Queer Rock Camp With Stonewall Youth Empowering Youth With Music

Bambi Weavil March 6, 2011 1 Comment

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by Bambi Weavil (Out Impact on Facebook, Out Impact on Twitter)

Girls Rock Camp organizations started in Portland, Oregon and have grown nationwide and are independently run throughout the nation. Molly Fischer, organizer of Queer Rock Camp, is umbrellaed by an non-profit organization, Stonewall Youth. Stonewall Youth is an LGBT youth center in Olympia, Washington that is celebrating it’s 20^th anniversary this year and does a number of programs including drop-in hours and counseling as well as other valuable resources and safe spaces for queer youth. Queer Rock Camp partnering with Stonewall Youth (Facebook) is aimed to empower queer youth (and queer youth allies) with music in the Olympia area.

Queer Rock Camp will be hosting a week long music camp for Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, and Asexual youth and their allies. Through instrument instruction, band practice, and workshops, Queer Rock Camp aims to empower youth, ages 12 to 21, by building confidence, fostering and strengthening peer alliances and dismantling gender binaries. Queer Rock Camp aspires to promote queer visibility in music through L.G.B.T.Q.Q.I.A. and allied instructors, mentors, and visiting performers.

“This August we aim to host 50 campers both from the Northwest, and those visiting. In the years to come, we aim to expand to multiple camp sessions in order to accommodate all interested campers,” said Fischer.

Queer Rock Camp seeks volunteers (21 and up) who want to teach new musical skills to campers and encourage positive empowerment. In order to make their program accessible to all queer and allied youth, they are not requiring a tuition for camp. They are currently in need of monetary donations – to rent the camp space, provide food for campers and volunteers, and purchase necessary supplies- as well as equipment donations. Monetary donations can be made online at StonewallYouth.org, by specifying “Queer Rock Camp” in the designation section. They can provide their EIN number for tax deduction upon request. Equipment donations can be made by contacting Molly at queerrockcamp@gmail.com.

“Our goal is to make these voices heard of queer youth. Give them microphones and amplifiers, and a space to say what they want to say, and to have people listen,” Fischer said.

Please support Queer Rock Camp (Facebook) and help provide a important outlet for queer youth in music this summer, August 15-20th, in the Olympia area. Their wish list includes electric guitars/ amps, electric bass guitars/ amps, effects pedals, instrument cables, speaker cables, P.A. systems, microphones/mic stands, mic cables, drum sets, symbols, drum hardware, drum sticks, guitar/bass pics, guitar/bass straps, and foam ear plugs.

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Bambi Weavil

Bambi Weavil is Out Impact, Inc.’s Founder and President since June 2007. Bambi is a graduate from the class of 2004 from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, receiving her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and Bachelor of Arts in English with an emphasis in Professional Writing. She is a freelance writer and published poet in her free time currently residing out of Brooklyn, New York. Bambi is proud of being an activist and humanitarian, leader in the GLBT community, artist, music enthusiast and animal‐lover.