It’s dark and raining, not unusual for Helsinki in November, as I arrive to a dimly lit hip-looking club. A woman greets me by the door as I leave my winter gear in the coat rack. There’s a nice ambiance in the club: lively but quiet chatting fills the room as people are sitting down sipping their wines and beers. There’s a long line to the bar which I decide to join and as my turn comes up I order a cider. The tables have started to fill and so I sit next to a stranger. The young woman and I introduce ourselves, I’m a first timer, she’s taking part for the second time. Soon enough rest of the empty seats are filled, and I notice there are more people taking part than there are tables in the club. Men, women, old, young, local, and foreign, all these people came to hear swearing, I find myself thinking.
I’ve come to a feminist swearing evening, organized by Feministinen ajatushautomo Hattu, a Finnish feminist think tank. And no, it’s not just a tongue twister, it’s an intriguing event featuring interesting thinkers and performers as I soon come to notice.
Most have gotten their drinks and settled down as Rosa Meriläinen, one of the founders of Hattu welcomes everyone and gets us to do some joint swearing. Which is, by the way, tons of fun! The evening is themed “F*cking internet” – hence up on stage with Rosa is Johanna Vehkoo, an author of a newly published book Vihan ja Inhon Internet, freely translated as the internet of hatred and loathing. Just like Rosa, Johanna is a leader at Hattu. This is how they introduce themselves, which gets me thinking, when was the last time I heard a woman calling themselves a leader? And I don’t mean public figures like Queen B or Oprah, I mean women you see every day. As a side note, we need to do this more! This sets the tone for the event: we are here as empowered feminists having fun and enjoying each other’s company, and to swear our hearts out!
The book is being sold at the event, but you’re not pressured to do anything except enjoy the swearing feminists. Which is what I do. Throughout the night I get to see the most creative and entertaining performances. Some are planned, others improvised. Some touch on the topic of what type of an environment the internet is for feminists, while others, such as a rap about body hair gets us raising our eyebrows and laughing out loud at the same time.
Overall, the event is entertaining and a great outlet and a release. There is an open mic, so anyone even moderately annoyed by anything at all is welcome to go up and let it rip! While I enjoy my fellow feminists’ creatively channeled outrage and frustration, I feel the Finnish-ness in me prevent me from taking the center stage. However, as I get up to leave and say my good byes, I promise myself the next time a swearing night comes to my town, you can find me up on stage throwing around a few f-bombs.
You can follow Hattu’s events on Facebook, and go check out the next swearing event in person: https://www.facebook.com/hautomohattu/