Categories
English Sexual politics

Kink Against Racism

Leather and SM people against nazism

Europride 2002 in Cologne. Photo: Svein Skeid
The European leather/SM movement has a long tradition against rasism and nazism. As early as in 1978 the AGM of ECMC – the gay “European Confederation of Motorcycle Clubs” – discussed how to stop Nazi elements from infiltrating their member-clubs.

The ECMC member club MS Panther Köln, in 1993 started “Leder gegen Rechts”, and decorated an “anti-nazi fleet” during the CSD (Christopher Street Day) parade that year.

Illustration right:
The German ECMC-club Rote Erde “Leder Gegen Rechts” 1993.

In 1998 the ECMC AGM, with their 50 european member clubs included an article in their Constitution against “Racist and Nazi attitudes, manifestations and actions, as well as membership in corresponding anti-democratic organizations”.

Fetisch gegen Rechts
More than one million people saw the five km long Europride parade 2002 in Cologne, included the huge anti-nazi-wagon from the big Cologne leather bar “Chairs”.
Picture left, Photo: Svein Skeid.

There was also a “Leder gegen rechts”-booth during the Folsom Europe Street Fair in Berlin in September 2004.

 

HERE IS THE TEXT OF THE 1998 ECMC RESOLUTION:
The ECMC AGM 1998 approves the following resolution:
“Racist and nazi attitudes, manifestations and actions, together with membership in ditto antidemocratic organisations is not consistent with membership in our democratic ECMC-clubs.”

Arguments for the proposal:
“The intention with this proposal is to secure the address lists and membership archives of our member clubs from being misused by antidemocratic elements.
We also carry the above resolution to foster fraternal brotherhood with our foreign cultural individual members and in solidarity with ECMC clubs fighting against nazi violence and for information about the difference between leather and nazi.
Today there is different attempts of building up networks of gay leather nazi organisations in Europe. We see this as a threat against the security of our ECMC-clubs and individual members.
The european leather community has a anti nazi tradition. Already in 1978 the ECMC AGM discussed how to stop nazi elements from infiltrating our member clubs. With the above resolution we want to confirm this anti nazi attitude.”

 

No nazifetish at Gear Fetish.
The gay leather internet community GearFetish.com takes stand against German swastikas and other nazi related symbols (Juni 1, 2005).


People of all colours at Folsom Street Fair Europe in Berlin 2004, picture right. The big street fair also included a “Leder Gegen Rechts”-boot.
Photo: Svein Skeid


Categories
English Sexual politics

The SM Pride 2003

The SM Pride 2003

Some of the pictures can be watched in a bigger version by clicking on them.




Svein Skeid from the ReviseF65 group, held a workshop focussing on the work to remove the Fetish and SM diagnoses, at Conway Hall, Betrand Russell Room, after the SM Pride March. The room was filled up with more than 25 listeners. An engaged audience and a successful workshop.




From Conway Hall after the march.


Bullwhipping at the SM Pride Pervefest. (Picture by the SM Pride organizers).


Rosie at Conway Hall at the SM Pride Pervefest. (Picture by the SM Pride organizers).

The SM Pride official website



 

he SM Pride official website

SM Pride was founded in the wake of the British Spanner case in 1992 – to promote BDSM as a valid sexuality and to campaign for BDSM legality and equality (see picture in the middle above). The SM Pride organizers invited people to join the march under “the colours (…) black and blue, the official colours of SM Pride”. As wievers have observed, this is not exactly the same flag as the international acknowlished “Leather Flag” designed by Tony de Blase in 1989 (picture right). The original Leather Pride Flag by author and publisher Tony de Blase (1942-2000), was first displayed on May 28, 1989 at the International Mr Leather contest in Chicago. The hand-sewn original now hangs in Chicago’s Leather Archive and Museum. Though the Leather Pride Flag emerged from the gay male leather/SM scene, the flag has got pansexual currency. Today it stands as a symbol for the leather/SM/Fetish community- people who are into leather, sadomasochism, bondage, domination, uniforms, rubber and other kind of sexual fetishes. Though it is obviously inspired by the lesbian and gay rainbow flag, de Blase (Fledermaus) has been famously reticent in giving an explanation of the design. ‘I did have definite reasons for creating the design and color scheme [but] I have never explained them to anyone else’, he says. I prefer that the individual look at the flag and interpret it for him/herself, reading into it whatever he/she most wants to see. One common interpretation of the design is that the red heart represents the love we feel; the white stripe represents purity or hope; the black stripe, for leather; and the blue stripe, denim (both materials commonly worn and fetishised in the leather and SM communities). The original Leather Pride Flag is composed of nine horizontal stripes of equal width. From the top and from the bottom, the stripes alternate black and royal blue. The central strip is white. In the upper left quadrant of the flag is a large heart.

Some of the pictures are possible to watch in a bigger version by clicking on them.

The rainbow flag:
Leathermen and women have always been a part of the gay and lesbian movement.

 

“PROUD TO BE A PERV”
on his chest.

Who are “Les Miserables”?
Sure, we are playing a theater.
Click on the picture for a bigger version.

“TRUE LOVE HURTS”
on his back.

Submitting to his domina.



The sound of the drummers is an important part of the total picture


As alwais,
Pony carts are popular in front of the march


A human horse


More ponies

Some of the pictures are possible to watch in a bigger version by clicking on them

A female pony