Queiv Verden Oslo and Østlandet got their first full board on 17 April. The newly elected leader is Helin Sado, who is also an organizational advisor in the Patient Organization for Gender Incongruence (PKI).
– Queer World is a matter close to my heart. For me, PKI and Skeiv Verden are like my two parents, I feel at home and among my own people, says Sado about the motivation for taking on the leadership position.
– I also think representation is important. I want people to see that there is room for being queer and Muslim, or non-binary and Muslim. Where people see that there are more people out there who are like you, and that you are not alone.
Ambitious management
Sado has been associated with Skeiv Verden for almost three years.
– My goals are ambitious. But then I’m also an ambitious person.
– My aim and that of the board is to promote the growth and autonomy of the local team. We have plans to organize more activities. However, we have noticed that several of our members, as well as many in our target group, are anxious to show themselves off.
Therefore, they want to create a more inclusive environment that encourages visibility among those who dare to be open.
– And for those who don’t dare, we will create a “safer space”, says Sado, and also highlights the value of learning from each other, both in the organization and in board work.
The new board consists of seven members. According to Sado, there is a good mix of new and more experienced members.
– The challenges I see are very similar to what I have experienced in the work with PKI. In addition, it is necessary to work even harder for new members of society to feel safe, and for integration to take place in a positive, healthy and desirable way.
– Politically, the most important thing for me is trans health, especially trans health for young people and children.
Baba Bar Club
An example of how work on safe rooms is already underway is a newly started collaboration between Skeiv Verden and Baba Bar in Oslo. Every last Saturday of the month, the local team will in future invite to a gathering and club night in the bar’s premises in Oslo.
– Here it will be possible to both take a seat, or be in the background. And together we create a “safer space”.
Skeiv Verden is an independent, religiously and party-politically independent organization that works purposefully for a society where everyone, regardless of their ethnic or religious origin, can live out their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression without experiencing discrimination.
The local team in Oslo and Eastern Norway currently has 594 members. Sado hopes more people will sign up, or use both the new meeting place at Baba Bar, or come to the local team’s premises in Torggata for their Thursday meetings.
