Social Saturday- Blue Ribbon Army (BRA)

The Two Gay Geeks wish to feature Blue Ribbon Army a social organization adjacent to Phoenix Comic Fest. Most of the interactions of Blue Ribbon Army (BRA) members is via the Facebook group however, they do have several events throughout the year and have a presence at Phoenix Comic Fest and Phoenix Fan Fest. Let’s look more at who they are and what they do.

The Blue Ribbon Army exemplifies what we are trying to feature on our Social Saturday posts. See the post form their Facebook page:

What is the Blue Ribbon Army? The Blue Ribbon Army (BRA for short) is a social group focused on giving like-minded geeks a place to meet new friends. Throughout the year we host several events, as well as taking on many projects for charity.

Below is a quote by Matt Hinds in an article for talknerdywithus.com:

“In a nutshell, the Blue Ribbon Army is a social club for geeks, named for the blue ribbons/lanyards that we wear to conventions an geek events to identify one another. Our primary hangout spot is our Facebook page, where our members talk nerdy (see what I did there?) with one another and coordinate get-togethers. Outside of a place for geek networking (which is our core mission), we are also a non-profit that chooses a different charity to support with each event.”-Matt

BRA was started back in 2013 by Matt and Jen Hinds among others as a way to socialize with others at (then called) Phoenix Comicon and grew to be a service organization adjacent to the folks that run the Con. They are some of the most likeable people and have some spirited discussions on the Facebook page. It is one of those pages I check often and when the alert comes up I usually look at the post.

BRA is, however, a closed group. You must ask permission to join and there are rules to live by. No harassment or bad mouthing, gossip, general pot stirring of any kind is allowed. There are other rules around spoilers and what may be posted, they want to keep at least PG, they want everyone to feel comfortable with the posts or if someone is looking over their shoulder.

I am going to post the first item from their rule list since it is fairly well thought out and should be what we all strive for in the Greater Geeky / Nerdy Community.

1.) Don’t be a dick. We accept everyone as they are! Therefore there are no personal attacks, fandom shaming, cosplay shaming, body shaming, sexism, slut shaming, homophobia, transphobia, racism, and, most of all, no religion or political discussion. Failure to follow those guidelines can get you removed from the page.

BRA has a number of events around Phoenix Comic Fest and Phoenix Fan Fest including a quiet lounge for con goers.
So, look them up on Facebook and be a part of the madness.

BTW- BRA has a great bumper sticker (really a magnet – thank the Maker) and have a great ongoing thread about the BRA in the wild. A car of someone you don’t know with one of the emblems. You take a picture and post it on Facebook.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/BlueRibbonArmy/
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