The efforts of an antigay group hoping to sabotage an annual LGBTQ teen dance have backfired, contributing thousands of dollars to the event they meant to derail.
The Victorian Same Sex Gender Diverse Formal in Australia is meant to give a safe space for teens who don’t identify as straight to celebrate and create happy memories.
Attendees wear what they want, bring who they want, dance with whomever they want.
Minus 18, the group that throws the event, decided this year to crowdfund tickets for teens who couldn’t afford the $40 admission price.
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Enter an antigay group (actually) named… The Stop Safe Schools Coalition.
The organization fights against the federal Government-funded Safe Schools Coalition Australia program – a “coalition of schools and organizations that aim to foster safe and inclusive environments for same-sex attracted, intersex, and gender diverse students, staff and families.”
Stop Safe Schools caught wind of Minus 18’s event, and devised a plan, calling upon their members to buy up as many tickets as they could after thinking they’d discovered a loophole that said the tickets were nontransferable and nonrefundable.
The more tickets they bought, they told their minions, the more teens would be unable to attend. Thus, “the more youth we protect.”
Here’s the call to action they posted to Facebook:
The group overlooked one detail: the ticketing program is set up as a crowdfunding system.
Every ticket “purchased” is guaranteed to go to a LGBTQ teen to attend the event.
“You realize that if the conservatives do buy all the tickets, you can just allow registered people on a waiting list in for free? They’re effectively subsidizing tickets for those who can’t buy one,” one commenter pointed out on the event’s Facebook page.
Minus 18 set an initial goal of raising $15k for 500 tickets. The group has reportedly raised nearly $30k as of Tuesday.
With all that extra money, they’re planning on moving the event to a larger venue and upping capacity so more teens can attend.
