January the 16th saw the 1st birthday party of Clitbait, an intersectional feminist website run by University of Edinburgh duo Lilah Hyman and Laila Ghaffar. The website presents essayistic meditations, journal entries, visual artworks, and poems that explore every facet of the broad spectrum of intersectional feminist thought.
The first birthday party was a testament to the virtues of the website – marrying artistic and analytic thought on important issues with an outstandingly good time. The event got going with some low-key live music and spoken word poetry, featuring most memorably Meg McGrath’s powerful attack on the devastating effects of Tory austerity entitled Make Britain Great Again!
The poems, ranging from hilarious accounts of the avaricious blocking of twitter haters to heartfelt discussions on race and identity, were followed by drag acts and belly dancers. In truth, I wasn’t actually present for these performances – I was upstairs reaping the benefits of Three Sisters’ £2 pints, taking some time to recover from McGrath’s poem – but the friends with whom I caught up later assured me that I had made a fatal mistake and that the acts were the highlight of the event.
Then came the live music, with Edinburgh bands The Family Unit and Grace and the Flat Boys taking to the stage in a dazzling conclusion that allowed the crowd to take a break from critical thought and artistic contemplation and truly celebrate Clitbait’s momentous birthday. Grace and the Flat Boys, undoubtedly one of Edinburgh’s best bands right now, played an incredible set, closing the event just as it had begun – with impressive energy, astonishing beauty, and a serious celebration of all things feminist.
Image: Sangavi Sugumar