Just Kin 2026 After Party
Call all aunties, cousins, and lovers raising hell against empire and patriarchy and building heaven here on Earth!
Join Tia’s Roommate, Little Lion Collective, Thorne Malik, and the People’s Saturday School for the Just Kin Arts Festival Afterparty on Saturday, August 29 from 9 pm - 1 am at Semilla Cafe + Studio in Hartford.
The Just Kin Arts Festival is Hartford’s celebration of Queer diasporic artists transgressing borders and binaries. The 2026 Festival features a ceremony, community altar, market, and workshops at the Hartford Public Library, a concert featuring Las Mariquitas, New York’s Queer and Trans salsa band, at the Butler McCook House & Garden, and, last but not least, our official afterparty.
You can read more about and register to attend the festival at saturdaycooperative.org/justkin
This year, we’re highlighting the role of music and dance in movements for feminist and anti-colonial resistance in the Caribbean and Latin American diasporas and, of course, this wouldn’t be complete without an old fashioned perreo and hangeo!
This event is open to everyone 21+, and is specifically intended for our Black and Brown queers and femmes and our friends and comrades!
Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the door. If this is a barrier, you can request a fee waiver via this form. No one will be turned away due to lack of funds.
However, space is limited and we may reach capacity!
Lineup:
The afterparty features:
live sets from Hook Gawdess, Thorne Malik. and DJ Queershoulders
Cash bar with fresh mocktails, coquito, liquor, and wine curated by the Little Lion Collective
flash tattoos on a first come, first served basis with Muva Mya Ink
board and card games
Health and Safety:
The People’s Saturday School is committed to hosting safe(r) events for our disabled, chronically ill, and immuno-compromised loved ones. This includes taking precautions to reduce the risk of transmission of COVID-19 and other airborne illnesses.
As a result, we are requiring all guests to follow the following protocols:
Please wear a high quality masks (e.g. KN95, N95 or similar) at all times when indoors unless you are taking a sip. Extra masks will be provided at the door.
If you test positive for COVID-19, have had a recent confirmed COVID exposure, and/or are experiencing any symptoms outside of your norm, please stay home!
As event staff and volunteers, we will take the extra precaution of testing for COVID-19 and encourage you to do so, if possible.
We will run multiple air purifiers indoors and, weather permitting, the private back patio behind Semilla Cafe + Studio will be open for guests to enjoy a little fresh air and more chill vibes.
Please note that we have a zero tolerance policy for hate speech, discrimination, harassment, and non-consensual physical contact of any kind. We will have a security team present to interrupt and de-escalate situations and will remove any guests we determine to be compromising our guests’ health and safety.
Venue:
Semilla Cafe + Studio, located at 1283 Main Street, Hartford, is a Black Queer women owned coffee shop and neighborhood living room.
Free parking is available on weekends in the San Juan Center parking lot, which you can access either through Main Street or Ann Uccello Street. There is also limited street parking available on Main Street and it is a half mile walk from Hartford’s Union Station.
The cafe’s entrance is accessible for guests using wheelchairs or mobility aides and both bathrooms are ADA compliant and all gender. Unfortunately, the outdoor space behind the cafe does require several steps to access.
The Just Kin Arts Festival is a project of the People’s Saturday School and co-produced by varun khattar sharma and danilo machado in partnership with the Hartford Public Library, Connecticut Landmarks, and Mutual Aid Hartford and with generous support from the Greater Hartford Gives Foundation’s Equality Fund and the Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut.
Any questions? Please contact us at info@hastaluegofriend.com