Pride is Queer Expression

Words by Cileme Venkateswar (she/her)

Art has always been a way of making sense of and representing the world around us. The joy, the pain, the beauty, the violence, and all the small, normal in-betweens. Perhaps this is why art is so intrinsically tied to the queer community. The fight for the validity of our existence has always been a multitude of nuanced experiences. But at some point, representation of experience needs to move beyond just what we create in art, music, media, or literature. Representation needs to be present in our real, every-day lives, not just something we see created and displayed.

That’s why this year, for the first time ever, rainbow groups and services across VUW and Pōneke have come together to run Te Herenga Waka PRIDE throughout September. In just a week and a half, over 250 students and staff have attended PRIDE events run by Rainbow & Inclusion, the Rainbow Staff Network, UniQ, the Rainbow Law Students’ Society, and faculties. Queer folks at Te Herenga Waka have the chance to see their own experiences, struggles, and triumphs when looking around a room at these events. The community you find while being at university is an integral part of your growth as a student. But queerness is not a homogenous experience; even in a city like Pōneke, there is loneliness, confusion, and risk with trying to navigate your own queer identity amidst a profoundly heteronormative society. The importance of events like PRIDE cannot be understated. This is how students find security and reassurance in a wider Te Herenga Waka queer community. It’s how students and staff alike can advocate for what this university rainbow community needs.

This is the last week of Te Herenga Waka PRIDE, running until 30 September. But pride doesn’t end when this month does. Your queerness is deserving of representation in all corners of your life, and Te Herenga Waka PRIDE is just the start of bringing awareness to the vast and beautiful queer community we have at the university.

If you are someone who uses art to encapsulate how you experience being queer, the Capturing PRIDE competition is also running until the end of September. Using either photography (1-2 images) or a written piece (1 page max), show us how you experience, envision, or capture pride in the world. Email rainbow@vuw.ac.nz with the subject “CAPTURING PRIDE SUBMISSION (PHOTO / WRITING)” to enter. Be in to win an Ilford retro disposable camera for the photo entry, or a $50 Vic Books book voucher for the written entry! Runner-ups will win Vic Books coffee vouchers.

We’re proud of who you are—we’d love to see your pride through some art of your own!