aim to raise awareness and participation, which are equally as vital to the future of volunteer-run institutions like the Herstory Archvies and the Tom of Finland Foundation.Your time, generosity, and involvement are greatly appreciated.
Stay tuned for further developments on the future of Que(e)ry, and contact us (queeryparty at gmail) if you’d like to get involved. And if you need a queer librarian fix in the meantime, check out these fine organizations and publications:
The American Library Association’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Roundtable (GLBTRT)
The Society of American Archivists’ Lesbian and Gay Archives Roundtable (LAGAR)
The Library Juice Press Series on Gender and Sexuality in Librarianship, edited by Emily Drabinski, has forthcoming volumes and is also accepting proposals.
Apr 18
Sarah MurphyDesk Set Sponsored Events, Dispatches from the Editors Books Through Bars, Brooklyn, Dance Dance Library Revolution, Dance Party, enid's, Librarians
Here it is Kids, your official notification about the Desk Set’s next and best dance party and benefit for Books Through Bars:
The return of Dance Dance Library Revolution
Your chance to GIVE a paperback dictionary or thesaurus, GET a complimentary drink courtesy of Enid’s, DANCE your tail off, and WIN amazing prizes in the Four-Eyes Raffle.
The party is free, and it’s a community-based labor of love in memory of our friend Carlos Alvarez, who passed away last summer. A passionate believer in prisoners’ rights and access to information, Carlos had hoped to DJ the next DDLR. In his stead, DJs Mr. Jonathan Toubin from New York Night Train, Fine Wine from WFMU, Megan Awesome, Jimmy T, and Jason Andrews are spinning all night long, and donating their fees to the Books Through Bars cause in Carlos’s name.
Details:
- What: DDLR, dance party and benefit for Books Through Bars
- Where: Enid’s Bar in Greenpoint, Brooklyn
- When: Saturday, May 22nd, 2010 10PM – 4AM
- Why: To collect dictionaries and raise badly needed funds for Books Through Bars, a grassroots org working tirelessly to provide incarcerated individuals with literacy and literature. And to spread some library love!
- Who: Librarians, archivists, bibliophiles, the bookish general public, and those who like to dance with them.
- With your hosts: Maria Falgoust, Sarah Murphy, and the Desk Set Gang
- How you can help: Show up at the party, and tell all your friends! Become a DDLR volunteer. We’re looking for decorators, crafters, party promoters, raffle tickets sellers, and more! Write to us at thedesksetATgmailDOTcom if you’re interested in helping.
Nov 06
Sarah MurphyDesk Set Sponsored Events, Dispatches from the Editors Bell House, Biblioball, Brooklyn, Dance Party, Hungry March Band, Literacy for Incarcerated Teens, Living Days, Lucky Chops Brass Band, Nine/11 Thresaurus, Rude Mechanical Orchestra
The Desk Set proudly presents
Biblioball 2009: Baby, It’s Cold Outside
Friday December 11, 2009
8pm – 4am
The Bell House
www.thebellhouseny.com
149 7th St
Brooklyn, NY
Proceeds go to Literacy for Incarcerated Teens (providing books and literacy programs for detained youth in NYC)http://www.literacyforincarceratedteens.org/
Admission $20 in advance/ $25 at the door, includes one raffle ticket
Featuring:
- Master & Mistress of Ceremonies, author Robert Sullivan & librarian extraordinaire Sarah Simms
- Live music from Nine/11 Thesaurus, Living Days, Hungry March Band, The Rude Mechanical Orchestra, & Lucky Chops Brass Band
- Foot juggling and trapeze artists The Anne-tipodist & Jean Loscalzo
- DJs Jonathan Toubin of New York Night Train, Duane Harriott, Rob Sheffield, Rob Dyrenforth, Jay Diamond, Jimmy T., Brian Kraft, Ryan Tozzi, Matt Fiveash, Don Stahl, & Megan Awesome
- Incredibly fancy prizes in the Fancy Pants Raffle
- Literary Drink Specials
- Happy Hour sponsored by Tuthilltown Spirits
- Photo Portraits by Jeremy Balderson
- Illustrated Portraits by J. Penry
- Delicious food by La Tia Faby Baked Goods, Sweetie Pies, and Sharif Hassan
Be sure to participate in the Fancy Pants Raffle! The more money we raise, the more books and programming nonprofit Literacy for Incarcerated Teens (LIT) can provide to incarcerated and court-involved youth. Raffle prizes have been generously donated by the MoMA, The Strand, Penguin Books, Coach, Brooklyn Historical Society, Huckleberry Bar, Enid’s, Diamond Bar, Permanent Records, Vox Pop, Camille Hempel Jewelry, Rosewater restaurant, St. Mark’s Bookshop, Bierkraft, Exhale spa, WORD book store, and many more.
And remember, you don’t have to be a librarian to join the party, you just have to dance with one!
About the performers:
- The Anne-tipodist and Jean: Anne Antipodist is a librarian who took a sabbatical from the San Francisco Public Library to go to China and learn foot juggling. And she forgot to come back… Three years later she performs the foot juggling version of “The Naughty Librarianâ€. Anne currently teaches tightwire, antipodism, and more at the Trapeze Loft, as well as teaching Circus Fitness, Creative Arts and Research Skills at Columbia Secondary School in Harlem. A little bit circus, a little burlesque, a lot of fun. Trapeze artist and Supercreator Jean Loscalzo is delighted to be performing in honor of the Librarian Revolution!
- The Hungry March Band: Roaring out of Brooklyn comes the Hungry March Band, NYC’s legendary street brass march band in the anarchic style that has become their trademark. Put on your dancing shoes and break out the fancy threads because they’ve got a party going on — a blazing parade of flesh, blood, steel, brass and wood. They are the music of the people!
- Nine 11 Thesaurus: “When the towers fell we rose!†nine11thesaurus is a hip-hop collective of like minded revolutionary MC’s centered in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Ranging in ages from 13-20, these teens each have a unique experience and voice to bring to the mic. They have shared the stage with Mr. Lif and Prefuse 73, and just put down the last tracks for their debut album scheduled for release in November 2009 with production from Skeletons and Tim Dewitt (of Gang Gang Dance).
- Living Days: Living Days is a new romantic pop outfit from Brooklyn. They love each other dearly. They still believe in true love. They know things are only getting better. They take care of each other and want you to do the same with the ones you love.
- The Lucky Chops Brass Band: New and improved, the Lucky Chops Brass is making a big stink in New York City. The five-piece brass band combines unhealthy amounts of jazz, rock’n roll and golden era hip-hop to get a funky groove that will make you dance like you mean it. Joined in the past by such jazzers as Wynton Marsalis and Kevin Blancq, you can be sure that they won’t be leaving any time soon.
- Rude Mechanical Orchestra: The Rude Mechanical Orchestra is a 30-odd-piece New York City radical marching band and dance troupe. Through our music and performance, we strive to support people and communities working for social justice. We play protests, demonstrations, direct actions, picket lines, marches, benefits and events for good causes. We function as a democratic collective through consensus-based decision-making and we do not discriminate on the basis of musical ability. We formed in the spring of 2004 for the March for Women’s Lives in Washington, D.C. and solidified to support people protesting the Republican National Convention in New York. We were a motley mix of rusty players that hadn’t picked up a horn since high school and longtime street bandistas on leave from Hungry March Band or the Infernal Noise Brigade, blowing sour notes at the invading greedheads and serenading the rabble.
Literacy for Incarcerated Teens (LIT) is an all-volunteer, community-based organization making a difference in the lives of some of NYC’s most vulnerable young people. LIT’s mission is to ensure that all of New York City’s detained youth have access to library materials and library services of the highest quality. We are currently working with Passages Academy, NYCDOE’s school program for incarcerated and detained youth, and its partner NYC’s Department of Juvenile Justice, on an ambitious project to create model libraries inside our city’s juvenile detention centers. For more information, please visit http://www.literacyforincarceratedteens.org.
Living Days
RSS
Recent Comments