Spoken word artist, poet, and host Hasan Gök shares how he celebrates his queer identity and inspires everyone to embrace their own story and take up their own space.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/yQAdLXJOjQEWatch the video here or read his story.
Introduce yourself…
Hello dear people, my name is Hassan Gök. I am a spoken word artist, poet, host, and presenter.
How do you celebrate your identity?
How I celebrate my identity is through the texts I write, the presentations I do, how I behave on stage, how I present, but also just how I move through everyday life. I think I celebrate it by actually letting the everyday come to me and not being afraid. Because I don’t think we should just take one moment a year to hop through a canal like a showpiece. I think we can and should celebrate that every day and also take that space. So that’s also what I try to do. I try to surround myself with people who love me as I am and I think that’s also a way of celebrating. By making sure that you can be comfortable in your most natural state. That’s actually the greatest gift you can give yourself: not just taking one moment to celebrate yourself and your identity.
Where do you feel most at home?
I feel most at home in places where I can just be myself. A very cliché answer, but I can’t really do it better than that. The places where I don’t have to think about how I talk, about how I dress, or about the things I like, or about the hobbies I share, or the people I meet there. That I don’t have to worry about that. I also think the places where my voice is perhaps the least high, so that I can really talk in peace and not out of some kind of nervousness maybe put on a higher voice or maybe not know exactly what position to give myself. That doesn’t necessarily have to be in one place.
What would you like to say to your younger self?
I would say to my younger self: Do more, go faster and earlier to find people like you, like-minded people. Make sure you get into the right spaces, make sure you go to different parties and also to more events, so that you also meet those people. Then, yes, online is also possible, but at events then it is much more organic and natural and feels much better. Yes, that is what I would say to myself: Make sure you get into more places, where you meet people like you, so that you can also see: there are more people like you.
What does Pride mean to you?
For me, Pride means, besides the standard pride, taking your space and not being ashamed of the space you take up. That you are allowed to take up that space, that you should take up that space. That you can express yourself and that you should not be ashamed of it.
Why is Pride The Hague important to you?
For me, Pride The Hague is important because we still have a lack of representation in The Hague. There is no full-fledged Pride event, like in Amsterdam or Rotterdam, while it is the 3rd largest city in the Netherlands. I think that needs to change, that is why it is good that there is an organization that is committed to this. So that people can support something, just like I do now.
More information about Hasan can be found here.
In the context of Pride The Hague 2024, stories are shared from people from the queer community of The Hague.
If you want to share your own story, click here for more information.
