VQFF is proud to partner with Black Lives Matter – Vancouver, BC to present a Black Lives Matter spotlight at #VQFF2016.

Black Lives Matter is a chapter-based organization working for the validity of Black life. We are working to (re)build the Black liberation movement. #BlackLivesMatter was created in 2012 after Trayvon Martin’s murderer, George Zimmerman, was acquitted for his crime. #BlackLivesMatter is working for a world where Black lives are no longer systematically and intentionally targeted for demise. The Black Lives Matter Vancouver Chapter was started in 2016 with the aim of standing in solidarity mainly with our friends and family doing great work in Toronto but also all the other BLM chapters across North America. Our goals are to re-visibilize the Black community in Vancouver and BC after histories of erasure that have occurred here, support the unique struggles of Black folks here such as immigration, housing and cultural connection and continue to celebrate blackness.

BLACK LIVES MATTER SPOTLIGHT at VQFF:

MAJOR! | Thurs Aug 18 | 6:30pm | SFU Woodward’s
Meet Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a 73-year-old Black transgender woman who has been fighting for the rights of trans* women of colour for over 40 years. A special Skype Q+A with Miss Major will take place after the screening.
Details: http://queerfilmfestival.ca/films/major/

WAITING FOR B | Thurs Aug 18 | 9pm | SFU Woodward’s
Yes, they waited in line for two months to see Beyoncé!
Details: http://queerfilmfestival.ca/films/waiting-for-b-a-longa-espera/

KIKI | Sun Aug 21 | 7pm | Vancouver Playhouse
Nearly 25 years after “Paris is Burning”, KIKI brings stunning insights and sequences from a contemporary Black LGBTQ+ house in the new ballroom scene.
Details: http://queerfilmfestival.ca/films/kiki/

BLACK LIVES MATTER DANCE PARTY | Thurs Aug 18 | 10pm | Alexander Gastown

Tickets are on sale now at queerfilmfestival.ca