Stacey Ho traces the history of “benchin” (2007-ongoing), a social gathering reimagined as a collaborative performance and installation by artists Charlene Vickers and Neil Eustache. Supported by exclusionary and colonial structures, gentrified neighbourhoods in Vancouver become the context for how benchin could foster community building and inclusion in public spaces.

This article is a transcription of a conversation between artist and curator Stacey Ho and Killjoy Collective, a Vancouver-based group that has organized creative community events for queer black and Indigenous people of colour.