QUAC is an Orange County (UCI)-based zine project dedicated to archiving and distributing queer/trans voices, histories, experiences, knowledge(s), and survival tactics in the face of violent silencing within public space and dominant culture. As QUAC has become more established within the zine and queer/trans community, we’ve seen the growth and development of certain aesthetics, most notably anger, militancy, and rage. These three aesthetics have functioned in multiple ways throughout QUAC, but we’ve found that the pieces that center these elements in their work are some of the most effective / thought-provoking pieces that start conversations and build community solidarity. We, the editors, realize that there are often very few places queer and trans folk can publish angry / militant / raging things. As social justice minded activists and organizers (in our own ways), we recognize that there are a lot of fucked up things in the world to be angry about, and for many of us, this anger can become destructive if it is not given the proper outlet. As such, QUAC aims to become a space for this anger, to both “vent” a little bit, and to build a community in solidarity with the struggles of our complex and diverse community(s).

potential ideas for material include, but are not limited to:

Uses of Anger: How do you navigate (your) anger? In what ways has anger been productive? Destructive? What constitutes productive/destructive anger?
Coping mechanisms: Often times, our organizing work is against structures that have been in existence for hundreds of years (racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, etc.). Fighting battles that you cannot win within the next few days / weeks / months / years is physically, mentally, and spiritually tiring. In what ways have you learned to navigate this? How do you cope with the (violent) things occurring around you and your community(s)?
Queer militancy: The queer and trans movements blossomed out of radical liberationist movements of the 50s and 60s. However as we’ve seen, this liberationist framework has been obscured by more (homo)normative / liberal frameworks of thinking since the marriage equality movement of the early 90s. In what ways are militancy and queerness linked, historically, epistemologically, and ontologically? In what ways has a queer militancy resisted / subverted hetero/homonormativity? How do you navigate your own queer militancy, or why do you refuse a queer militancy standpoint?
Erasure: In what ways have you experienced erasure? We’ve noticed that a lot of anger / rage stems from a politics of visibility. What is at stake for the silent / erased? Can anger / rage break this silence?
Triggers: What triggers your anger, rage, and/or your militancy? When you recognize these triggers or possibilities of these triggers, what do you do pre-emptively? How have you created spaces with these triggers in mind? How can we create safer spaces, using our own experiences with anger and violence as insight?
Responses to anger: How do you respond to anger and frustration? How do you de-escalate situations? How productive is anger for you?

As mentioned above, please do not feel that submissions need to be restricted to or specifically answer these questions. QUAC is interested in hearing as many different voices as possible, in whatever form or on whatever topic they choose to speak. If in the process of writing your piece unfolds into something else and deviates from the questions above, we’d still love to take a look. If you have an older piece which you think might be relevant to this issue (or not, hey, we’ll read it anyway) please feel free to submit it, too.

QUAC has always had a commitment to local artists, poets, and musicians—we would love to have your work in the next issue. Please aim to have finalized submissions emailed to us by March 1^st, 2012 at QueerZineUCI@gmail.com

Included in your submission, please include the name that you would like to be printed under, contact information (email, blog, website, etc.) for our readers, and any other information that you would like to be printed alongside your submission. Also, please include a current mailing address so that the editors can send you a complimentary copy of the fourth issue as a thanks for helping out with the project :]!

Also, the QUAC editors always need help with layouts and collages, if you would like to participate in a zine-making / background-making session, please email or message the editors.

The best way to stay up to date with the project is to (continue to) follow us on tumblr and “like” the facebook page.

We greatly appreciate all of the time and effort of the contributors, fellow zinesters, friends, and supporters of the project.

We greatly anticipate your work, comments, suggestions, and love.

In solidarity:
QUAC Editors

(Please reblog and repost elsewhere to spread the word. If on tumblr, please reblog as text please so the whole post shows! Thank you kindly! :])

Filed under Queer Under All Conditions QUAC call for submissions politics zine orange county DIY lgbtq lgbt trans queer anger militancy rage