Queer Ex Detainees Urge Midsumma To Cut Ties With Serco, Victoria Police, Labor Party

RISE, Australia’s first eX-detainee, refugee and asylum seeker grassroots organisation, has called on Midsumma to cut ties with security company Serco, Victoria Police, Labor Party and other politicians.

In an open letter ahead of the Midsumma Pride March on February 5, RISE has said that “queer eX-detainees should be prioritised for direct access to community events without any PTSD triggers and without being forced to bump into our abusers at events”. 

Midsumma in a statement provided to Star Observer clarified that SERCO was not participating in the Midsumma Pride March this year. 

“Ensuring cultural safety is and will always be a high priority for Midsumma in everything we do. Listening and responding to all of our diverse communities is of utmost importance to us and we always seek to make ourselves available for in-person dialogue to talk through issues of concern with any community members in a constructive and meaningful way,” Midsumma CEO Karen Bryant said. 

‘We Should Not Be Forced To Face Our Torturers’

According to RISE, Serco, which “has a direct role in the Australian government’s abusive, human rights violating, asylum seeker trafficking, and detention supply chain in Manus and Nauru as well as in onshore detention centres,” had a stall at the Midsumma Carnival in 2022. 

“If something happens at an event we attend where Victoria Police presents, they are likely to racially profile and arrest us. Then they will pass us onto Serco to be abused and deported. These corporations, institutions and individuals target us, detain us, abuse us and deport us at any possible opportunity, even when we did not do anything and even when it is clear that we would be harmed if deported,” RISE Transgender eX-detainee Director said in a statement. 

“Community events should provide safe space for EVERYONE, not only for a few. We should not be forced to face our torturers, abusers and their architects when attending the very few queer events that we have access to,” the statement added.

The open letter also objected to the presence of Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, Rainbow leader and other politicians at the Midsumma Pride March. 

Balancing Diverse Views Within The Community

Midsumma CEO Bryant said that the organisation regularly considers the issues raised and it was “committed to continuing to continue working towards ways we can improve how best to address, often conflicting, community’s needs and expectations.”

“Balancing the very diverse views of our many communities is one of the greatest challenges we have. It’s not easy but we don’t expect to ever take the easy path to help bring about positive changes for all members of our communities.”

“All members of our communities have the right to feel safe, supported and included, to have their core human rights of human dignity and equality recognised and honoured, and to be free from discrimination of any kind.”

Midsumma said that it has sought to “always challenge the status quo actively, through being a truly inclusive arts organisation that educates and continually evolves, providing platforms, places, and spaces for queer artistic expression and for vital cultural conversations. Beyond our Festival, we are committed to our organisation’s role in strengthening the cultural voices of our communities and broadening the language of our allies.”

Midsumma Says It Is Working With Community Groups In Relation To Police Involvement

Midsumma pointed out that over 50% of Victoria LGBTQIA+ community members say they still are unable to be fully out in their workplaces. “Being included in Midsumma activities within the context of their choosing, however, that may be, is vital for them in making cultural changes within their own lives and within their workplaces for themselves and others to be able to live authentic lives. We receive just as many LGBTQIA+ community representations demanding us to not exclude any groups or not to limit how such individuals/groups want to express and show pride (including specifically police for example), as we do concerns about such inclusion,” said Bryant.

“This does not mean that Midsumma condones in any way any aspect of policing or other organisation’s culture, past or present, that is contrary to our values. We acknowledge and support community concerns around accountability (particularly surrounding Indigenous deaths in custody, instances of police brutality, discriminatory behaviours against LGBTQIA+ communities, and dealings with the trans community)”. 

Midsumma said that in the past year, it has been “working with a range of community groups in relation to police involvement which has brought about a range of changes to the ways police engaged with Midsumma activities for 2022 and 2023. Positive change of course is always an ongoing process.”

“We remain committed to continuing our prioritisation of resources and support to intersectional LGBTQIA+ communities within the sphere of all our activities and core purpose. With this in mind, we have committed to ongoing practical dialogue with groups and individuals who have reached out to us to discuss all matters raised and remain open to further discussions into the future,” added Bryant.