ACE ON ACE Volume 1 Issue 2
ACE ON ACE
A monthly newsletter brought to you by Ace Los Angeles
Vol. 1, Issue 2
Welcome to Ace Los Angeles monthly newsletter! We hope to use this space to keep our followers informed on ace topics in news media and academic journals, spotlight asexual representation, boost projects asking for ace participation, and educate on asexual and aromantic terms.
Ace LA wishes everyone a very happy Pride, this upcoming June.
June 5th marks the first ever Aromantic Visibility Day. The newly created celebration aims to increase awareness of the aromantic spectrum and celebrate and represent aromantics.
June 18th-24th, Aggressively Arospec on tumblr for the 8th year in a row is running a week-long event promoting aro-spec fan works and content by aro-spec creators.
June 24th from 12pm-5pm, Ace LA will have a booth at Compton Pride Festival.
As of June 2023, Ace LA will alternate between outdoor in-person (weather permitting) and virtual meetups. For in-person meetups and volunteering, you will be asked to mask unless eating or drinking and will be required to sign a waiver stating you understand the risk of exposure, and that you absolve Ace Los Angeles of any liability. Masks are available on request.
Ace LA has social meetings the second Sunday of every month.
1:30pm - New Member Meeting
2pm - General Meeting The next meeting is on June 11th at Grand Park.
Ace LA’s Business meetings are online, the first Monday of every month. 7:30pm - Business Meeting The next meeting is on June 5th.
All meetings are open.
You can find ace merchandise by asexual, aromantic, and BIPOC creators and business owners here and here.
Our Ears Are Burning!
This section is where we link you to articles and studies on asexuality and aromantisim.
Meet the First-Ever Asexual Grand Marshall at NYC Pride - Yasmin Benoit speaks with Gayety about this ground-breaking appointment and asexuality in Pride.
The Struggles of Being Queer and Neurodivergent in India - a queer neurodivergent psychologist discusses issues with support systems, mental health, social conditioning and expectations for queer people in India.
How getting diagnosed with autism helped me embrace my asexuality - a personal essay exploring the pressures of different types of normality in society and struggling to create an authentic life.
A: an echolocation - a lyrical essay on personal discovery, asexuality, and writing.
'Free From Desire' Podcast to Premiere At Tribeca Film Festival - Interview with French author and journalist Aline Laurent-Mayard about her new podcast, asexuality in France, and her personal life.
Tell Me a Story...
In this section we will spotlight an asexual or aromantic character in media.
Gwenpool or Gwendolyn Pool was first introduced in Marvel Comics in 2015, a superhero with reality-bending powers, she is a fan-favorite, notable for her quips and fourth wall breaking. Gwenpool appeared this spring in a 6-issue run of Love Unlimited, a romance-centered ongoing comic. The storyline follows Gwen attempting to manufacture a romance plot to keep herself relevant, while she struggles with feeling comfortable when a relationship actually develops. Gwenpool is Marvel’s first cannon asexual and aromantic character. The all aspec creative team of the arc discusses their process and Gwenpool’s coming out with Marvel.com.
In media news…
Asexual Protagonists in Webcomics - Ace in comics on twitter created a list on 60 webcomics with ace spectrum leads for webcomics day.
From Solitaire to Heartstopper - Alice Oseman talks about asexuality, her books, and storytelling with Andrew Keen on his media and culture podcast Keen On.
The asexual awakening - A literary analysis of asexuality, womanhood, and autonomy in the book Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami.
The More You Know
In this section we will provide links to articles and resources designed to educate and inform on asexuality and aromanticism.
Aphobia in Cishet Society - the blog aspeculations writes about aphobia, how cishet society responds to asexuality and explores the reason behind those reactions.
Pride Flags and Their Meanings - GBTimes, a website dedicated to exploring symbols, their meaning and history, looks at a variety of pride flags, including the ace flag.
History of Asexuality - asexuals.net does a deep dive into the history of asexuality.
We Want You!
This section is for informing you of requests for participation of aces and aros by other organizations, including studies, surveys, archive efforts, media projects, interviews, and policy / community feedback.
PRIDEnet Community Listening Session for Aromantic Community Member - a survey seeking participants for a community listening session co-hosted by PRIDEnet and AUREA Monday May 5th 4:30-6:30pm PST.
Asexual Intimacies - researchers at CSU San Bernardino are seeking asexual and/or aromantic participants for a study on familial and relationship experiences.
Ace Los Angeles is inviting members to march with us in the Long Beach Pride Parade on August 6th. Reach out if you are interested!
What’s the Word?
This last section is dedicated to featuring the definition of a word or phrase to encourage broader understanding and discussion of asexual and aromantic topics.
Our Word of the Month is Aromantic/Aromanticism:
not romantically attracted to or desiring of romantic relationships at all. (The Asexual Visibility and Education Network)
having little or no romantic feeling toward others : experiencing little or no romantic desire or attraction. (Miriam-Webster Dictionary)
not experiencing romantic attraction (the feeling of liking someone romantically), or relating to people who do not experience romantic attraction. (Cambridge English Dictionary)
describes a person whose experience of romance is disconnected from normative societal expectations, commonly due to experiencing little to no romantic attraction, but also due to feeling repulsed by romance, or being uninterested in romantic relationships. (Aromantic-Spectrum Union for Recognition, Education, and Advocacy)
We love to hear from you! Letters to the editor can be sent to asexalitylosangeles@gmail.com