12 thoughts on “Jimmmmmy Gracemount – 2018 – Archived – Removed by vote of Board”

1. A response from another candidate inspired me to ask of other candidates this question. Would you be open to being a part of expanding the Second Pride to have more outreach/events in order to serve and inspire more participation in the Second LIfe LGBT community?

   1. To be sure. Second Pride is a well-founded and very respectable institution, that counts many years and has shown its worth throughout them. The very democratic concept on which it is based adheres to that. As such, SP can benefit and at the same time offer its support to other LGBT groups and their events. Of course, there are parameters to be taken in mind. Are we talking simply about commercial events? Are we talking about events with some political meaning, bringing forth the issues that trouble LGBT people throughout the world? And if so, in what form? Finally, will SP —through its elected representatives who make themselves liable and responsible to the community that elected them— keep the reign in such events or not? All these are issues that need to be discussed while considering each specific case. With that in mind, I cannot tell you “Sure, let’s give the sim to whomever wants it.” But in principle, and quite likely in practice, I can tell you that that power is based on union; a union that helps LGBT people lead better lives via pushing forwards their visibility, first and foremost, and their demands.

      1. I guess when i asked the question, I assumed the practical issues would be taken into consideration

         I think it’s possible to expand the sim to better serve the LGBT community, and realistically address all of the above concerns.

         1. I don’t see why not.

2. As a performer you may have learned how important it is to market yourself. What are the ways you have used to market yourself and how do you think it can help market Second Pride to gain more attention and participation?

   1. Indeed it is. Social media, posters and sending notecards are good tools, but in my opinion nothing replaces good traditional human social interraction. For people to come to your sets and shows, you have to go to them, talk to them, meet them. The same principle holds for an institution as big as Second Pride. Of course, you cannot know or have a personal relationship with the hundreds of people that come to a Second Pride event. Yet quite a few of the names in my radar during the events were familiar; many were family, many were people to whose shops or events I had been. In other words, I believe that promoting takes place in concentric circles; you begin with those closest to you and them you expand, from family to friends, to acquaintances, to coworkers etc.

3. I think you can agree group notices in world many times are not successful. Many people have group notice functionality turned off (I do myself for quite a few) so it’s not a viable strategic marketing tool.

   What is your vision for enhancing some of the marketing of second pride? Would you give thought to have a team to assist in things like publishing newsletters, photos, blogs etc? It would be nice to see Second Pride throughout the year and not just around events.

   1. Thank you for your question, Chaotic.

      Indeed, notices become a nuissance after a while. I myself complain that I spend half my inworld time clicking notices away (and a good portion of the rest of it sending them…) But there are alternatives. Social media, adboards and personal relationship are one thing, as I said above. Blogging is the new trend in Second Life; there are fantastic bloggers all around, mostly used at this point to promote clothes and furniture shops. I believe they could do wonders for Second Pride. I am sure we can round up some talented, enthousiastic and dedicated people and have them do what they do best. (A few names came to mind just as I was reading your question).

      Given the occasion, I would like to say this as well: I believe that, when leading a team (a commitee such as you mentioned, for example), one has to be careful as to neither smother them by being too explicit nor leave them hanging by being too vague. One should try to give their team enough space to create and do what they do best, release what they have in them, but at the same time give good guidelines so that they won’t leave off the scope. During the past year, as a co-owner of the Club Medusa, I found myself having difficulties doing that; finding the perfect balance (or even the imperfect, for that matter) is not easy at all. That’s why I said in my initial statement that I will need all the help I can get. But I shall do my best.

4. I would like to see SP use as many income generating opportunities as possible.
   What kind of revenue streams have you considered?

   For example: would you look at commissioning artists to create a mix of pride merchandise and collectables (possibly using income sharing) and selling them at various price points e.g. L$100 to L$5000. Something like that could be used as a way of donating money to second pride? Limited edition / rare collectables could be included.

   What kind of creative ideas do you have that could help boost the event’s income so that it would have more resources?

   1. That is a very good question, Exo. A question I feel can be answered best by the Treasurer, in whose domain it lays. I would not want to overstep my authority (should I get elected) by putting things on the table that belong to someone else’s shoes. That being said, your idea about creating and selling memorabilia is not at all bad. I know the Madonna Virtual History Tour does it, though I don’t know in which degree of success. At any rate, it is a very good idea and I am for it. There is great talent in Second Life, amazing creators who make pride merchantise anyway and we could both —creators and SP— benefit from it.

5. First, Thank you for your interest and candidacy.

   Second, Over the last year, the current board has done much in the way of repairing the perceptions of Second Pride as an organization. Many sideline discussions with affected and effected parties have gone on.

   My question to you as a candidate and potential new Board member is how will you personally continue this trend?

   1. Thank you for your question, Rez.

      This is a very actual issue. When I started pondering whether to run for Second Pride or not, my initial thought was “Do I want to be a part of such an organisation?” Then I saw how the board dealt with occuring issues and decided that the current board has the political will to do it. The Bylaws allow it, but even the best legal text is not enough to ensure things will run well, if the people in charge of operating it do not want to enforce it.

      That is exactly what I have tried to explain to people who have lost faith in Second Pride: That the people who caused them grief have gone, either because their tenure ended and they were not re-elected, or because the SP Board —who is responsible to keep both the institution’s function in high levels but also its name and reputation— can and will put the knife down to the bone.

      That includes me. Should I be elected, I will have my ears open for grievances and put them on the table, see what was done wrongly and strive towards having the board correct them. A grievance that is not examined quickly and with resolve tends to enlarge and cause more problems at time goes by (in the case we all have in mind, that was the worse bit). Community means first and foremost interpersonal relationships, and these have to be in a good standing if we plan to achieve anything, so even the smallest slight must be discussed and treated so that the wound will heal and not fester. You may have the best venue in the grid; if you are a twat, nobody will come.

      But there is another thing people need to understand. If you have a problem with an institution, the best way to have it resolved is by participating and not retreating. If a politician causes harm, by saying “I don’t deal with politics” you give them space to do more harm. On the contrary, you must participate and apply pressure, push towards the right direction. After all, we live in this world, whether we want it or not. The same holds for subsets of this world, including Second Life, including its LGBT subset, including Second Pride. Hence, should one have a grievance and not bring it forward, they are doing a disservice to everyone, including themselves. I will keep my ears open and examine everything, not in order to cover the issue but in order to uncover it.

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