LETTER FROM THE EDITORS
Hello Everyone!
Happy Pride!!! It was so nice to see everyone's excitement with this month’s issue theme. I want to thank all our contributors for their hard work and involvement. Pride is a significant part of the 2SLGBTQI+ community, where they can express their own gender and commemorate the years of struggle they endured to gain equal rights.
With the release of the live action Little Mermaid movie, I learned that Hans Christian Anderson was a part of the queer community. His inspiration behind the original fairytale is his feelings towards his close friend Colin. Even though, there is still so much work still needed to better the lives of queer community. It’s important to recognize the strides we have made within the years. My hope with this month’s theme is to be an outlet for people to express themselves!
I hope everyone enjoys the issue as much as I did!
Till next time,
Chelsea Hettigama Co-Editor-In-Chief
Happy Pride Month everyone! For those of you who don’t know, Pride month typically occurs in June and is an opportunity to recognize, celebrate, and learn about two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and additional sexually and gender-diverse identities (2SLGBTQI+) communities.
Although the month is almost over (oh how the time flies)WatIsZine? welcomes you to our Pride Issue!!
We have many wonderful submissions from various contributors expressing themselves and their work through poetry, photographs, and art pieces. As Chelsea and I went through each submission, we became more excited for its release and to share the issue with everyone.
We hope you enjoy the issue ^^
Jessie Jiang Co-Editor-In-Chief
3
photo and playlist by Martina Gasparro Queering the Map: A Collection
by Martina Gasparro
4
TABLE OF CONTENTS Pride Spotify Playlist Rainbow Night by Elsa Sajwani
red
Art Team Project Art Team WIPs Contributors 5 6 7 8 9 10 11-20 21-23 25
compiled
flags by Anonymous 2023 Pride Parade by Angela W.
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
CONTRIBUTORS
Hey! My name is Elsa Sajwani and I'm in my second year of the AFM program. I started writing poetry during lockdown as a way to process my emotions and tell stories of the world. Apart from writing, I love exploring trails, cooking new recipes and travelling!
Instagram: @elsa.sajwani
CREDITS
Rainbow gradient background by Maxim Berg
https://unsplash.com/photos/ENIaPZytqzE
Pride flags by Teddy O
https://unsplash.com/photos/owiVf9bFKHM
Rainbow fireworks by Sam Matthews
https://unsplash.com/photos/wZjJxOx8FPI
Map by British Library
https://unsplash.com/photos/AxT4iYcoI2M
Paper and textures by TextureLabs
https://texturelabs.org/?ct=30&pg=6
Board games on shelf by daniel james
https://unsplash.com/photos/h6BqQeohrPM
Elsa Sajwani 25
Issue 31 June 2023