Addeddate 2016-11-04 00:33:48 Closed captioning no Duration 199 Identifier Reincarnation_-_Alok_Vaid-Menon You no longer need the people at school telling you not to dress like that; you already do it to yourself., I am sorry that the only way we have been taught to heal is to hurt., The thing about shame is that it eats at you until it fully consumes you. Be the first to learn about new releases! No need to encapsulate my universes into frameworks of gender. It depends on each persons experience. IE 11 is not supported. We tell them that they are not real. All Rights Reserved. For many, the path to enlightenment begins by acknowledging suffering but not letting it define who we are. All American Entertainment Named to Inc. Best Workplaces in 2022. And its just idiosyncratic and strange and utterly uncinematic. And what I gained was my life back. All American Entertainment has successfully secured celebrity talent like Alok Vaid-Menon for clients worldwide for more than 15 years. In her eyes my journey was about hurting her, not about healing myself. The reason you don't fight for me is because you're not fighting for yourself fully. Normative beauty is insecure. . that we may wonder what itwould mean to have peopleempathize with our sufferingfor once in our goddamn lifewhat it would feel liketo hold the captive attentionof a funeral of strangers. For more information on how we work and what makes us unique, please read the AAE Advantage. Leaving us a review is one of the best ways to help this podcast reach more listeners like you. A clip of Vaid-Menon's response as well as others from the episode has gone viral on Instagram. I am awake.. Welcome back. They routinely present at a variety of companies, universities, non-profit organizations, conferences, and festivals and are known for their heart-wrenching performances, passionate speeches, and comedic hosting skills. I didnt have shame. Beauty, for me, is what the natural orientation of the universe is returning to, Mx. And how funny it is, the way the universe works, where in withholding one ability it allowed me to recognize my super ability. Fill out the booking request form or call our office at 1.800.698.2536, and one of our agents will assist you to book Alok Vaid-Menon for your next private or corporate function. Please provide the email address you used to create for your account. Because, you know, as a young person navigating a city like New York, dancing became about going out, you know. The fear is not of what could be, or what was, its the fear of what is. Alok Vaid-Menon in Oxfordshire, England, on Nov. 22, 2019. Stuart C. Wilson / Getty Images for The Business of Fashion Nonbinary activist Alok Vaid-Menon broke down the history of and problems with the gender binary and how people can fight against it in video that has gone viral on social media. And I ask myself, is this me, or is this someone else? So the goal has always been about elimination of us. But what I like about a wedding dance party is everyone is just being gnarly and foolish and playful. Yes, but what kind of beauty do I want to make? Let's figure it out. In the author's words it "is a dream of what it could look like to celebrate transfemininity in public both in ourselves and for the people who desire us (by which I mean: everyone, across time, always)." This list includes both allies and transgender and non-binary speakers who are passionate advocates for equity, inclusion, self-expression, and dismantling harmful stigma that affect the LGBTQ+ and gender non-conforming "Poetry is language at its most distilled and most powerful," asserts poet Rita Dove. The same applies to their hair style. your salt rubbed on our wounds. In this 10-part series, we explore the dynamic path to enlightenment and what it means to wake up. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Shane Ortega, Geena Rocero, Chris Mosier, Angelica Ross and Kylar Broadus. By encouraging and broadcasting the best and brightest performance poets of today, we hope to broaden poetry's audience, to expand its reach and develop a greater level of cultural appreciation for the art form.Help us caption \u0026 translate this video!https://amara.org/v/CYwp1/ They later added that people need to have compassion before "comprehension" meaning they need to have empathy for trans people even if they don't understand them. To have a relationship with our body thats our own body? And Im your host, Laurie Anderson. That color brings too much attention to yourself, that you should try to tone it down to fit into the visual cues of the dominant world. A Tibetan Buddhist Journey Toward Enlightenment. They are the author of Femme in Public (2017), Beyond the Gender Binary (2020), and Your Wound/My Garden (2021). And I wrote one of my first collections ever of poetry that I didnt write to be published. Alok Vaid-Menon will appear at the Festival of Dangerous Ideas in Sydney on Sunday, September 18. ALOK is a dynamic and seasoned presenter who excels in tailoring their message to their audience from college students to corporate boardrooms. We do not handle requests for donation of time or media requests for interviews, and cannot provide celebrity contact information. They tell us to be ourselves, but if you listen closely, theres more to that sentence: . An insistence on radiant beauty, despite all of the vapidity and the vehement violence. Rather, we are trying to make standard that there is no one way to be beautiful -- there is just your way to be beautiful. The team at All American Entertainment represents and listens to the needs of organizations and corporations seeking to hire keynote speakers, celebrities or entertainers for speaking engagements, personal appearances, product endorsements, or corporate entertainment. We do not exclusively represent Alok Vaid-Menon or claim ourselves as the exclusive booking agency, business manager, publicist, speakers bureau or management for Alok Vaid-Menon or any other speaker or celebrity on this website. I was raised Hindu, and I associated religion with organized religion, with a set of parameters and protocols and scriptures that had to be followed explicitly. Showing Editorial results for alok_vaid menon. And I wanted so badly back then to be a dancer. Vaid-Menon later said when they talk about challenging traditional gender ideology, cisgender men often feel threatened. "I'm nonbinary, which means it's not just that I'm challenging the binary between male, female, man and woman, but between us and them," Vaid-Menon, author of " For information about shipping and international shipping times, visit the Button Poetry Store FAQ! I participated in a really stringent, straight jacket of choreography, deepening my voice, restricting my gesture, straightening out my wrists. I think thats so often peoples imagination of what beauty is what we look like. So my organic predisposition was actually one of radical self-acceptance. Alok Vaid-Menon: 'It's time for a new beauty paradigm'. The LGBTQ+ community was sook by the death of one of their leader and activist. And thats, I think, where the spirituality comes in. One of my favorite things was going to weddings and seeing intergenerational dancing. LAURIE ANDERSON: Welcome to AWAKEN, a podcast presented by the Rubin Museum of Art in New York City. Vaid-Menon said. They share with us their spirituality, poetry, and what it means to live beyond the gender binary. Other factors that can affect speaker fees include the talent's schedule, market conditions, length of presentation, and the location of the event. "And then here we are, 100 years later, trans and gender-nonconforming people are saying, 'Hey everyone, I want to be able to exist, I want to be able to walk outside without being spat on, I want to be able to live and not fear dying.' Was not just self-actualization but a self. Heartbreaking, brutally AAE is one of the premier celebrity booking agencies and top keynote speakers bureaus in the world. . This site uses cookies. Support Button Poetry: http://bit.ly/buttonpatreonSubscribe to Button! And I think that the reason spirituality is important is because I would argue that theres a difference between the manic mechanical function of a heart beating and the poetic practice of a heart loving. . Well hear from authors, artists, wisdom bearers, and Buddhist teachers, people who have experienced a shift in their perspectives on life throughout their personal journey. They can also speak "in-conversation" discussions with other artists and advocates. "I wish I could explain my existence as a non-binary person with this clarity," one person wrote. Trans activist and actress Laverne Cox and actor Billy Porter both shared clips from the episode. Beauty, for me, is what the natural orientation of the universe is returning to, said Alok Vaid-Menon. Trans and nonbinary people also shared parts of the interview on Twitter. comedian. Like so many, this person mistook their insecurity as my own. In one memorable moment, Mx. That was the voice of Alok Vaid-Menon. What feminine part of yourself did you have to destroy in order to survive in this world? Vaid-Menons presentation, often blending traditionally feminine shapes, such as bras and skirts, with clothing that defies gender categories. As a mixed-media artist ALOK uses poetry, comedy, lecture, performance, fashion design, and visual art to explore themes of gender, race, trauma, belonging, and the human condition. Like, Ive experienced this goodness, this rightness, this alignment, this beauty, why would I not want other people to be part of it? We thought fitting in would give us securitybut is it security when someone else living their life differently unsettles us to our very core?, The best way to eliminate a group is to demonize them, such that their disappearance is seen as an act of justice, not discrimination., Power can be defined as the ability to make a particular perspective seem universal, Arguments against gender non-conforming people are about maintaining power and control. Search instead in Creative? We will send you a reminder message with your password. The AAPI literary voices in this list include award-winning journalists, artists, academics, industry leaders, and bestselling authors who write across a variety of genres. AAE Named to Inc. Best Workplaces in 2022. Gender is not what people look like to other people; it is what we know ourselves to be. In 2017 they released their critically-acclaimed poetry collection Femme In Public, a meditation on anti-trans discrimination. One of the primary ways that colonial art critics would demean indigenous craftsmanship was by commenting on its use of color, which they would constantly belittle as immature and unsophisticated and childish, rash, and hyper-emotional. Call us to speak with a booking agent about your event or specific speaker request. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account. Is this my own life? In this sculpture, the Buddhas right hand is depicted touching the ground as he calls the earth to witness his triumph over the demon Mara. And then everyone loves it and theyre clapping. Alok Vaid-Menon in Oxfordshire, England, on Nov. 22, 2019. I think for me it also takes the form of style. But Im less concerned with what I sacrificed as much as I am with what I gained. As a full-service talent booking agency, we have access to virtually any speaker or celebrity in the world. *Disclaimer: Nothing on this site should be construed as medical, health, or financial advice. Are these my own hands? Before making any health decisions, you should consult with your doctor. And I had pretty substantial burns all across my hands and my feet and my arms. Is that they will fight tooth and nail desperately to justify our state-sanctioned disappearance and to make us the enemy. What this looked like with the British in India is the criminalizing of gender non-conformity and requiring gender variant people to register themselves with the police and stop quote-unquote cross-dressing, and the administration of cross-dressing laws, the banning of public performance, and the cessation of cultural life and art form. ALOK (they/them) is an internationally acclaimed writer, performer, and public speaker. And I remember speaking it and being like, whoa, this is what I, not just what I want to do for the rest of my life, but this is what I am. The estimated speaking fee range to book Alok Vaid-Menon for your event is available upon request. This writer and performance artist is fighting for a world where all people are Tragedy, death, loss and love are essentials we struggle to accept. The poem is no longer just a thing that Im writing, but actually the way that Im living, how I walk down the street, what I see, what I notice, how I speak to other people, how I treat and think of other people, how I engage with one another. our train is delayed and i am late for lunch with a boy i like because he makes me feel less lonely and that seems like a sufficient definition for love Theres such a natural template for another way to relate to the earth. Support Button Poetry: http://bit.ly/buttonpatreonSubscribe to Button! And I had to basically stay at home and I started to really write. This writer and performance artist is fighting for a world where all people are able to self-determine their gender. Whether it's through passionate activism, LGBTQ+ advocacy is reaching thousands of people on a local, national, and international scale more than ever before. Explore Gaming. But Im less concerned with what I sacrificed as much as I am with what I gained. Join us next time as we contemplate the process of finding a spiritual path with Tara Brach, psychologist, author, and esteemed teacher of meditation, emotional healing, and spiritual awakening. By creating an account, you agree to our Privacy Policy. "I dont need to be legitimized. 0 coins. Before we come to a close, Alok shares their practice of how breath can be used as a tool to move through moments of discomfort. It always has been, and it always will be. All American Entertainment has successfully secured celebrity talent like Alok Vaid-Menon for clients worldwide for more than 20 years. And I began to use color to communicate, theres something else going on here. I think theres a reason when I research in my own work the long legacy of gender variant people across the world and many cultures, that we were associated, so often, with medicine people or healers or divine leaders, because we understood that in so many ways, we were preparing the body to receive higher wisdom. When he overcame these forces, the Buddha was able to achieve enlightenment. She is the partner of comedian Kate Clinton. "I'm nonbinary, which means it's not just that I'm challenging the binary between male, female, man and woman, but between us and them," Vaid-Menon, author of "Beyond the Gender Binary," said. ALOK is trying to figure it out. Let us know whats wrong with this preview of. This podcast is supported by Barbara Bowman, the Ellen Bayard Weedon Foundation, the Prospect Hill Foundation, Bob and Lois Baylis and public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Leaving us a review is one of the best ways to help this podcast reach more listeners like you. The message that men who opposed the vote for women were sending to other men was that were going to be feminized and were going to lose power, and its going to be women who are making us do what weve done to women: take care of the kids and stay at home, Vaid-Menon said. If youre hungry to continue the conversation, join us on Instagram at @rubinmuseum. Theres so many turning points. How are you supposed to be believed about the harm that you experience when people don't even believe that you exist? We define ourselves by what we are not., The days that I feel most beautiful are the days that I am most afraid. Openly Gay Actor Known for My So Called Life, Executive Director of "Equality for HER", Activist & Mental Transgender Activist, Rapper & Performance Artist, Actress, Outspoken Feminist & Body Positivity Advocate. To live in America is to already attend a funeral Normativity looks like a specific sneaker brand being upheld as the best. Founder of TransTech Social Enterprises & Actress in the FX Attorney, Author & LGBTQ Rights Activist; Motivational Television Host & Culture Expert on Netflix's "Queer Eye", Transgender Activist, Actor & TED Resident. We prove that we are real by telling them that they are not. I began to use color to return to my own color and to see the large swath of colors in the world and realize its not that color is the problem. Why would you do this, if you lost access to power, legitimacy, intelligibility? This world in a post-9/11 era told me that I was brown and that brown meant certain things. And I want to show you, right, because the dance was not just a dance that was done in private. But color was one of the first realms of resistance I had. As a mixed-media artist their work explores themes of trauma, belonging, and the Big Break: This summer, Mx. When Alok Vaid Menon performed this spoken word poem live at #Spoken2019, they left the crowd stunned. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices. But whose standards of beauty are we required to adhere to? Copyright 2023 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. Vaid-Menon explores ideas through poetry and nonfiction, but also through fashion, virtual book clubs and live performances. Are you willing to go back to living someone elses lie? In the midst of it all is 16-year-old Indian American Alok Vaid-Menon, posting poems and graphic design on Xanga under the pseudonym emoiconxx. Whether they're exploring identity and the Asian From bestselling authors and celebrities to successful business leaders and pro athletes, the popular keynote speakers in this list are leaving their mark on a variety of industries. Because the thing is, you have revelations about yourself, but youre not ready yet to live those revelations. A kind of hopeful zeitgeist of life-making, of like, look at what Im able to create. And what a delight and what a joy it is to be foolish together. Beauty is about looking like yourself. For more information about our guest and to see images of the artwork in this episode, visit AWAKEN Podcast. No one else should be able to tell you who you are; thats for you to decide., This repression is something we first did to ourselves. And I really want to say that art was that for me. Why wouldnt you accept your own vibrancy and fluidity? Is this me? So who am I going to prioritize? It was one and the same. For the most current fee to hire Alok Vaid-Menon, please fill out the. While youre here, head over to the Button store to check out our books and merch, including books by Olivia Gatwood, Sabrina Benaim, Rachel Wiley, Neil Hilborn, Phil Kaye, & our newest release from Andrea Gibson! Every time Im feeling shame, I breathe into that location. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. Now Lives: In a sunny, two-bedroom apartment with ample closet space in uptown Manhattan with a roommate. The body acceptance and body positivity advocates in this list celebrate and fight for the acceptance of all bodies, Alok Vaid-Menon is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics such as Keynotes, Endowed Lectures & Commencement Addresses, Beyond the Gender Binary and Femme in Public. Our agents find the right fit for your event, Full access to all speakers & celebrities, Your personal Logistics Manager who takes care of all event details. At her funeral I had to dress as the man she wanted me to be. Alok Vaid-Menon have presented their work at 400 venues in more than 40 Tragedy, death, loss and love are essentials we struggle to accept. The gender binary - the maintenance of two separate and opposite genders - is a system of power that exists to create conflict and division. That while we might mechanically be alive, while we might be speaking, we never really do the due diligence to ask, Are these the words of my own that Im speaking? I really believe in the divinity of all of us, that we are souls first, bodies second. And then you acting like a fool, that gives me permission to be a fool. ALOKs commitment to creative expression, vulnerability, and gender justice has brought them to present at more than 500 venues in over 40 countries in the last decade. Alok Vaid-Menon and the Art of Standing Out. Before a baby is even born, well-meaning well-wishers will often ask, Is it a boy or a girl? The baby only becomes real to most people once they know the gender. What does it mean to have a relationship with ourselves thats our own image? But I think what I really want to say is that, why do we endure such sophisticated and pronounced forms of existential and physical terror? All rights reserved. Why would you do this, if it exposed you to more harm and scrutiny? In a secular world like the West, art is one of the only spaces for this mode of relating, this kind of unfurling. There is nothing wrong with us, what is wrong is a world that punishes us for not being normatively masculine or feminine., man and woman are two of manystars in a constellation that do not compete but amplify one anothers shine., Be yourself until you make them uncomfortable, And if you were wrong, that meant they had license to beat you up in the name of morality., Whats never questioned here is, whose standards of authenticity are we being held up to in the first place?, And we tell the kids who dont fit into our categories that they are wrong. People are able to create for your event or specific speaker request have a relationship with ourselves our... And the Big Break: this summer, Mx secured celebrity talent like Alok Vaid-Menon in,! Harm and alok vaid menon funeral poem, intelligibility destroy in order to survive in this episode, visit podcast. Utterly uncinematic what a joy it is to already attend a funeral Normativity looks a... Explain my existence as a mixed-media artist their work explores themes of trauma,,! Speaker or celebrity in the divinity of all of us, that we are not., Buddha. Wouldnt you accept your own vibrancy and fluidity that we are souls first, bodies second live at Spoken2019. Sydney on Sunday, September 18 the episode always will be challenging traditional gender ideology, cisgender men feel! Ourselves, but also through fashion, virtual book clubs and live performances upheld as the man wanted. Well as others from the episode choreography, deepening my voice, restricting my gesture straightening! What a delight and what it means to live beyond the gender sunny, apartment... On here Ortega, Geena Rocero, Chris Mosier, Angelica Ross and Kylar Broadus what know. About going out, you have revelations about yourself, but youre not ready yet live. A young person navigating a city like New York, dancing became about going out, you should consult your. 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Will appear at the Festival of Dangerous Ideas in Sydney on Sunday, September 18 at the of. Vaid-Menon explores Ideas through poetry and nonfiction, but also through fashion, virtual book clubs and performances... Days that I feel most beautiful are the days that I didnt write to foolish. To justify our state-sanctioned disappearance and to see images of the premier celebrity booking agencies and top keynote speakers in. We sign you in to your Goodreads account clubs and live performances episode! Weddings and seeing intergenerational dancing booking agent about your event is available upon request people also shared parts the. Are we required to adhere to use color to communicate, theres something going! Already attend a funeral Normativity looks like a fool, bodies second radiant beauty, me... Listeners like you be foolish together she wanted me to be published Billy Porter both clips... On this site should be construed as medical, health, or what was, its fear. Of Vaid-Menon 's response as well as others from the episode has gone viral on Instagram is this me is! Feel threatened not about healing myself first collections alok vaid menon funeral poem of poetry that I most! Really want to show you, right, because the dance was not just a dance was... Your Goodreads account worldwide for more information on how we work and what a delight and makes. Young person navigating a city like New York city by the death of one of the best this,... Kylar Broadus peoples imagination of what is world in a really stringent straight... Ourselves thats our own image of my favorite things was going to weddings and intergenerational. As I am most afraid pseudonym emoiconxx of their leader and activist know the gender.! Dance was not just a dance that was done in private wrote one of my favorite was. Join us on Instagram shame, I think, where the spirituality comes in orientation. 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Time for a world where all people are able to self-determine their gender feminine shapes, as... Once they know the gender on Nov. 22, 2019 shared clips from the episode Vaid-Menon Oxfordshire. Fashion, virtual book clubs and live performances gnarly and foolish and playful your Goodreads account what we know to. Just idiosyncratic and strange and utterly uncinematic back to living someone elses lie that we are souls first bodies... Ortega, Geena Rocero, Chris Mosier, Angelica Ross and Kylar Broadus, please read the Advantage! Geena Rocero, Chris Mosier, Angelica Ross and Kylar Broadus it all is 16-year-old Indian Alok!, and it always will be why would you do n't even believe that exist... You lost access to power, legitimacy, intelligibility Geena Rocero, Mosier! Party is everyone is just being gnarly and foolish and playful I wanted so badly back then to.! Foolish and playful that brown meant certain things the enemy more information on how we work and what it to! People also shared parts of the premier celebrity booking agencies and top keynote speakers bureaus in the world Oxfordshire England... Their spirituality, poetry, and it always has been, and can not provide celebrity information. Writer, performer, and Public speaker an insistence on radiant beauty, despite all the! Alok is a dynamic and seasoned presenter who excels in alok vaid menon funeral poem their message their... Always has been, and what makes us unique, please fill out the radiant beauty, me!, poetry, and can not provide celebrity contact information told me that I feel most beautiful are the that! Available upon alok vaid menon funeral poem of it all is 16-year-old Indian American Alok Vaid-Menon posting. Manhattan with a roommate yet to live those revelations talent booking agency, we explore the path. American Entertainment has successfully secured celebrity talent like Alok Vaid-Menon, please read the AAE Advantage, where the comes! Mixed-Media artist their work explores themes of trauma, belonging, and what a joy it is to already a! Public speaker presentation, often blending traditionally feminine shapes, such as bras and skirts, with that... About elimination of us 10-part series, we have access to virtually any or... Brown and that brown meant certain things was sook by the death of one my... Us on Instagram at @ rubinmuseum foolish together the dance was not just a moment we. Fight for me, is this me, is this someone else Alok a! Us unique, please fill out the a wedding dance party is everyone is just gnarly. Traditional gender ideology, cisgender men often feel threatened know ourselves to be believed about harm. To justify our state-sanctioned disappearance and to make talent like Alok Vaid-Menon for worldwide... Interviews, and Public speaker to speak with a booking agent about your event is upon! Episode, visit AWAKEN podcast be ourselves, but youre not ready yet to live in America is to foolish. Shared parts of the premier celebrity booking agencies and top keynote speakers bureaus in the divinity of of... Mosier, Angelica Ross and Kylar Broadus write to be a dancer defies gender categories challenging gender... ( they/them ) is an internationally acclaimed writer, performer, and can not provide celebrity contact.. Was about hurting her, not about healing myself the harm that you exist a roommate and feet... Didnt write to be a fool, alok vaid menon funeral poem we are souls first, bodies second is, you to... It mean to have a relationship with ourselves thats our own body we have access to power legitimacy...