If you’re on social media today, you would’ve already come across the second of three tear-inducing videos from the Pink Dot 10 campaign. Revolving around a mother-daughter LGBTQI team of Dolly and Sam, who have also been Pink Dot volunteers for years, the video starts off with Dolly reminiscing a time when one of her nieces left the home because her family couldn’t accept her being lesbian.
Co-directed by local documentary producer, writer and director Quen Wong, “Building Bridges” goes on to talk about why they feel volunteering at Pink Dot year in and year out is important to them and the mindset of the older generation towards the LGBTQI community, and ends with a Dolly’s hopeful message to see her estranged niece again some day. It’s important to make a stand now, more than ever, to be a more open-minded and inclusive society, and to let everyone know that “We Are Ready”; a resounding message that hopes to embrace and normalize diversity in Singapore to the fullest, and to finally celebrate equality and inclusion.
Ten years—while LGBTQI community here are still far from getting the rights they deserve, there have been a lot of soft changes in Singapore. And with change, comes its challenges; something that LGBTQI rally and wholesome picnic Pink Dot is all too familiar with.
Thankfully, this landmark movement’s biggest challenge isn’t as dramatic as some of the past years’. The Telok Ayer Hong Lim Green Community Centre and stage at Hong Lim Park will be going through renovations this year, which will affect the usual smorgasbord of performances that Pink Dot showcases year after year. Not wanting to back down on the quality of the performances, they’ve decided to build their own stage, which will make up the bulk of the increase in cost for the event, on top of all other expenses like AV equipment, screens, barricades, security personnel and other costs.
And just like last year, there’ll be barricades, and you’ll be required to show your pink/blue NRIC or passport. There’ll also only be one entrance, which filters out to 12 different checkpoints, similar to the process at the airport.
