Protest as Art, Parties as Catalysts: The Duo-shaping Advocacy
To me , partying is a form of protest; to know that I’m not supposed to be in a room with a group of people because society deems it wrong, Yet I am. Because it’s a safe space for me and I’m around people who make me feel connectedyself, and have stories similar to mine. I think coming out to party and risking being hated on for the joy of being with people you love and who love you, is protesting happiness over fear. -Daniela
As a burgeoning social activist with a varying range of interests, I am discovering the value of creative expression and safe spaces in effecting change.
Parties and Protests are two phenomena I’m coming to realise have more in common than the letter ‘P’. They may appear exclusive, opposing even, yet they have many things in common; they are both centered around people, themes and power. Through both, disenfranchised people take up space and negotiate power.
Ghanaians love to party. We love to catch a good vibe and are constantly pairing even the littlest celebrations with music, food, dance and community, but we are also dealing with a lot of things. Our economy is in shambles, our democracy is under attack and our fundamental rights are being threatened. Somehow, young activists are combining both parties and protests. Parties; social gatherings ranging from informal to formal gatherings with friends, and themes with political consciousness and causes. And now, we are seeing a trend of conscious parties.
Conscious parties, often associated with the term “conscious nightlife”, emphasizes a more mindful and holistic approach to social gatherings and community engagements. These events incorporate elements of sustainability, community engagement, and well-being, and are especially important to marginalised communities who, because of the intersections of their identities, have even less access into general spaces of entertainment, advocacy and civic action. Conscious parties are curated with an intentional focus on creating a positive and meaningful experience, and an emphasis on fostering connections, personal growth, and awareness of social and environmental issues.
For the largest minority group; women, conscious parties are often the only way they can let go and express themselves without judgement, and the constraints cis-heteronormativity and gender-based violence present.
I think that even though in larger societies, women/ queer/ gender non-conforming people don’t really have a space or a voice. For those few hours at a party (exclusively for those groups), you have some sense of liberation; you can be free, be yourself, and be surrounded by people who celebrate you.
It’s an opportunity for release, connection and pure joy. You get to breathe for a second and have a glimpse of another reality, the reality we are working towards. – Rebekah
Partying can be letting go, connecting with people and celebrating your crazy sides which do not fit into society (at least if the party is a safe space). You can celebrate your kink, your sexuality, your gender identity, your style; you can celebrate your messiness. -Paula
‘‘Parties are a culmination of radical joy. Simultaneously, joy is a quiet yet formidable force in my life. It’s a conscious decision to embrace happiness, even in the face of adversity. Choosing joy is my way of affirming personal and collective resilience—a refusal to be defined or defeated by life’s challenges.’’
Joy is radical happiness and to curate spaces that prioritize these is an act of defiance. Especially when you live in systems designed to oppress. -Michaella
These are very much expressions of collective identity and in many instances, a reclamation of power. The same themes which drive Protest (culture); the public demonstration or expressions of objection, typically aimed at communicating a grievance, advocating for a particular cause or opposing a specific action, policy, or situation, are the same ones for which conscious spaces are curated. Protest methods, though varied, including marches, rallies, picketing, and other forms of peaceful expressions provide the citizenry with avenues where they can actively negotiate power. With events such as Obroni Wawu festival, we experience a combination of an awareness of sharing spaces with familiar presence, fashion and a conscious sense of what’s at hand.
Drama Queens Joyful Resistance combines discourse on Queer Liberation and Resistance with Art and Dance and Converstation. Jane Can Do and the Kitty Palace bring to the table women-centered music expositions, exhibitions and open mics.
In the grand scheme of advocacy, protests and parties might seem like opposite ends of the spectrum, but they are two sides of the same coin. While protests use the power of creative expression to demand change with a sense of urgency, conscious parties use the allure of fun and celebration to attract, educate, and engage a broader audieNCE.
As young Ghanaian queer feminist activists, it is almost impossible to not see how these queerness and feminism constantly blend one into the other, Ghanaian organising regardless of cause has always heavily centered around music and movement, from Teshie’s KpaaShim) to the 1948 Riots; boycotts and political party campaigns. Advocacy and political action in Ghana has often borrowed the subconscious elements of entertainment and the playful nature attached with Parties.
Protests grab attention and demand immediate action, while parties create, even if for a few hours at a time, a sense of camaraderie, community, through which they educate.
Advocacy campaigns which incorporate both elements allow for multi-dimensional and well-rounded campaigns which may appeal to a wider, more diverse range of people than traditional advocacy campaigns might, pushing the boundaries of change and allowing us see what the ideal world we aspire to create can look like, one step at a time.
And now more than ever these separate elements of civic consciousness and political will/action are being intentionally married with softer elements of messaging such as music, dance, art and community, to create safe spaces where partygoers can exist freely of society’s constraints.
Conscious parties, often associated with the term “conscious nightlife” emphasiZE a more mindful and holistic approach to social gatherings. These events may incorporate elements such as sustainability, community engagement and well-being.
Conscious party planning provides a purview into a world where women, queer people and gender non-conforming people can exist freely, protesting the patriarchy, its qualms, biases and conceptions, as well as cis-heteronormative expectations.
When I bring together the aspects of protest and joy, I discover a surprising equation: Protest is my Power, and Joy is my Power. Together, they create a dynamic synergy that empowers me on various fronts:
A marked element of conscious partying is that both curators or organisers, and partygoers share the responsibility of actively contributing to curating safe spaces where partygoers can access new information, process their emotions, reflect on their experiences and recharge their energy levels before returning to their respective lives and movements.
The interpersonal connections formed between individuals of diverse experiences are crucial because it fosters trust and collaboration among members of different communities, activists and advocacy campaigns. Especially now when social freedom and expression is being threatened in Ghana, as well as in many other countries, parties such as Afrodite and Friends’ women-only series, LRG’s Nirvana and The Sistah Sistah Foundations’ Party, Perforcraze Artist Residency’s Love Feast as well as Drama Queen’s Effervescence are some of the events revolutionising how Accra jams and organises towards change.
I am particularly grateful for the growing conscious partying scene in Accra and I know this is a shared sentiment. Though few and far between, I have met so many people, learnt so much and connected with many people with lived experiences from which my feminist practice and identity has evolved.