Photography: Noah Valentyn
Styling & MUAH: Sjoerd Willemsen
Interview: Paul Hofman
For 37 years, Mieke Martelhoff (71) was the face of the world-renowned lesbian women's café Vivelavie. A legendary café where there was always a party. For her efforts, she received a royal honour in 1999. And to crown it all, she is now the ambassador of Pride Amsterdam. She beams with pride. "Last year, I quit. It was time for our baby to stand on its own two feet."
After the sale of her café, a somewhat less pleasant period began. "It was not a pleasant time but now I have overcome everything," she says. When she was asked to become a Pride 2018 ambassador, she shot up. "It means something very special to me." More than 20 years ago, she stood at the cradle of the first Gay Pride. She remembers it like the day before yesterday. "It was so different from now but also so beautiful."
She is a conversationalist who quickly shakes anecdotes out of her sleeve. "One of the highlights was when I sailed along with girlfriends on my boat during the first Canal Parade. We had all dressed up as sailors. It was bitchiness at its finest. However, the boat parade became a resounding success." She smiles as she shows the photos. "That the Vivelavie was a home port for many lesbians and therefore visibility and acceptance was increased, I could not have dreamt."
When we remark that she herself is like a figurehead she modestly remarks: "I am not a hero myself. What I have done is normal for me. I never thought about breaking certain taboos, it just happened that way." She does not have any heroes directly but she does admire the people who used to stand on the barricades for free LGBTI life as we know it today in the Netherlands.
The increasing intolerance towards the LGBTI community worries her. "That you can no longer walk hand in hand in the city as a gay or lesbian couple I find appalling Freedom is absolutely under pressure." She herself and her wife experienced first-hand what it is like when you are discriminated against. "That is horrifying to say the least."
Her advice has only one explanation: "Stay with yourself, don't be afraid and behave the way you want to."
"ENJOY YOUR LIFE. YOU BETTER HAVE ENJOYED IT BECAUSE YOU ARE GOING TO DIE ANYWAY"
Pride ambassador since 2018
