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Massimadi

The Massimadi Film Festival is an LGBTIQ film festival held each February, during black history month in Montreal, Québec, Canada. Massimadi is organized by the LGBTIQ advocacy group / African Rainbow. The films showcased have been chosen to highlight the lived experiences of marginalized sexual and gender minorities who are of African descent.

The festival name “massimadi” comes from combining “massissi” and “madivinèz”, pejorative Haitian creole terms for gay and lesbian |url=Everything you need to know about Black History Month in Montreal|accessdate=19 June 2013|newspaper=The Gazette|date=2 February 2012}}. Massimadi debuted in 2009 with 10 films. In 2013 Massimadi had expanded to include 13 films, keynote speakers, and themed days with accompanying talks. The themes during Massimadi 2013 were civil rights and homosexuality, HIV, Francophone, and women.

The Opening Speakers of Massimadi 2013 were Bertrand St-Arnaud, minister of justice and Steve Foster the director general of CRÉ, the Quebéc LGBT council. Following these talks, Charlot Jeudy, the president of Kouraj, the first LGBT advocacy group in Haiti, and Stanley Bennet Clay held a talk.

To close Massimadi 2013 a panel discussion was held with Wade Davis jr, Darnell Lee Moore and Frieda Ekotto.

In 2013 Massimadi was also held in Brussels, Belgium. It was organized by ’Les identités du Baobab’.