With both the Rainbow Pride Parade and the Pride March imminent, Sam Brooks looks back on the schism that led to the end of the Auckland Pride Parade. What’s the difference between the Rainbow Pride Parade and the Pride March? Glance at photos from the two events side by side and you might think you’re … Read more
We Are Who We Are, the new limited series from Call Me By Your Name director Luca Guadagnino, treats this zoomer love story like it’s paradise, writes Sam Brooks. There’s a moment towards the start of the first episode of We Are Who We Are that left me genuinely breathless. The preceding hour of the … Read more
An Auckland strip club night that prioritises safe spaces for QPOC (queer people of colour) dancers returns tonight, following its debut last year. Ruby Clavey (she/her) spoke with Sarita Das (they/them), one of the masterminds behind the show. Sarita Das became frustrated with the lack of body diversity and queer representation in traditional strip clubs, … Read more
Feeling down about America divided? There were some less-publicised but very real wins for progressive politics too that show all is not lost in this shitty old year. If you’re feeling lost and heartbroken that 70 million-plus Americans voted for Donald Trump, that’s legit. And I won’t try to make you feel better. It’s terrible … Read more
Our back-patting about electing the most inclusive parliament in history has one glaring omission, writes Henrietta Bollinger. In a sea of red votes, Aotearoa New Zealand looks to have elected the most rainbow parliament in the world. As a queer constituent, I have to believe this means something. It also has me reflecting on the … Read more
David Riddell says he has been ‘thrown under the bus’ by the well-known parenting organisation, which listed him as an approved counsellor despite his therapeutic practice with children whom he believes have been ‘sent in a same-sex direction’ by their parents. Emily Writes reports. Parenting Place, one of New Zealand’s largest support networks for parents … Read more
The children’s theatre show that is making some conservatives furious opens in Wellington this week. Emily Writes spoke to co-creator George Fowler about the controversy, and the empowering message behind the play. When we talk over the weekend, George Fowler is on top of the world despite the challenging week he’s had. On Wednesday, his … Read more
The new sexuality education guidelines aim to teach kids about healthy relationships – and what sort of parent wouldn’t welcome that? On Tuesday, new sexuality education guidelines were introduced in New Zealand schools. The long-awaited changes include a greater focus on consent, gender and pornography. These guidelines have been years in the making and parents … Read more
Just because few parties have released LGBTQI+ policies doesn’t mean the rainbow community won’t hold them to account. A new policy tool highlights the rainbow policies that matter this year, and which parties support them. “For Queer people, politics is personal – we neither have the luxury nor privilege to keep our lives outside politics.” … Read more
He’s an industrial designer, a social justice campaigner, a former national softball player, and an activist member of the Filipino rainbow community. Now based in Wellington, Julian Tanaka talks to Tessa Guest. Five years ago, Julian Tanaka stood on a TEDx stage in Manila, the Philippines, and shared an excruciatingly personal part of his life … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews Auckland writer Lil O’Brien’s memoir Not That I’d Kiss A Girl, and finds it a valuable yet unclear story of the author’s struggle with her own acceptance. As queer people, we can be unnecessarily harsh on media that is about us, and by us. I think of the response to Looking, the … Read more
Over six years, Ben Sarten filmed Adam Rohe (who was assigned female at birth) on his journey into manhood, forming a friendship that to them has become as important as the documentary itself. Most documentary-makers put in hours, days, or years before a subject trusts them enough to do a film like Man Lessons. But … Read more
Midway through lockdown, Kiwibank received Rainbow Tick accreditation. Sam Brooks talks to Kiwibank’s chief risk officer Liz Knight about what the Rainbow Tick means for the company. Acceptance isn’t a state of being, it’s an action. It’s not a casual nod to a stranger on your walk, it’s a handshake. You know, back when we … Read more
A simple, long overdue change in New Zealand’s policy for blood donations would benefit everyone, writes Dr Oliver Armstrong-Scott. The New Zealand Blood Service recently pleaded for Kiwis to continue donating blood during the Covid-19 lockdown to ensure supplies do not run out. As a medical doctor, I have seen firsthand the absolute necessity of … Read more
As both negotiate the complexities of being part memorial, part protest and part celebration, an empathetic allegiance between Waitangi Day and the Auckland Pride Festival has the potential of collective empowerment, writes Richard Orjis. Waitangi Day falls in the middle of this year’s Auckland Pride Festival. Rather than being strange bedfellows in the summer cultural … Read more
The tail end of 2018 witnessed fiery debate over the future direction of Auckland Pride. A year later, Jade Winterburn reflects on the developments since then and what that means for the future of Pride. There has never been a moment where I was prouder to be queer than during this year’s OurMarch – a … Read more
Sascha* Stronach’s new book The Dawnhounds is about queer folk who refuse to ‘die pretty’. Here, he heralds a queer revolution in science fiction and fantasy. It’s an archetype we’re all familiar with: the tragic and noble LGBTQIA character who shows up to support the hero, and then dies beautifully while the straight folks run … Read more
A remarkable quilt project at Wellington’s Play_Station, Sissymancy! references the AIDS Quilt project while laying new ground for current and future generations of queer artists, writes Mark Amery. I remember being called a sissy at school. Not nice. The effeminate aligned with cowardliness. It was one step away from being called a fag. The … Read more
Kassie Hartendorp (Ngāti Raukawa) has been looking to Māori stories and storytellers to learn more about our gender identities before colonisation. There’s a lot to be read between the lines, she writes. Te ao Māori can be a very gendered place to be. In some settings, your gender can tell you where you stand, what … Read more
Hundreds of artefacts connected with the lesbian community in New Zealand are displayed in a small volunteer-run museum in West Auckland. Charmaine always had crushes on girls. When she was head girl of Auckland Girls’ Grammar, she fell in love with her deputy. Her mother warned her of the dangers of intense friendships with women, … Read more
Emily Writes reflects on being out and proud, three years after accepting and embracing her sexuality. In church I listened to sermons about people with the devil in their hearts. People who would go to Hell even if they were good people. God hates the sin. There’s so much sin. We have to be strong … Read more
In a move half shocking and half not at all surprising to Samoa’s LGBT community, Apia’s Apollo Cinemas will not be screening the Elton John musical Rocketman. Sapeer Mayron reports from Apia on the decision and its impact on the Samoa’s LGBT community. Despite locking it in for screenings, the Apollo cinema has had to … Read more
In the latest episode of On The Rag, based on the podcast of the same name, watch as Alex Casey, Michele A’Court and Leonie Hayden wrestle with the positives and perils of being a woman online. In episode three of our On the Rag web series, we explore the ways that the promised utopia of the … Read more
Companies are paying thousands for a Rainbow Tick to show their workplaces are safe for LGBTQI people. But does the certification really do what it purports to? Digital journalist Murphy reports for RNZ. Kim sits in the car on her way in to work – she’s crying, she doesn’t want to go in. She woke up … Read more
If you’re gay in the LGBT world, you’re part of the gang. If you’re straight, you’re on the outside. But where do those in between sit? A year ago I was planning my wedding. My fiancé and I had just celebrated our four year anniversary with an engagement party. To everyone who knew me, I … Read more
Yesterday, Wallabies player Israel Folau was issued with a “high level” breach notice by Rugby Australia, bringing him closer to the termination of his contract over a social media post in which he claimed “homosexuals” and others would go to hell. For a gay, Pasifika man, it’s not necessarily something to celebrate, writes Patrick Thomsen. … Read more
Extract: In a new book about censored letters in New Zealand, the author tells the strange story of a German woman who dressed as a man and may have established a “lesbian network”. Letter from Katherine Early to Hjelmar Dannevill, November 1915 I don’t know whether it will be possible to see you again, I … Read more
As New Zealand increasingly backs queer rights, are our Christian churches evolving or standing firm that homosexuality is sinful? Max Towle investigates for RNZ. This piece originally appeared on RNZ. When he was young, every week Ryan Curran would step forward and silently beg and plead at the altar. “God please take this disease from … Read more
There’s a dearth of queer work in Aotearoa, and very little of it is supported by our mainstages. Homos, or Everyone in America is a gleaming light in the darkness. Sam Brooks responds to the play, and talks to the director about its urgency. (For the purposes of this piece, the label ‘queer’ stands in for LGBTQI+ … Read more