Glenn Mullen | Contributing Writers
Fun times, banter, hangovers and friendships; these were all a number of things that I came to expect when the idea of ‘Pink Training 2013’ was brought to the forefront of conversation. After all, the tales from previous years had become legends of a sort; the tears, the dramas, the witty anecdotes and such appear to be remembered with a sense of fondness from those who have ventured on the ‘Pink extravaganza’ in previous years.
This was definitely the case when the 40-odd number of us set off for Belfast this year. We immediately got in the ‘Pink’ mood. Dressed within a half hour of arriving and chatting excitedly about the two nights to come, everyone was ‘On the Buzz’ so-to-speak. Both nights were a success; dancing, chats, drinks and good-natured frivolity were only a few aspects of them. We weren’t disappointed!
The nights were fantastic, but it was the days that impressed me the most. The Pink Training code of conduct describes it as ‘an environment that is conducive to learning about issues relating to sexuality and gender identity’. It would be difficult to argue that this was not the case. I became more attuned to the ins-and-outs of ‘Queer’. As someone who previously did not understand much about pronouns, I was immediately immersed in a world of ‘he’ ‘she’ and ‘they’ all helpfully illustrated on the quirky personalised lanyards given out prior to the workshops. The Pink Training itself we were introduced to a ‘safe space’ for all, in which ‘Queerness’ was the norm for the workshops.
One aspect that truly stood out most of all after the three surreal rainbow-coloured days was ‘Community’. A feeling of belonging and of course belonging to something bigger than yourself and your own struggles in life was present. ‘Coming-out workshops’ ‘Trans* 101’ and the likes can really illustrate how hard some LGBTQ people have it in their everyday life. There was one emotion in particular I really related to after taking part in these workshops. It wasn’t sadness, it wasn’t anger – it was pride. The understanding that we, as a Queer community, can go through the tough times, stick out the taunting from the ignorant of this world, and forge through the personal lows, and still at the end of the day be proud to be who we are; whether that be Gay, Straight, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and anything that it is indeed ‘Queer’.
The understanding that we, as a Queer community, can go through the tough times, stick out the taunting from the ignorant of this world, and forge through the personal lows, and still at the end of the day be proud to be who we are.
A poignant moment of the weekend can be described in a few short lines, yet this moment held more meaning than can be expressed in a few words on a page; flickering candlelight, gentle sobs, and a heartbreakingly silent room. This is how we marked the annual Trans remembrance day, a day dedicated to the lives of those that have been lost as a result of violence against transgender individuals worldwide. A minute silence, although not much, really can convey one thing in particular; that for even just a whole sixty seconds, we stop and we care. That as a community we stand united, and that it doesn’t matter whether you are the L, the G, the B, the T or any other letter, we still belong. There is no such thing as the ‘odd-one-out’ or the ‘freak’ or the ‘faggot’– derogatory terms like these had no meaning or place within the grounds of Queens University, Belfast on this crisp, cool November weekend. It was, as promised – a safe space, and one that carried right on through, from the workshops, to the clubs, from the lunches to the dinners and even on the bus-rides throughout the city of Belfast.
There are many who I should thank for the truly enlightening weekend I was part of; QSoc, Trinity & the friendly SU participants, USI, Queens University and many more – but mostly to the community I am proud to call my own. In years to come when I think of Pink Training, I will remember a number of things. It won’t just be the fun times I had or the topics I discussed; it will be the friendships I forged, the people that I impacted upon, and who impacted upon me. It will be the sympathy I felt and the tales I could relate to, it will be the life-lessons I learned and the pride I felt to be part of such an amazing and accepting community. Most-of-all I will remember this; Pink Training is not just a trip, it is first and foremost, an experience, and furthermore, one I will cherish for a lifetime.
