As we witness a cultural time period where Asian-Canadians have the opportunity to explore the duality of their identities, queer Asian-Canadian youth also continue to face challenges at the cross-section of racial and sexual identity politics. Enter “Ricecake” — an event series dedicated to queer and trans people of colour (POC) that has exploded recently onto the Vancouver party scene.
The night is centred around showcasing local Asian talent, with past events featuring queer female DJs, drag performers and a gogo dancer. Ricecake delivers an experience of queer public life to the Internet generation, or those who could feel under-represented in Vancouver’s conventional queer spaces.
Van Dang, also known as the performer Shay Dior and the creator of Ricecake, observed that “when [he] moved to Vancouver from Toronto, [he] saw a much denser concentration of Asian-Canadians, from employees to pedestrians to even advertisements.” However, in spaces designated as queer, he noticed a discrepancy.
“There weren’t many Asians,” Dang said, “... which left me lacking that sense of belonging or familiarity.”
Beginning at XY in May, the events have spanned multiple venues in the city, moving to the Warehouse at Eastside Studios during Vancouver Pride and most recently to Fortune Sound Club in Chinatown. This is not a permanent venue — Dang and his team are continuing to explore options that help to “promote queer Asian visibility.”
As a movement, Ricecake has made “[inspiring] our queer Asian friends and family … to live as their authentic self” a priority, inviting performers who “serve as an inspiration to queer youths,” such as Ongina, the first Asian contestant on RuPaul’s Drag Race. By moving into Chinatown, they seek to “combat queer rejection in traditional Asian culture” by claiming a space also historically fraught with racism.
“When we announced the venue,” Dang explained, “we were made aware of the concerns some shared around the venue and its relation to gentrification of Vancouver’s Chinatown. We opened ourselves up for discussion by posting a statement explaining how we feel bringing Ricecake to Chinatown will allow us to begin reclaiming our space as a newer generation of queer Asians.”
For queer POC youth who are subject to various pressures in the process of exploring their identity, Ricecake intends to cultivate community and convey that “we can belong.” In the future, Dang hopes for the opportunity to collaborate with similar organizations across Canada, making new and greater strides in “generating safe spaces for young queer Asian-Canadians.”
A couple of weeks ago, though hampered by rain, my friends and I managed to make it out to the event. The DJs blasted Asian pop hits and classic tracks in equal measure, and the performances, which included one from Dang himself as his drag persona Shay Dior were met with wild cheering and confetti. Even more palpable was the sense of community — not only were we here to have fun, but to participate in something meaningful.