Some of the changes help us to encapsulate a wider diversity of gender identities:

“Quorum for Executive Board meetings shall consist of five (5) Executive Board members of whom at least two (2) must identify differently than the remained of those board members making up quorum, in regards to gender or sexual identity, to help ensure diverse representation in decision making.”

While others make it easier for all young people (straight as well as queer + trans*) to represent Rainbow Youth:

Current clause:
“Is available to any person aged twenty-seven (27) years and under, who is non-heteronormative identifying or does not identify themselves as straight. This includes, but is not limited to those who identify as: gay, lesbian, bisexual,      transgender, takataapui, fa’afafine, intersex, asexual, queer, gender-queer, transsexual, non-heterosexual, and/or who experience same sex love and attraction.”

New clause:
“Is available to any person aged twenty-seven (27) years and under, who fully supports the purposes and aims of the Society”

Check out the full list of proposed changes here.

Or, download the full altered constitution here: Constitution – 2013 altered version.

And! There’s still time to apply to join our board as well.

Vessel For My Heart - Dir: Ryan Lexi

A useful introduction to the overall themes constructed by this collection of shorts, Vessel for My Heart brings together a range of individuals confronting gender norms. Each carve out their own niche in the gender identity and sexuality spectrum and Lexi’s short documentary brings us a fairly intimate snapshot of their ideas and mantras. Maybe it’s largest downfall was its length – I was left wanting to know more about these people and the path they take through their lives. But I was satisfied enough with the message the film gave me: that we are all bigger than what we appear to be. And it’s how we hold our hearts that matters the most. 

Charlotte - Dir: Daniel Monks

Charlotte is a short film that pulls apart the perceptions people hold about others and themselves. Making every one of its four minutes count, the reveal it builds up to is heart breaking and visually compelling. It captures a hard hitting moment in the brave, fragile and painful quest of someone trying to be who they really are.

Taboo - Dir: Chiara Grabmayr

Taboo is a beautifully shot Austrian film about Kevin’s first public appearance as a man and a father. What struck me in this short is the relationship between Kevin and his son. The moments between them are both poignant and affirming, and you realise that Kevin draws all his strength from this little boy who believes without batting an eyelid that Kevin is his father. Kevin’s struggle at the parent-teacher meeting is all for his son, and you see his dedication to being the best parent he can be. This is a story that goes beyond its 8 minutes of film time, and has characters and a developing storyline that left me wanting to stay with Kevin as he bravely faces more of life’s challenges. 

Genderfreak - Dir: Rebecca Louisell

Although some of its relationships seem a little inconsistent, Genderfreak is a charming film about the blossoming relationship between genderqueer Sammy and a straight girl Rachel with a hairy upper lip. Genderfreak bravely takes on a coming of age story and mingles it with honesty and humor. While not a standout of the group, it was still a film that left me thinking, and wanting to see a more fully fleshed out and longer version to properly explore its characters and its message. 

Walks Like A… – Arlin McFarlane

Walks Like A… pulls the pressure of gender conformity that we all face from a young age into sharp focus. Visually stunning, Walks Like A… was one of the films that stood out for me in terms of its ability to capture a message and deliver it with painful emotional precision- similar to Taboo and Charlotte. The notion of just ‘being’ when you a child, and completely living inside your own head is something that I could relate to. It demonstrates the way gender norms take their toll even before we are old enough to understand them.

Neighbors -Dir: Rachel Goldberg

Perhaps containing the most quirky and rich characters was Neighbors, the story of a girl afraid to leave her house and her neighbor - a beautiful and compassionate cross dresser. They share a quiet and unassuming bond with one another, and prove that human connection can be something subtle and special by merely accepting a person as they are.

Ursula’s Victory - Dir: Julio Martí & Nacho Ruipérez

Ursula’s Victory was, for me, the stand out of this line up. Gritty, stylistic and offbeat, this Spanish film explores the lengths gender-queer allies will go to make sure that their loved ones are treated with respect and sensitivity – even after their deaths.  With its adventurous aesthetic, Ursula’s Victory seemed to be the most experimental film, yet also the most polished.

Seeing these collection of short films made for an eye opening (literally) and inspiring evening. I was a little sad that there were no New Zealand shorts that could fit into this category, but Beyond The Binary proves that there is an exciting platform developing for future filmmakers and storytellers of gender queer stories to engage in.

Saturday the 29th of June at our drop-in centre.

What does our AGM involve?

As a charitable organisation, we have to hold an annual general meeting (AGM) every year. What happens is that the people responsible for the running and organisation of RY, the board, use the AGM as a chance to report about all the happenings of the last year to its members (YOU GUYS).

There are boring bits (like how much money we have) but there are also über fun things like free food, chatting about our campaigns and endeavours and super cool company.

Why should I come?

Well, the free food, duh.

The AGM is YOUR chance to have a say about how RY is run and what we do.

We also elect our new board for the next annual term!

If you think you have what it takes to be a board member, then submit an online form.

Our ideal board member candidate has to: 

Be familiar with the strengths and challenges of queer and trans* youth in Aotearoa

Represent the organisation in an official capacity as required

Contributor the vision and mission of rainbow youthContribute to a core organisational committeeRegular meeting attendance

There is no experience required, however knowledge of Rainbow Youth and the structure of governance boards would be an advantage

So come along, eat food, meet people and share your ideas with us!

AGM Agenda
12pm Saturday 29th June

12:00pm               Centre opens & Kai
12:30pm               Official Welcome & Kai
12:40pm               Reports
1:00pm                 Voting:

Executive Board stand down
Representatives
Executive Board
Officers

2:00pm                 Acknowledgements and Closing

The New Zealand Constitution – what’s it to you?

The government is conducting a review of the New Zealand constitution and has set up an advisory panel to report to them what New Zealanders think.

Some of us don’t think we know much about constitutional issues but we can see some things that are going well in New Zealand and others that seem to be going badly wrong. We can use this opportunity to think about how our constitution can make sure we don’t lose the good bits and about whether it could help change the bad things.

Julie Watson from the Human Rights Commission is coming to Rainbow Youth to do a Constitutional Workshop -She can facilatate us to work out how what we want for  NZ in the future and feed our priorities into the Commission’s submission on the constitution.

Saturday 25 May

1pm – lunch provided

Rainbow Youth, K Rd

Please RSVP for catering purposes and with any dietary or accessibility requirements

There is no charge for the workshop

To Julie juliew@hrc.co.nz, 3062651, or TEXT ONLY 0211377337

The newly created roles of General Manager, Centre Administrator, Fundraising Coordinator and Campaign Coordinator replace the existing roles of Executive Director and Fundraising Projects Manager soon to be vacated by the departure of Thomas Hamilton and Sam Shore.

Please email all applications, including a C.V. and Cover Letter toemployment@rainbowyouth.org.nz.

Pink Shirt Day (PSD) is a national campaign to raise awareness about the power we all have to prevent bullying. PSD aims to reduce bullying by celebrating diversity and promoting the development of positive social relationships. An annual event celebrated throughout New Zealand and the world, Pink Shirt Day aims to foster a society where all people feel safe, valued, and respected.

PSD began in Nova Scotia, Canada, in 2007, when a group of students stood up to defend a kid who was bullied because he was wearing a pink shirt. His fellow students took a stand by wearing pink shirts to show solidarity, and handing out pink shirts to their classmates.

This year, Pink Shirt Day Aotearoa is Friday May 17, 2013, and we here at Rainbow Youth want to stand up and say WTF! to homophobia and transphobia in schools, the work place and at home. Get on board with us and wear a pink shirt this Friday May 17th! If you don’t have one, check out these awesome designs by Mr Vintage. 

Tommy Hamilton and Aych McArdle at the Marriageathon

Marriage equality for the rainbow community was celebrated on K’ Road last week with a “marriageathon” hosted by a local youth group.

Rainbow Youth board member Aych McArdle said it was about commemorating the historic passage of the legislation.

“We were so excited to see Louisa Wall’s marriage equality amendment bill pass through parliament a few weeks ago, and we thought we’d have a celebration,” they said at the event.

“We’ve got cupcakes and tinsel and glitter, and we’re just having some fun with it.”

People were able to ‘marry’ whoever or whatever they wanted as part of the marriageathon, and dozens took advantage of the opportunity to tie the knot with friends or partners.

Rachel and Alex got married after walking in off the street, and agreed it was a good way to celebrate marriage equality.

“We were together for four years,” said Rachel.  “We’re just friends now, but we still have a deep bond and we love each other very much, so we were like this is cute!”

“Exactly,” said Alex.  It was a nice thing to do spontaneously, yeah, to celebrate the special kind of love we have.”

Rainbow Youth Executive Director Thomas Hamilton officiated as ‘celebrant’ at the event, and said the event made a statement about the inclusivity of marriage.

“This is a message about what we can do to make marriage even more inclusive,” said Mr Hamilton.  “What is the next phase of equality when it comes to relationships and marriage?”

Mr Hamilton said that while same-sex marriage is an important step, further steps should also be taken to ensure marriage equality for all New Zealanders.

“How can we make it that it’s not just a duality or a binary?  We’ve gone beyond the binary, but there are these other things,” he said.

“What is a relationship?  In regard to the state it’s two people who are getting married together, but what happens if you’re three people?”

Mr Hamilton said the marriageathon was hosted as part of First Thursdays, an event which celebrates the K’ Road community on the first Thursday of each month.

“We wanted to celebrate our human rights victory in a fun way that will engage young people and engage with our community on K’ Road,” he said.

Aych McArdle said it also made a statement that marriage equality is here to stay.

“We’re here, we’re queer, we’re fabulous.”

By now, most of you have probably heard the news about Pakuranga MP Maurice Williamson whose speech in support of the Marriage Amendment Bill went viral on YouTube. The reaction the the speech has caught the attention of Ellen Degeneres who invited him to appear on her show! Maurice is donating his appearance fee to a charity and Rainbow Youth are putting our best foot forward to be that chosen charity.

Here’s our letter to Mr Williamson. We’d love for you to give it a read and share it around:

 Kia ora Maurice, 

Over the past few days, as we as an organisation have continued to discuss the passing of the Marriage Amenment Bill and the impact it will have on our country, your speech has been making an impact on the world. Fifteen Million hits on youtube is enough to have any young, techno-savvy kid weeping with envy! It truly is an impressive feat, and stands as a testament to the truths you conveyed in your speech that it resonated with people all over the world.

Last Wednesday evening a group of queer and trans* youth gathered at Rainbow Youth headquarters to watch the third reading of the Marriage Equality Bill.

We laughed and cried and made our own running commentary through the speeches while eating pizza and chatting about changing the world. As we listened, the words of each speaker resonated around the crowded room. The “big, gay rainbow” you mentioned stretching over Pakuranga was seen by some of our youth group members from your electorate that same day. The fourteen year old kid Grant Robinson talked about – he was in our midst, watching and feeling that hope which Grant described. When Mojo Mathers talked about seeing her daughter go to her school formal with her girlfriend, there were daughters and sons sitting at Rainbow Youth, thinking about their own formals and wanting to be treated the same as their siblings.

When the votes were read out, and Parliament broke out into a Waiata, everyone watcing at Rainbow Youth felt a collective sense of pride and belonging. You, and all those who have supported this bill, have contributed to the work of our organisation in ways that go far beyond just giving speeches – you allowed all of us to feel equal in the eyes of the law. To feel valued and included by our country.

To then have you asked to go on The Ellen DeGenres Show is just something else! Ellen is someone who has also given great inspiration to millions of queer and trans* youth, including members of Rainbow Youth. Through her work against youth suicide and bullying, as well as her own monumental coming out, Ellen is pretty much as cool as they come.  

So, it would just be the cherry on top of our marriage equality cake if you were to support Rainbow Youth through your appearance. Last Wednesday evening was a huge movement forward for us, but there is just so much more work to be done and as a youth-run, youth-led charity we are always seeking support in the form of donations and awareness-raising.

To give you an idea of who we are and why you should support us, here’s some of things we do in Auckland and around New Zealand:

-        We are a non-partisan youth run, youth led charity providing support, information, advocacy and education for queer and trans* young people in Aotearoa New Zealand.

-        We’ve been delivering education workshops for schools, community organisations and tertiary institutions for the last 10 years, looking at sexual orientation and gender identity issues, the impact of homophobia and how to create a safer school environment for all students.

-        We’ve created national network Curious.org.nz as an online resource hub for young people around the country who are questioning their sexual or gender identity and want to link in with support groups in their region

-        In Auckland, we facilitate youth groups around the cities and train young people to lead these groups – we even have a local chapter in your electorate called Out and About, which caters to queer and trans* youth in East and South Auckland

-        We initiated and continue to work on our grass roots and internationally recognised awareness & fundraising campaign WTFNZ.

All of this is done on the sniff of an oily rag. That pot of gold at the end of the rainbow isn’t coming to us any time soon.  Our staff, our board and our volunteers work tirelessly to make things happen. Like your speech, your support would continue to help us in so many ways.

We run a drop in centre at 281 Karangahape Road and we would be honoured if you found the time to pop in and say hello. We are also always looking for inspirational voices to be heard through our Rainbow Youth and Curious websites and a interview with you would be a particularly special voice to us.

Once again, thank you for your speech. But mostly, thank you for your honesty. You put the truth as plainly as can be and it has made people sit up and listen. We hope you consider us as part of the message you want to continue to promote, and look forward to hearing from you about your upcoming trip to appear on Ellen.

Naku noa, nā  

Thomas Hamilton and Duncan Matthews, on behalf of the Rainbow Youth membership

Queen is a laugh. Queen is a cry.

Queen is a voice.

Smoke Labours Productions is proud to present this new play by Sam Brooks that puts the everyday plights of the gay man under the spotlight and explores the contradictions, difficulties and joys of being a young gay man in today’s society. Queen is all the parts of being gay that people don’t talk about: the community, the everyday mundanities and missing out on vital parts of life that come so easily to everybody else.

Queen is a voice where there needs to be one. It’s angry, it’s funny, it’s unflinching and it gets to what it means to be gay here and now.

Writer Sam Brooks is 22 and graduated from the Unitec writing course in 2011. Since then, he’s put on three plays; Goddess, Mab’s Room and And I Was Like. Rainbow Youth had a quick chat with him before the final few days of the showing of Queen.

“Queen was inspired half by my own experience and half by other people’s own stories. I feel there’s a wealth of gay literature and theatre that has covered what it’s like to be gay and a bit more adult, but there’s not a whole lot of stuff that really covers the day-to-day life of being gay; the lack of role models, the identity crises and the relationships. So the lack of these stories really inspired me to write about them!”

“I think it’s important to give a voice to young gay men in the modern world because we’re in a state of such rapid change that so many stories of kids growing up gay in this transitional period in society’s attitudes towards gay people are being lost. There’s also just the fact that we aren’t seeing these stories in the media or in literature and I think it’s important for us to see them and discuss so we can move forward a a community. It gets better is a great motto, but it doesn’t convey the reality of being young and gay in today’s society.”

Queen is running at The Basement Theatre until the 25th of April. Head over here to book tickets!