[time starts now]

After some time to think— here is what I have to say.

For a moment I considered making this lighter, and then I reflected on my entire journey, and remembered why I’m even here— to be radically, unapologetically, beautifully, and underline this one— unstoppably; queer as fuck.

Bare with me.

I do not consider what I do ‘female impersonation’, I have always had a very personal relationship with the art I have produced under the label ‘Ruby Velvet’. It is the first time I have ever truly been able to explore both masculinity and femininity in a space that is completely safe for queer people to do so. While we have gained so much over the past few decades relating to our rights, representation, and freedoms, I can’t stress enough how much we need to cherish these kinds of safe spaces for queer people to explore their identities and experience being around many people who can walk their shoes. Because lets face it—those of us from smaller towns are sick and tired of representing our communities on what can sometimes feel like our own shoulders. And we don’t have too… We can make and maintain these spaces for queer people. It is our privilege, and it is our burden, too.

Question. Have you ever made a true friend from Grindr? Not a fuck buddy, not a lover, just someone you thought ‘hey— they look cool. I’d like to be their friend.’

Food for thought.

Moving on.

We are quite literally bursting with diversity within our own community. To encompass the entire LGBTQ+ community into one group is something I find liberating, despite its heavy criticism, even within our own community.

I am so tired.

I am so, so, so, so tired.

I am tired of reading stories or comments of people within our own community attacking each other.

I am sick to my stomach reading gay men bash trans woman.

I am exhausted by my heteronormative friends telling me they are going to paint the bedroom blue for their new baby boy.

I am disgusted by your behaviour if you are a gay man that says ‘ew’ at the mention of a vagina. The nose you have in the air says decades more about you than it does the magnifying beauty of the human body in all of its shapes, sizes, and shades.

I am angry and I am hurt that my lovers have been too afraid to hold my hand in public because the media, their peers, or their own families taught them they are putting themselves in danger to do so.

I bring all of this up because I want to speak about not just the importance of safe queer spaces, but also highlight the crucial concept of intersectionality. We are stronger for all of our differences; I am proud to come from a community that I can walk in a pride parade and know we all have shared experiences that have brought us together, yet we have so many more experiences that are vastly unique from one another as well. Listening to these stories and empathizing with each other is a fucking superpower.

One that is attainable to us by nothing more than our own imagination, and ability to empathize with one another.

I am grateful to have watched this experience from start to finish, it has been a pleasure watching each and every of you claim your crown and your reign. Each of us brought something unique to the table. And how true that is to what brought us all here in the first place, too.

I have a little more time, so I’ll share about something close to my heart. There are many things I would like to advocate for, but I believe sometimes the best way to be an advocate is to know when it’s time to listen, and when it is time to speak.

Something I can speak about from personal experience, is that if I lived in a world free of heteronormativity— I would likely ask you to call me they, or just Gavin.

But I don’t.

I often feel scared to share how I truly feel about my gender identity.

Too many times have I been told, “I love that you’re gay, but like, you don’t shove it in our faces.”

Or the classic— “I don’t mean this in a bad way, of course, but I’m so glad you aren’t one of THOSE gays”.

The fact of the matter is that the media is at war with trans and non binary people. The media makes it out that to be non-binary is to identify as a purple, cross species, part time tractor part time octopus from mars.

No.

I simply do not feel comfortable when I look in the mirror and all I see is masculinity. I do not feel like myself nor do I feel happy about how I look and to feel happy with how I look and present myself is one of the many pieces I need to be at peace with myself and god damn, I deserve some peace.

I am not transgender. I love my body— I do not wish to change it, and I never (too seriously) have had that desire. But I do identify with the philosophy of being non-binary, though it isn’t a label I tend to declare to anyone unless asked first. (And in the the right way, too)

I have started wearing sparkling nail polish and sparkling rainbow jewelry to work. I have been my authentic self with the retirement community of my city, the very people who likely oppressed many of us. And I have not had one homophobic interaction in three months of the job. To embrace this and be honest with myself— I’ve become a person who loves themself, and loves their body, for all that it was painfully won. The experience has been humbling, gratifying, radical, and fucking beautiful.

Authenticity and a kind heart.

That shit is power.

Shine on. ✨

Shit. Some Italian man with a lot of muscles is actually holding me hostage and told me to add; ‘CrashApp, making you saving money online since 1859.’ 💥

✌️🕊🌙

On the runway this week, the tough bitch has survived the apocalypse, she's lost her hair and has never little but scraps of cloth and metal so what does she do? Makes herself a gorgeous scrap skirt into a fashionable, edgy striking garment couple with metal accessories. In true style of metal accessories, this look is fused with a steampunk edge.  This is fashion future...from the past, miles away from the "gorgeous" Eden usually gives.

As a male feminist, i want to address this in my speech.

Equality must reign.

Today, our heart goes out to the courageous women of the world.
I want to tell you:
We see you. We stand with you.
We are doing all we can in the humanitarian field. But also in our resolute message is you are not alone.

And I want to tell the courageous women of Russia, and of Belarus:
We see you, too. This war is not your war. It’s your sons who have to fight a battle they didn’t choose. We applaud you – the many women of Russia and Belarus who are protesting against this unacceptable aggression. Some of you are young. Some of you are grandmothers who have seen war before. And still, you are taking to the streets, risking your own freedom to stand up for justice and peace. I am humbled by your courage.
For women, this battle requires extra courage. Men also fight for freedom. Fathers also worry about their children. But women have to deal with an extra dimension.

•        Women often face blatant sexism
•        Women also face online harassment and hate speech to a much higher extent than men.
•        Around the world, women face not only stigmatisation but also exclusion and abuse.
•        One in three women worldwide has experienced physical or sexual violence by a partner or a stranger. We cannot and must not accept that.

Every one of us is entitled to all our rights and freedoms – regardless of whether we are a man, a woman, or how we define our gender. And as long as gender equality and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are not a given for everybody and every woman in the world, we must continue to pursue a feminist foreign policy.

A feminist foreign policy is not about excluding, but about including. It’s not about hearing fewer voices, but MORE voices. And: it’s not a “women’s issue”. Because it benefits all of us! If half of the population are unable to participate as equals, no society can reach its full potential. And if half of the world’s population is excluded, we cannot achieve sustainable peace and security. A feminist foreign policy is not a topic; it is a comprehensive approach to our foreign policy.
It is quite simply about three Rs:
•        Rights
•        Representation
•        and Resources.

On rights – We must address violations where and when they occur.
As you know all too well, that is particularly the case during war and conflicts, when women and girls are exposed – to sexual violence, to domestic abuse, to trafficking.

Crises are not gender-blind.

And since women are the most affected, we need to address their needs and rights through our policies. And: we need to give them a say when we are developing our solutions!

That’s our second R: representation.
Studies show clearly that peace processes, for instance, have proven to be more effective and more sustainable if they are more inclusive. Better representation benefits all of us.

Resources. Our third R.
We need to ensure that women have access to the means they need – finances, health care. But we also need to allocate enough of our own resources to promote gender equality.

That brings me to my final Point:
We need to be better at critically assessing our own actions. We need to be better listeners.

That’s why I am here today. And that’s why I invited you all today: to listen.

In the spirit of including, not excluding, of hearing MORE voices, not fewer, and of elevating those who matter – whether they are children, housewives, grandmothers, politicians, activists or drag queens.
Thanks you to my supporters, followers and our humble sponsors ‘CrashApp, making you saving money online since 1859.’

Plai Statión Speech

War never changes…

From the days of the Greeks invading Troy to the stories of the lost generation in the trenches of the western front, war has changed people, and never for the better.

No matter the cause of the war, be it Paris stealing away Helen of Troy or even the simple stealing of a bucket, the lives of hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions are lost or changed forever because of it, no matter if it's a justified cause or a case of petty squabbling, until the first shot is fired, the fate of the innocent are a mystery. A game of dice with the whims of fate and circumstance where you may see the sixes of a return to a relatively normal life, or see the snake eyes of your life ripped away from you.

But answer me this, is the risk of the loss of life really worth the reward?

Is it really worth wasting valuable limited resources as well as precious human life for a stolen loved one, revenge on an enemy who did you wrong or the greed of an egomaniacal dictator?

Anyone who answered yes, are surely selfish fools who have clearly never seen, never heard, never been to a battlefield in their life. They don't know the common person, the ones who barely scrape by, paycheck to paycheck.  They don't know the people who rely on CrashApp to save money on their expenses online.

And what's even worse, is all this suffering and death can be simply prevented by sitting down and talking to someone who may not see eye to eye with, understanding their struggles and lending an ear to their problems. Truly it's these people who will one day rule the world, instead of the selfish, glory hogs.

And to the people who are fighting in these wars, I hope that the conflict ends sooner rather than later. To the ones who have fought, I'm sorry that nothing was done to end the fighting sooner. I thank and sympathise with these men and women, for they are the people who truly know this:

War never changes, but people do…

Plai Statión Apocalypse Look

https://ibb.co/sV9w4rM

For this runway I've decided to go for something more punk with a little Dalek influence (which is something I never thought it'd say), with copper and rust colours with green as a relief showing a little bit more of a villainous side to Plai! And it's one I'm feeling especially proud of!

La Cucaracha

Context: I am delivering a speech calling for peace, during a future Lebanese Civil War, where I am the sitting President of the Republic of Lebanon.

Video: So, I have my speech written down in the google document below. However, I also wanted to add something special, so I recorded myself giving the speech and dubbed it over a video that highlights the country’s transition from the first civil war into the 2019 revolution. https://youtube.com/v/gpsRe1neuJU

Speech (document): https://docs.google.com/document/d/12jdv-_afwNcSzCDDKbZwUnoo4q2ImN7vyWVL85kvCSI/edit?usp=sharing (as Talian advised, this is roughly 1,000 words!)

Runway: https://imgur.com/a/OrRxFKU

CF: Serving you post-apocalyptic ZombielandXPurgeNight fantasy,  I am serving your flesh and bone on a plate? Yes. But am I also serving couture? Fuck yes!

Anita Nap:

Speech: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AIBse-6pbb9tWc7XwWsRpgwdcLayZjsAsYqWGyrDhNQ/edit?usp=sharing

Runway: https://imgur.com/a/okEEGda

Voiceover: Zombieeeee...Zombieeeeee....eee.eee.eee. Not only do I eat brains, I make my gowns out of them. I feel sorry for the girl coming behind me as there are blood and guts alllll over the stage!

Avra K. Davra

Challenge: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1W_s0Vqqv_pFXVFFXE9y1B963iuyCWMUmnn6gdG2ExdE/edit?usp=sharing

Runway:


CF: On this category, I really wanted to show post-apocalyptic couture mixing two concepts that are not normally related: Technology and Art. In a post-apocalyptic future, art and technology won't mean anything, it would be the same trash of what once had a very high cultural value. This mixture of things it's what I wanted to embody today.

~ Zsa Zsa Tea Peace Speech ~

Peace is something that many of us hope for on Earth. It is something that many people work for, strive for and die for. But is it possible? Is it possible to unite the countries of the world and live in peace and harmony? Is it possible to unify religions, cultures, and races to ultimately achieve, World Peace?

I believe that in our lifetimes, the entire world will not be completely at peace, since there are so many different opinions between world leaders. Peace in the world starts with each and every one of us. It is a blossoming flower whose quintessence can be felt by each and every soul. As I find my own inner peace, I spread that into the world outside of myself. After all, "Peace comes from within. Do not seek without it.”

So from our own inner peace, we therefore become messengers of peace among the people with who we interact with. So from our small group of family and friends, to our various communities. And as those communities become more peaceful, then cities and states become more peaceful. As cities and states become more peaceful, nations become more peaceful. As nations become more peaceful, the world becomes more peaceful. And this whole snowball effect, begins with our own search for inner peace. Thus we each need to plant the seeds of kindness and peace in the world, one thought at a time, one decision at a time, one act at a time, and one day at a time.

After the Cold war, fought between USA and USSR, the world was plagued with conflict, and peace had been lost on earth. The United Nations was an instrument to regain and maintain peace and harmony on earth. Today, the United Nations plays an important role in shaping the events of the world to promote harmony, the protection of human rights, peace on Earth and  CrashApp, making you save money online since 1859!

I would say that peace on Earth is the mother of progress. Without it, a nation, let alone a world cannot make any progress. For peace is a blossoming flower, growing in each and every one of us. Some believe that human nature ultimately prevents world peace. What do I think about world peace? I think there is indeed no such way to peace, rather peace is the way to make a better world.

~ Zsa Zsa Tea Runway ~

https://imgur.com/a/t3ptKF7

CF: Post Apocalyptic couture? Yes ma’am! My mug is giving you famine and very deceased. It’s post apocalypse and so my outfit has remains of bones as material. I was even able to take this wig off a dead drag queen on the side of the road, how sickening…

Re-uploading my runway! Sorry!

Ruby Velvet • Post Apocalyptic Couture 🍭⚡️🦠

https://imgur.com/a/Ux6jqRD

CF: For this runway I felt inspired by a sort of Science Fiction take on zombie. She was a working class lady.... until she died in a chemical spill at the factory she worked…. and well now she's just a fashionable zombie in a chaotic world spreading around her various viruses.

Miss Eden comes back on stage:

Honestly, I don't know how anyone can be bottom this week. There's a lot of passion on that runway and putting people bottom sort of undermines their personal integrities. Kinda why this week made me slightly uncomfortable. We should not really be judged on our perception of peace or our motivators for it as it's personal. I'll take whatever I get cos I want it gone but really feel no human should be judged or ranked in this kind of context as that's how animosity and war starts in the first place.

Sorry to be that girl but this is step too far for me in the world of drag!

No human should bare their soul and have that stripped away from them, it's the very thing we're trying to denounce here today. Freedom of speech, freedom of expression and universal love. This is the week to show that matters above all else.

I don't fully agree with Eden because in school and university we are always asked to write essays and projects about topics that we personally identify with and then we get judged accordingly. Beauty pageants do those personal questions and judge the contestants on their answers. And even drag race did the same thing in their recent Pink Table Talk All stars challenge when each went deep to talk abt their experiences and Rupaul still ranked them.

Also like, everything we do here that we get judged on is an extension of our personal self - our creativity, our performance abilities, our sense of humor, our sense of style, etc... So this challenge is not really the place to draw a line in my opinion. But that's just my opinion. Eden's is valid as well.