OCT

16

Killjoy'sKastle:ALesbianFeministHauntedHouse

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October16,2013October30,2013
Oct16,2013at6:00pmtoOct30,2013at9:00pm

303LansdowneAvenueTorontoON(atthecrotchof
DundasandCollegeStreets)

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DeepLeztoCreepLez
EachHalloweenradicalevangelicalgroupsallovertheUSAandCanada
buildhellhouses.Beginninginthe70s,theseperformeranimated
installationsshowcaseagruesomeretributionforthesinsoffornication,
abortion,suicide,occultism,andofcoursesamesexrelationships.
ThisHalloweenTorontoartistAllysonMitchellreclaimsthishellish
scenariowithhercrowdsourced,lesbianfeminist,queerfearfightingand
reinforcingKillJoysKastle:ALesbianFeministHauntedHouse.

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Hey,I'msomeonewithapenisandtesticles.Thatis,atranswoman.I
sawtheBuzzfeedarticleaboutyourhauntedhouseandI'mnotsurehow
toreadthe"severedpenises"and"ballbuster"stuff.Irealizetheneedto
rageoutagainstmenandthepatriarchybutitfeelslikethepartyeither
includesmeasanintendedtargetor,atbest,excludesmecompletely.

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Ihopeyoudon'tfeelI'mtrashingtheevent(beingakilljoyyoumightsay,
nyuknyuk).I'mstillinterestedinseeingthewholethingmyselfbuthadto
voicehowmyselfandalotoftranswomenIknowseemtobefeeling.I'm
curioustohearthingsfromtheorganizers'perspectives.

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JadeGarnetand72otherslikethis.

IszEllisIhavetoechothesefeelings.Ireally,REALLYdigtheideabehindthisand
wouldhatetojustcomplainaboutalotofobviouslyhardworkandcreativity,butit
makesmereallyuncomfortabletoseestuffequatinghavingapenistobeingmale,
especiallyinsuchaviolentway.
Itotallygetthatit'sahauntedhouse,sooneshouldexpectthegrotesqueand
shocking,it'snotthatthatbothersme.
October18,2013at5:09pmLike 15
GardeniaFloresThecentralpointofthehauntedhouseisthatthespooks
arealltheculturalbogeymenoffeminism.Hencetheballbusters,etc
becausefeministsareaccusedofbeingballbusters.
October18,2013at6:07pmLike

IszEllisYes,andIgetthat,butthosespecificjokesarepartofacissexist
narrativethatexcludesandisolatestranswomen(orotherMAABqueers),
andwouldbereally,reallygreatiftheywouldbeputawayandnotthrownin
ourfaces,especiallybycispeople.Especiallybyotherqueers.
Justsayin'.Again,I'mnottryingtobeshittyabouttheprojectasawhole,I
thinkit'sawesome.Itjustreallysuckstoseethisstuffagain.
October18,2013at6:32pmLike

11

JadeGarnetIguessthethingformeiswhileIgetthepointofexhibitingsuch
thingsasculturalbogeymen,itisverycommonforcisdykefeministstohalf
jokinglybelieveinthemthesamewaythatIhalfjokinglybelievemyselfwhen
IsayI'mfullofmisandry.Whichisalsofineuntilyouconsidertheveryreal
historyoftheformerbeingusedbyciswomeninverbal,spiritualand
sometimesevenphysicalactsofviolenceagainsttranswomen.
WhileIdonotcurrentlybelieveanyoftheworkinthisprojectwasintendedto
evokethatrealformofviolence,andIactuallyimaginealotofgood
intentionedeffortwentintocreatingsomethingintendedtobenefitalllesbian
feminists,whendealingwithphrasesandtropesthathavesuchahistoryI
feelit'sveryimportanttoacknowledgethatsuchahistoryexists.Iabsolutely
agreethattocismentropessuchas"ballbusters"arebogeymenimagined
monstersthatdon'texistbutasIszhaspointedout,totranswomenand
otherCAMABtrans*peoplethesephrasesandtropeshaveahistoryofbeing
usedtoisolateandexcludeusfromqueerwomen'scommunities.
Iactuallythinktheideaofthisprojectisgreat,andIwasinitiallyveryexcited
whenIheardaboutit.However,Iamnowcuriousastowhat,ifanything,has
beendonetoaddresstheverydifferentculturalcontextthese"bogeymen"
havefortranswomenandotherCAMABtrans*people.
October18,2013at7:26pmLike

25

IszEllis^^that.
Jade'sfarbetteratwordingitthanI.Totallyagainwiththestressingthatthisis
otherwiseanawesomeandbrilliantthing.
October18,2013at7:48pmLike 1
FreddieSEArpsYeah,Iamwonderinghowtorecreatethe'ballbuster'
tropeintosomethingotherthantransphobicimagery...I'mtootirednow,but
maybetomorrowwecouldstartactuallybrainstormingtotransformthesetwo
pieces.Pardonthepun.
let'sseeifwecancomeupwithideas,becausetheseareourtropestoo.I
don'twanttowaitfortheartistsinvolvedtofiguresomethingoutalthough
thatwouldbegreatofcourse.
Let'shaveavirtualcoffeetomorrowandseeifwecanadaptthebustedballs
outoftheKastle?
Let'sTakeBacktheKastle."BOOM!"
October18,2013at9:52pmLike

EvanVipondasatransidentifiedpersonwhoattendtheevent,Iwould
recommendseeingitinperson.Itisnotaliteraldepictionandishandled
responsiblyandtastefully.Thewholepointofthiseventisforconversation
andtochallengethesestereotypesandalsomakenoteofsomeofthe
problematicideologiesofsecondwavefeminism.Itisatrulyincrediblepiece
ofwork,absolutelynottransphobicinanyway,andtheartistmakesherself
availableattheendtodiscusstheimagery,meanings,implications,
problemsanddebriefwiththeaudience.Beforeyoucriticize,givetheartist
andtheinstallationachance.
October18,2013at9:58pmLike 17
GardeniaFloresOkay,thankyouJadeGardinerforelaborating.Iunderstand
yourpositionandwhythesepiecesareproblematic.Inadditionto
addressingthesetwopieces,raceandclassalsoneedtobeaddressed,i.e.
feminismisoftenseenaswhiteandmiddleclass.

October18,2013at10:01pmLike

AemiliusMiloHeyEvan,Iwouldbecarefularoundderailinganecessary
conversationalreadyhappening.Asatransmasculineidentifiedperson
myself,it'simportanttobeopentoreceivingcriticism/thoughts/implications
voicedetc.oftranswomenexperiencebeingthatasit'sbeenalready
stated,feminsmandqueercommunitiesatlargehaveexcludedandviolently
ignoredtheseexperiences.Ihaven'tattendedyetbutItoohavequestions.I
thinkiftheartistasyousaymakesherselfavailablethanthatmeansshe's
totallyopentothesediscussionbeinghad.Justbecausepeopleare
dialoguing,doesn'tnecessarilymeantheworkorthepersonisbeing
insulted.Lastly,Ithoughttomentionthathavingadebriefroom/debriefing
availabilitydoesntnecessarilymeanitissafetodoso.Forexample,from
whatIveheardmanyofthe"staff"werewhiteasapersonofcolourhowcan
onefeelsafeindebriefingwhensurroundedinwhitenessinsuchanintense
way.ImadeittothelineonWednesdayandunfortunatelycouldntwaitthe
twohourstogetin..butImustsay,walkingintoacrowdofhundredsofwhite
lesbiansandIasatransmanofcolourwasquitetheexperienceand
triggeringinitself,IhadnoideawhattoexpectontheinsidebutIvalueand
respectAllysonMitchell'sworksoIwaslookingandstillamlookingforward
toseeingwhat'sinside.Weshallsee.Anyway,thosearemytwocents.
October18,2013at11:04pmEditedLike 25
JadeGarnetSpeakingdirectlyastowhatcanbedonewith"ballbuster"and
"severedpenis"tropes:honestly,smallacknowledgementsoftheproblem
wouldgoalongway.Oneideamightbeasmallsealorcertificatethatsays
somethinglike"100%cismansourcedAtransmisogynyfreeproduct."It
wouldn'tnecessarilyfixeverything,butitwouldatleastbeagesturethat
they'renottryingtoperpetuatethenotionthatpenisesandanyonewhohas
onedoesn'tbelonginlesbianspaces,andanyonewhothinkslikethat
shouldchecktheircissexismandtransmisogyny.
October18,2013at11:18pmLike 20
JadeGarnetAlso,yeah.BeingatransmanorotherCAFAB/transmasculine
trans*persondoesn'tespeciallymakeapersonautomaticallymoreawareor
alerttotransmisogyny.I'mjustgoingtoflatoutsaythat.
October18,2013at11:22pmLike

21

MorganSeaThismightsoundlikeatotallycrazysuggestionbutifwecreated
anewtropewherecislesbiansweresuddenlyknownforlovingandcaring
abouttranswomen!
Togettheculturaltropeballrolling,wehaveabigpotluck,andallthetrans
lesbiansandcislesbiansarethereandwelikeenjoyeachotherscompany
andmaybesomepeoplemakeoutbutit'snotreallyallaboutthatitmore
aboutlikecislesbiansmakingtranswomenapartoftheirlivesandart
projectsandsportsteamsandcanoetripsandbbqsandwhatever!
ANDthenit'ssuchamassiveturnaroundfromthewaythingshavebeen40
years,thatevenliketherightwingnewsmediapicksthestoryup!"OHNO!If
youthoughtLesbianswereonlyafteryourdaughters,thinkagain,theywant
youreffeminatesonstoo!(sic)LESBIANSRAMPAGETRANSEXUALIZES
THENATION!Fullnewscoverageat11!"
FromtherewehaveaperfectwaytomakeKilljoyscastletotallycoolfortrans
womenbynextyearsharvest
October19,2013at1:23amLike 41
JadeGarnetIlikeyoursuggestionwaybetterthanmine.
October19,2013at1:27amLike 3
CindyBakerMorgan,I'MIN!
October19,2013at1:29amLike

GardeniaFloresMorganSeabrilliant
October19,2013at3:04amLike
KalmplexSeenSogladurwilltotackletransissuesbutwheniwriteabout
howracistandwhitethehousewasigetcrickets...Goodtoknownothings
changed.Koodoostowhotepeopleandtheirnarrowmindedlense.The
criticalbreakdownoftheeventiwrotewaspostedtoyourpageyetnoone
fromyourcommitteewantedtoaddressthat.Sohopefullyuwontjustbe
makingaawhitetransinclusiverevisionbutaninclussiveonethatisn'tjust
whitecuzugotthatonlock.
October19,2013at4:15amLike 18
JadeGarnetIthinkit'sawfulthatyoudidn'tgetmorefeedbacktoyourpost,
Kalmplex.Iunderstandhowfrustratingthatis.Tobehonesthowever,Idon't
seethatanyoneinvolvedinorganizingthiseventhasaddressedtheissues
raisedinthisthreadeither,oratleastnobodywhohasidentifiedthemselves
assuch.WhatImostlyseeissometranswomenmakingsomenoiseanda
smallhandfulofotherpeoplechoosingtoactinsolidarity,andcomplete
silencefromtheorganizersofthethingbeingcritiqued.Andthat'sthesame
oldshitforustoo.

Thatsaid,ifyouwouldliketoshareanycritiquesofwhat'sbeendiscussedin
thisthreadthusfar,Iwoulddefinitelyvaluethat.
October19,2013at9:51amLike

KalmplexSeenIguessireadintowhomeveritwasthatsaidthey'dbeinto
restructuringtransfobicexclusionassomeonewhohadsomeauthorityto
implementchangewithintheshow.Butyaialsothinksomeofthedialogue
can'tjustbetranscuzblack/poc/indigenoustranspeoplearen'tnecessarily
representedwhentranscomesup.It'susuallymeantfoethewhitesectorand
thattooisproblematic.
October19,2013at10:08amLike

FreddieSEArpsOnereasonIdidnotrespondtoyourpostKalmplex,and
nowIwill,isthatitonlygivesalinktoareview.Ihadalreadyreadlotsof
them,didn'thavetimetoreadmore.
Maybeyoucouldedititandputinthetitle'racist/whiteprivilege'orsomething
toshowthatitisnotjustanotherreview.
AndIammixed,passingaswhite,nonbinarytrans,mostoftenpassingas
masculine,sometimesasfeminine.
October19,2013at10:19amLike
NicBravoEvan:doyouknowhowcommonitisfor(white)transguysto
cometothedefenseofciswomenwhentranswomenspeakupabout
transmisogyny?Thedynamicis:queer/dykespaces**love**trans
masculinitiesandhatetranswomen.Thatyoudidn'tfindtheeventupsetting
meansabsolutelynothingandyouare*implicated*inthiscriticism.
October19,2013at10:36amLike

12

JadeGarnetKalmplex:Idon'tbelievethepersonwhosaidthathasanything
todowithorganizingtheevent.Ibelieveshewasjustsuggestingthatif
lesbianfeministsactuallygottheirshittogetherandstoppedtreatingtrans
womenlikeshitthatnoneofthiswouldbeanissue.
Iagreethatthiscannotjustbeabouttransmisogyny,butracismand
colonialismalsoneedtobeaddressed.Infact,Istronglybelievethatwewill
notevertrulyendanyoppressionunlessweworktobringdownallformsof
oppressionsimultaneously.Irealizethatfrequentlytheconcernsoftrans
peopleofcolour,especiallytranswomenofcolour,areignoredinmany
formsoftransactivism.Thathistoryisindefensibleandneedstobe
acknowledgedandaddressed.TheonlyreasonIdidnotraiseissuesofrace
untilnowisthatIhavenotyetseentheeventinpersonandcanonlyspeakto
whatIhaveseenpostedonline,andwhileIconsidereditlikelythattheevent
wasverywhite,Ididnothaveanystrongevidenceeitherway,soIchosenot
tospeaktoituntilIhadmoreinformation.Irealizeitwould'vebeenbetterto
directlyraisethequestionsoitcouldbeaddressedbyotherswhohadmore
information,andformypartIapologisefornotdoingthat.
October19,2013at10:36amEditedLike

EvanVipond"Thedynamicis:queer/dykespaces**love**trans
masculinitiesandhatetranswomen."ACTUALLY,thereisALOTof
trasphobiaagainsttransmeninthelesbiancommunity(transmenareseenas
traitors,astryingtogainmaleprivilegeandasanenemy)andtransmenare
oftenridiculedandexpelledfromcismalespaces.Justputtingthatoutthere.
Alltranspersonsfacetransphobiaandcissexismandneithertranswomen
nortransmenarebetteroff.Anditisverydisappointingthatother
transpersonsareassumingmyidentityasa"transman"whenIneverstated
thatismyidentitynormybiology.Mypointwas,don'tcriticizeuntilyou've
givenitachance.
October20,2013at12:11pmLike
JadeGarnet"...andneithertranswomennortransmenarebetteroff."Iguess
maleprivilegedoesn'texistthen.Mymistake.
October20,2013at12:29pmEditedLike 5
NicBravo"Mypointwas,don'tcriticizeuntilyou'vegivenitachance."
Yeah,weknowthat'syrpoint.Ourresponseis:youcan'tstopusfrom
criticizingit,we'vehadampleopportunitytoobserveproblematicaspectsofit
withoutattending,otherpeoplehaveattendedandcriticizedit,andyouare
derailingandsilencingus.
October20,2013at12:35pmLike 4
BuzzSlutzkyEvanIamalwayssooooembarassedwhentransmasculine
peoplefeeltheneedtotrytoconvincefolkswithindiscussionsof
transmisogynythatwearesomehowforgettingabouttheoppressionoftrans
men.Weallwatchedboysdon'tcry,criedabouttheproblemsoftransguys,
andyearslaternowChloeSevigny(whoplayedthegirlfriendofBrandon
Teena)isrunningaroundsayingitwasawfultoplayatranswomanbecause
shehatesdicks.Canwepleasegiveitarestandshowsomerespectandput
moreenergyintoshowingChloewho'sboss(transwomen).

October20,2013at3:11pmLike

BuzzSlutzky(notbossasinpatriarchybutbossasinawesome,butnot
exclusively)
October20,2013at3:12pmLike
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