“Cómplices”, the primary “queer” bookstore to open in Barcelona, closes this December 31 because of the retirement of its two booksellers and founders, the Catalan Connie Dagas and the Danish Helle Bruun. The venue, positioned within the Ciutat Vella district, opened its doorways in 1994. Throughout these years it has supplied a “secure place, an area for complicity” with its clientele.
The two bookstores will proceed to run the Egales publishing home, with which within the Nineties they started to publish books on homosexual and lesbian themes that generalist publishers despised.
“Think that once we began, nearly 29 years in the past, there have been hardly any LGTBI-themed books in Spanish or Catalan. In truth, then there have been solely the acronyms LGB,” remembers Connie Dagas in dialog, explaining that it was then that they determined to open their very own label. , with which they’ve already revealed greater than 450 titles.
The first LGTBI-themed books
“In the nineties there have been hardly any native writers like Terenci Moix or Eduardo Mendicutti out of the closet of their literature. And many basic publishers didn’t need to publish “queer” narrative, assuring that there was not sufficient public,” he remembers.
In this manner, the couple fulfilled their second dream shortly after making the primary come true: in 1994, they opened the primary gay-lesbian bookstore in Barcelona, a metropolis that, though it had simply made its debut on this planet with the Olympic Games, was not so cosmopolitan. relating to the rights of the collective.
“Everything has modified loads. Before, folks entered wanting on the floor, asking questions talking softly, nobody wore a rainbow pin on their lapel. Now the youngest enter with out shyness and proudly put on their trans or bisexual bracelets,” explains Dagas.
They say that maybe the political turning level that opened the hand of publishers with the authors of the collective and introduced LGTBI literature to the highlight within the media was in 2005 the approval of gay marriage.
Last days stuffed with emotion
Despite the rise in hate speech and homophobic assaults in recent times, of their case they are saying they haven’t suffered assaults past some insulting graffiti shortly after the victory of José María Aznar in 1996.
“Sometimes they’ve additionally ripped off a rainbow flag from the entrance door, however not a lot,” provides the bookseller.
From what he says that they’ve obtained “loads” of affection from lifelong clients, who as of late cease by the bookstore to say goodbye to them and make their final buy.
They do not fairly know what they are going to do with the hundreds of books within the library. “Oh, that is the massive query! Let’s see what we do with them!” She says.
“These days every thing is being very emotional. I do not know the way we are going to get to 31…”, Dagas is worked up.
‘The long-distance runner’, among the many greatest sellers
Among the best-selling books within the retailer’s historical past, he cites “The long-distance runner” by Patricia Nell Warren, the best-selling homosexual guide on this planet, but in addition “El viaje de Marcos” by Óscar Hernández-Campano; “Con Pedigree”, a trilogy by the creator Lola Van Guardia (pseudonym of Isabel Franch), or “Fag ethic”, by Paco Vidarte.
Among bookstore favorites, “El joc del Mentider” additionally stands out, by Lluís Maria Todó, one of many native precursors of homosexual themes and who helped the shop promote homosexual and lesbian narrative via the Terenci Moix Award.
“Cómplices” closes however different LGTBI bookstores stay open in Barcelona akin to “Antinous”, within the Eixample; “La Raposa”, in Poble-sec; “Acció Perifèrica” in Vilapicina or “La Prole” in Sant Antoni, amongst different locations with a gender and LGTBI perspective the place the brand new generations proceed to weave their very own “complicity”.