The Museum of Hidden Histories Journal

Issue 01, Vol. 01, July 2020 ISSN 2634-436X (Online) £4.99 The Museum of Hidden Histories Journal The Museum of Hidden Histories Journal Edited by Jonathan Lee Published by The Museum of Hidden Histories, 2020 Margam Wales UK ISSN 2634-436X (Online) All Rights Reserved Copyright The Museum of Hidden Histories Not-For-Profit Front Cover Image: The Icelandic Punk Museum, taken by Rachael Lee. 1 Welcome to The Museum of Hidden Histories Journal Croeso. Welcome to our first edition of The Museum of Hidden Histories Journal! This journal will include articles, reviews, creative pieces which all carry the museum’s core values and focus. This first volume is written by members of the museum from all perspectives of history and heritage. If you would like to contribute an article please email [email protected] with your proposal and we can take it from there. We hope you enjoy the journal and future editions. Thanks again for your support. Jon Lee Editor The Museum of Hidden Histories Journal 2 3 Contents The Future is Non-Binary. Hannah Durham………………………………………………………………………6 International Velvet: A (very) Brief History of Attitudes to the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Communities in Wales and what the Black Lives Matter Movement means for our Future. Jon Lee…………………………………………………………………………………..17 ‘No Gods. No Masters. No Law. No Power. No Boarders. No Wars.’ Chaos, Claustrophobia and Punk. An exploration of Space within the Icelandic Punk Museum. Rachael Lee…………………………………..………………………………………………….…27 Not as Massive, but Just as Real: Alternative Music Scenes in Small Welsh Towns. Ryan Williams………………………………………………………………….…….42 Just So You Know: Essays of Experience. Edited by Hanan Issa, Durre Shahwar & özgür Uyanik, Book Review. Rachael Lee………………………………………………………………………………………..52 4 5 The Future is Non-Binary. Hannah Durham, Independent Writer. Abstract Gender and sexuality do not exist in a binary. They each exist in a spectrum, home to a diverse range of important identities. A binary approach to gender and sexuality is inherently flawed and ultimately racist as non-binary (NB) people have existed across the world for hundreds of years. It also creates a harmful, hostile society that enforces oppressive stereotypes onto us all. This piece draws attention to the existence of NB identities, now and historically, the danger linked to the erasure of NB identities and some key ways that we can be better allies and embrace non-binary identities. Keywords Gender, Sexuality, Identity, Non-Binary, Gender Expression, Gender Identity, LGBTQ, Queer ____________________________ Infinite, valid expressions of gender and sexuality are not found in the binary. They exist and thrive in the vibrant, breathing spectrum of the non-binary. Understanding gender as simply male or female and sexuality as heterosexual or homosexual falls into the trap of acknowledging identities only insofar as they adhere to outdated stereotypes and ideals around the performance of femininity and masculinity. The binary is a 6 social construct that is inherently problematic and flawed. At its core, it dictates how we should express our gender and sexuality based solely on our anatomy. Whilst a social construct is not inherently true, that “...does not mean that it is invalid or unimportant”.1 We navigate a world built on social constructs, but we must think critically about whether they are useful, healthy or accurate. There is a whole spectrum of gender and sexual identities that are not exclusively male or female, masculine or feminine, hetero- or homosexual. Similarly, the expression of these identities is fluid, vast, complex and important. As Stonewall states “non-binary identities are varied and can include people who identify with some aspects of binary identities, while others reject them entirely.”2 It’s important to note here that whilst ‘non-binary’ is typically used to signify gender expressions, in this piece I will be using the term non-binary to refer to each wider spectrum of gender, and sexual and romantic identities, particularly those that lie ‘outside’ of the norm. I will be referring to both gender and sexuality in this piece as the fight for equality for queer and trans people has been historically linked thanks to the instrumental work of trans 1 Adam Rutherford, How to Argue with a Racist, (London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2020). 2 Stonewall, Glossary of Terms (2020), stonewall.org.uk ,hhtps://www.stonewall.org.uk/help-advice/faqs-and- glossary/glossary-terms#> [Accessed 14/07/2020]. 7 women of colour such as Marsha P Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, who were paramount in kick-starting the LGBTQ+ rights movement with the Stonewall uprising (or Stonewall riots) of June 28, 1969. Whilst gender and sexuality are, of course, separate elements of an individual’s identity, they are both often viewed on a binary scale that is exclusionary and limited. An intersectional approach to understanding identity is also crucial, as the facets of our identity do not exist in a vacuum. Our identities can also be influenced by our race, class, ethnicity, religion, and much more. Whilst someone may be marginalised because of their gender and/or sexuality, they can also experience multiple forms of marginalisation at the same time. As Audre Lorde said, “There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.”3 The acknowledgement of non-binary identities also calls for the awareness that these identities do not exist on their own. Erasing Non-Binary Identities is Dangerous As a Western society, we understand the binary. The binary is comfortable, familiar and feels safe, but it’s only safe for those whose identities are never questioned, delegitimised, ignored or used as ammunition against them. It is a privilege to feel safe within the binary, because for a lot of people it excludes them and its reinforcement can be harmful. 3 Audre Lorde, ‘Learning from the 60s,’ in Sister Outsider: Essays & Speeches by Audre Lorde (Berkeley, CA: Crossing Press, 2007). 8 Whilst non-binary identities are gaining popularity in the West, a diverse understanding of gender is nothing new across the world and is certainly not a modern or white invention. As Queer House Party states “The gender binary is a Western imposition” and it is colonialism that “has pushed the gender binary to every corner of the planet”.4 Transgender charity, Mermaids adds that “non-binary identities have actually been accepted and appreciated for thousands of years, existing in cultures and tribes around the world”.5 Non-binary gender identities can be seen across the world, including the “two spirit people in North American indigenous cultures to the five genders of the people on the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia” and hijras, who are “officially recognized as third gender” with “… recorded history in the Indian subcontinent from antiquity onwards.”6 Transphobia and white supremacy “are all wrapped up together through colonialism, Western standards of femininity and patriarchal structures”. In recognising non-binary identities, we also “must be anti-racist.”7 When it comes to understanding identity, gender and sexuality, asking questions about the things that we are led to believe is 4 Queer House Party, Instagram (2020), <https://www.instagram.com/p/CCoDfWblrNW> [Accessed 14/07/2020]. 5 Mermaids, Instagram (2020), <https://www.instagram.com/p/CCn3rfCjUQc/> [Accessed 14/07/2020]. 6 Queer House Party, Instagram (2020), Ibid, Ibid. 7 Queer House Party, Instagram (2020). 9 essential. Trans model and activist, Munroe Bergdorf says that “...the conversations surrounding non-binary identities are so important. It is getting rid of gender stereotypes that ultimately oppress everybody. I think that being complacent and not challenging norms is dangerous, because marginalised people don’t benefit from the norm.”8 The danger for those who do not conform to normative ideas of gender and sexuality takes various forms. Stonewalls’ LGBT in Britain – Health (2018) report states that half of LGBT people said they had experienced depression in the last year.9 However, it’s not only people’s mental health that is impacted but also their safety and security, whether that’s in relationships, at home, school, the workplace, or in society. Stonewall’s LGBT in Britain – Home and Communities (2018) report highlights that less than 55% of LGBT people feel “able to be open about their sexual orientation or gender identity to their family.”10 Whilst 11% of LGBT people have faced domestic abuse from a partner, this increases to 17% for LGBT people of colour. Stonewall also reports that almost 1 in 5 LGBT people have experienced homelessness at some point in their life. 8 Munroe Bergdorf, Munroe Bergdorf: ‘At the beginning of my transition I felt the need to look feminine – now I don’t care’ (2019), The Guardian <https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2019/may/14/munroe-bergdorf- transition-feminine-transgender-model> [Accessed 14/07/2020]. 9 Stonewall, LGBT in Britain – Health (2018), Stonewall <https://www.stonewall.org.uk/lgbt-britain-health> [Accessed 13/07/2020]. 10 Stonewall, LGBT in Britain – Home and Communities ([n. d.]), Stonewall <https://www.stonewall.org.uk/lgbt-britain-home-and-communities> [Accessed 13/07/2020]. 10 In the workplace, the figures are just as distressing. Stonewall’s LGBT in Britain – Work (2018) report states that 1 in 8 trans people were attacked by customers or colleagues in the previous year, and the LGBT in Britain – Hate Crime (2017) report found that 2 in

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