Lesbian organisation Rijeka LORI in collaboration with PaRiter, Građanke svom gradu, the Centre for Women’s Studies of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences in Rijeka and Rijeka 2020, as part of the Kitchen flagship, is organising the second edition of the Smoqua festival of queer and feminist culture from 17 to 19 May 2018.
Smoqua is a combination of art and activism. It represents the queer-feminist perspective through the work of artists and activists. It is international and includes participants from several European countries and the USA, so some of the programme will be held in English.
Similar to last year, attendees will get the chance to learn about the history and significance of queer culture and feminism, this time through the theme of “Pride and Prejudices”.
The date 17 May was selected as the opening day for the festival because that is the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia. Rijeka remains the only city in Croatia to support IDAHOT by flying the rainbow flag on the City Hall building, which is how the festival will be opened.
This year’s theme is Pride and Prejudices, so all festival activities are oriented towards introducing attendees to LGBTIQ and feminist topics and developing critical thinking in that regard. Through open dialogue, public space interventions and the language of art, we can open a dialogue with the audience, thus leaving a lasting mark on the city and building a transcultural platform where all genders and sexual orientations are accepted with pride.
