This. This, people, is how to start being inclusive. Give memberships to those who can’t afford to attend. Con or Bust is for people of colour; imagine how other conventions would look if the representation in the convention was similar to the representation on the street? At Melbourne Central?
People with disabilities are also usually on low incomes and cannot attend. It’d be nice to share the love with them too.
Loncon 3 celebrates the future and the past: Diversity and History
press release
London, 6 May 2014 – Loncon 3, the 72nd World Science Fiction Convention (“Worldcon”), will open on 14 August, 100 days from today.
Loncon 3 has already achieved a higher membership than any previous Worldcon outside the United States, with over 7,300 people signed up, more than 5,200 of whom will be attending. It is on course to be an extraordinary event bringing together fans from over 50 countries to celebrate science fiction.
Loncon 3 today announces two initiatives to reach out to the future and the past of the genre.
Diversity: Con or Bust
Loncon 3 is being held in Newham, one of the most diverse boroughs in London, which is itself one of the world’s most diverse cities. In order to represent the diversity of both our host borough and city and the SF genre as a whole, Loncon 3 has joined up with the US-based non-profit organisation Con or Bust (http://con-or-bust.org/), which assists people of colour/non-white people to attend conventions such as Worldcons.
Loncon 3 has donated 5 Attending memberships to Con or Bust, and will donate up to another 20 to match donations from our members (7 such donations have already been made). In addition, if current members who find they cannot now attend donate their Attending memberships to Con or Bust, Loncon 3 will swap them for Supporting memberships, meaning that those donors will continue to have full voting rights in the Hugo and Retrospective Hugo awards and site selection, regardless of when they donate their membership.
To donate, send your name, address, email address, and membership number to memberships@loncon3.org and request the transfer of your Attending membership to Con or Bust.
History: 1939 and 1957
Loncon 3 celebrates the 75th anniversary of the first ever Worldcon, held in New York in 1939. To commemorate the history of our genre, Loncon 3 will offer a free Attending membership to any person who was a member of either Nycon 1 in 1939 or the first British Worldcon, Loncon 1 in 1957.
If you qualify and would like to join Loncon 3 or already have paid for a membership, please contact 1939worldcon@loncon3.org or 1957worldcon@loncon3.org respectively.
