A new project is being trialled in Amsterdam to provide a safe space for queer partygoers to get ready before a night out. Named ‘Dress and Dance’, the project has transformed a hair salon into a place where queer people can get hair and makeup styling from a team of professionals before jumping in a free taxi to their chosen nightclub.
Even though Amsterdam is known as a very friendly LGBTIQ+ city and will host the WorldPride festival in 2026, a Dutch government report showed that of the 823 reports of discrimination made to the Amsterdam police in 2021, 310 were based on sexual orientation.
Image above: Drag queen Divina stands at Reguliersdwarsstraat near safe space "Dress & Dance".
The new project ‘Dress and Dance’ has been spearheaded by students from Inholland University and coordinated by Maud Gussenhoven, the manager of central Reguliersdwarsstraat Street.
While most Dutch citizens are accepting of diversity, a 2018 report by the Dutch Government found that queer people still face discrimination, intimidation, harassment and violence in public spaces, with the government committed to “prevent and tackle them”.
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