On Friday at 1 p.m., the Oslo drag festival breaks loose at Salt in Oslo. The mass shooting in which two people were killed at nightclubs in Oslo this summer should not be allowed to cast shadows over the party, says festival manager and drag artist Remi Johansen Hovdan: – We will have visible police outside, patrolling around the festival area. There will also be guards all around Salt, so it is impossible to sneak in. There will also be an extra check of bags and bags on the way in. We do this to create that security and that space to do what we love. It shouldn’t have been necessary, but in light of what has happened, it is important that when you come to our festival, you should feel safe. – Are you nervous after the terror this summer? – I am mostly angry, frustrated. I think a lot of people feel that they are being deprived of a freedom. That is why it is very important for us to carry out this festival. It is primarily performing arts, but it is important to show that we are here, and that we are gunning for. Labert ticket sales Johansen Hovdan wishes ticket sales had been even better. He thinks it is about summer holidays and what happened this summer. The drag festival is an experience of a lifetime, says festival manager Remi Johansen Hovdan Photo: Ismail Burak Akkan / news – But just overnight we have sold over 100 tickets. And we expect that many will come to the door as well. – Why should people come, then? – They must come to have an experience of a lifetime. There are colors, there are parties and celebrations of life. It is a space to be yourself, to celebrate others and the diversity of society. So this should be a “safe space”, that is. More reports after the Oslo shooting After the attack this summer, there has been a large increase in reports about hate crimes against queers. In the last month alone, there have been 61 reviews. There are almost as many as in the previous six months combined, according to figures from the National Center for Hate Crime in the police. Almost half of all hate crime reports in the past month have concerned sexual or gender orientation. Eight criminal cases have been opened in connection with such tips, according to NTB. The police will not comment on whether the reports are due to a real increase in hate crime, or whether more people are actually making reports. People laid flowers and pride flags after a man fired several shots this summer, outside the London pub in the center of Oslo, where several people were injured and two killed. Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB On 25 June, 43-year-old Zaniar Matapour opened fire on two pubs and a fast food restaurant in Oslo, including the London Pub, which is known as a queer pub. Two men were killed and over 20 injured in the shooting. The police are working on several theories, including that the shooting was motivated by hatred of homosexuals.
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Extra security at the Oslo drag festival today – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
