NYC—On Nov 17, over 50 LGBTQ Koreans, parents, and allies came to support the planning of the first Queer and Trans Korean conference to be held in 2018.
Organizers shared their vision for the national conference, focusing on 3 areas of importance to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) Koreans: promoting family acceptance, engaging faith communities, and addressing mental health challenges. We invited input around key areas through 3 break-out groups that allowed folks to brainstorm ideas.
We screened several LGBTQ Korean videos. One by the Asian Pride Project "할머니 비디오" featured KQTCON member Elena Chang talking with her grandmother about their relationship and journey to acceptance (shown at left). Another video showed a touching campaign of Free Hugs by Korean parents at the 2016 Queer Pride Parade in South Korea (한국 부모님들 프리 허그 영상).
In 2016, Korean American Rainbow Parents (KARP) gathered LGBTQ Koreans, family members, and members of faith communities for a groundbreaking convening. We played a short video showing highlights from the event (shown at right). Lastly, we screened the preview of a new documentary capturing the coming out stories of LGBTQ Asians and Pacific Islanders directed by KQTCON member Patrick Lee (shown below).
Joel Kim Booster
Comedian Joel Kim Booster, known for his appearances on national TV on Conan O'Brien, headlined the event. Joel talked about growing up as a Korean adoptee in the Midwest and experiences navigating gay scenes and apps in NYC.
The KQTCON Kickoff + Fundraiser was the first official event announcing the conference. We hope to have more community events in the future, leading up to the conference in April 2018!