Experts in various fields will examine the external factors that influence the construction of LGBTIQ+ identities, how queer theories can contribute to feminism, and how social media can become settings for violence.
The Barcelona LGBTI Centre will devote its 2nd Annual Conference to examining the mechanisms through which discourses on gender and sexuality arise. The event, which will be held on 23 and 24 October, will bring together experts in the fields of psychology, anthropology, communication and sociology.
The Annual Conference will start at 5.30 pm on Friday, 23 October with an institutional welcome by Deputy Mayor for Social Rights, Global Justice, Feminisms and LGBTI Laura Pérez Castaño, accompanied by Platforma LGTBICat president Joaquim Roqueta and LGBTI Centre director Andreu Agustín.
This will be followed by the opening speech, which will be given by Lupicinio Íñiguez Rueda, a doctor of Psychology from the UAB. What causes a minority idea to become so widespread that it is capable of influencing ideologies? Starting from this general question, Íñiguez Rueda will analyse, among other matters, what factors have contributed to the spread of feminism, what has caused trans-exclusionary ideologies to appear and why phenomena such as LGBTI-phobia, male chauvinism, racism and classism are becoming more prevalent.
The round tables will be held from noon on Saturday, 24 October. The first of these will analyse the weight of culture and the social context on a person’s behaviour and their relationship with their own body and those of other people, with everything that this entails with respect to how we experience, express and question gender and sexuality. The photographer and trans activist Mar Llop will moderate a debate between Marisela Montenegro (a doctor of Social Psychology from the UAB), Alice Van den Bogaert (a doctor of Social and Cultural Anthropology from the UAB) and Arnau Roig (a doctor of Communications and Media from the University of Illinois).
The possible contributions of queer theories to the subject of feminism will be discussed at 4 pm. Cristina Garaizabal, a psychologist with expertise in supporting trans people at the LGBTI Centre, will moderate a round table aimed at arguing against the discourses that have recently tried to compare feminisms with queer theories. Researcher and non-binary trans activist Rosa Maria García, sociologist and queer theory specialist Javier Sáez del Álamo and “El Salto Diario” journalist Sarah Babiker will reflect on the alignments and synergies that can emerge between the two currents of thought.
The Conference will conclude with a third round table on the relationship between technology and the increase in LGBTI-phobia. From 6.15 pm, Ton Mansilla, a lawyer and coordinator of the Observatory against Homophobia (OCH) Complaints Office, will moderate a discussion about how social media and applications have contributed to the dissemination of hate speech and turned into control tools for the use of violence in sexual and emotional relationships. Criminal lawyer and adviser to the OCH Laia Serra, freelance activist and workshop facilitator Na Pai, and Donestech group representative Ona will take part in the discussion.
A Covid-19-compliant day
As with all events at the LGBTI Centre, a number of Covid-19 safety and hygiene measures will be implemented at the 2nd Annual Conference. The event can be followed in person, with reduced capacity, by registering in advance at the email address info@centrelgtbibcn.org. Each table will have its own separate register so that each person can decide which session they wish to attend. In addition, the talks and round table discussions will be streamed live on YouTube.
