Wellington City Libraries

Te Matapihi Ki Te Ao Nui

Search options

Teen Blog

Reading, Wellington, and whatever else – teenblog@wcl.govt.nz

Tag: Pride

What’s on for Wellington Pride 2024?

March is almost upon us, which means we’ve been getting ready for the Wellington Pride Festival | Tū Whakahīhī e Te Whanganui-ā-Tara which runs from the 1st to the 17th of March. If you’re familiar at all with us here on the WCL Teen Blog, you’ll know that we’re a pretty pride-ful bunch. So we have a whole plethora of library events for you to attend!

Read on to see what we’ve planned for you!


Rainbow Youth Nights

Waitohi | Johnsonville Library
Saturday 2 March, 5.00-8.00pm

Te Māhanga | Karori Library
Saturday 16 March, 5.00-8.00pm

Our Rainbow Youth Nights are back! We’ll be open after-hours for rainbow and takatāpui youth (and friends!) to socialise, have fun, explore our spaces without any of those pesky grown-ups around, and experience the General Youth Night Vibes of crafts, chats, gaming, and pizza.

Our Youth Nights are completely free (pizza included!) but you do need to be 14+ and of High School Age to attend, so please come prepared to show your school ID. And, if you have fun at a Rainbow Youth Night, you should come along to our regular monthly Youth Nights which are only slightly-less-rainbow-themed than these ones!


Wear Your Pride: Badge Making and Friendship Bracelets

Te Awa-a-Taia | Ruth Gotlieb (Kilbirnie) Library
Wednesday 6 March, 4.00-5.00pm

Taylor Swift brought friendship bracelets back, so of course we’re jumping on the bandwagon!

We’ll supply all the materials, you come along and create friendship bracelets and also use the Official Library Badge Maker to create your ideal Pride badge.


My Story, My Pride: A Youth Poetry Pride Workshop

Ngā Puna Waiora | Newtown Library
Thursday 7 March, 4.00-5.00pm

Are you a writer? Do you have Poetic Thoughts that you’d like to better express on the page?

Then come along to this workshop and explore the intersections between power, poetry, and being queer with a published poet!

Registrations are required, so follow the Friendly and Safe link above to find out how to register.


Comics, Queerness, and Community: A Workshop with Sophie Labelle and Sam Orchard

Waitohi | Johnsonville Library
Friday 8 March, 5.30-7.00pm

Wow! We’re very excited about this one. Amazing comic artists and Excellent Humans Sophie Labelle and Sam Orchard are leading a workshop at OUR Johnsonville Library. Yeah, we can’t quite believe it either.

If you’re a comic artist (or aspiring comic artist) this is something not to miss! Sam and Sophie will discuss comic-making and the power of art to bring communities together, and will take you through the process of creating a comic strip.

This event is for people aged 16+. Follow the link above to register.


Just to be Queer: Zine-making Workshop

Ngā Puna Waiora | Newtown Library
Thursday 14 March, 4.00-5.00pm

We’re here, we’re queer, and we’re making zines! Or rather, we hope you will be making zines.

Drag your friends along to the library to learn all about zines. Or if you’re already an expert, just make a bunch of zines! As an extra incentive, once you’ve made a zine, we are able to copy it and have it added to the Wellington City Libraries Zine Collection!


Youth Pride Quiz

Te Awe Library
Friday 15 March, 6.10-8.00pm

Do you wish you had a tiny trophy that proves how great you are at answering questions? If so, we’ve got the event for you!

This is another after-hours event, so the library will only be open for you keen quizzers. We’ve written some Pride-themed questions, you want to answer them (or so we’re hoping), and we’re just planning a fun night in general!

Register your team through the link above.


Rainbow Storytime with Queen Olivia III

Te Awa-a-Taia | Ruth Gotlieb (Kilbirnie) Library
Saturday 16 March, 11am-12 noon

Yes, we get this is a storytime more aimed at kids. BUT you may know some kids and can share the glorious word? Or you might just feel like dropping into the library to relive your own childhood?

Anyway, Queen Olivia Lucretia-Bourgeois Connie St Redfern III is a fantastic storyteller so if you or any children you encounter come along, you’re sure to have a magical time.


Out in the City

Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington CBD
Sunday 17 March, 10am-4pm

Yes, our excellent Library Stall will be back at Out in the City! We’ll be there all day handing out books and badges – grab your favourite queer author, or rummage around for the Pride Flag of your choice – and talking about LGBTQIA+ books, movies, online resources and more. Come and say hi!

 

What’s on for Wellington Pride 2023?

Wellington Pride Festival logo, dark field, rainbow design surrounding

Join us for the Wellington Pride Festival 2023!

This month, from 4 – 18 March, is the Wellington Pride Festival | Tū Whakahīhī e te Whanganui-ā-Tara. As New Zealand’s longest-running Pride festival, Wellington Pride is the annual celebration of rainbow pride in our city, featuring LGBTQIA+ performers, historians, writers, artists, musicians, and — of course — librarians doing their thing with the community. This year, the theme for Wellington Pride is ka mau ka muri — walking backwards into the future. Wellington City Libraries always joins in on the fun, and this year we have a selection of awesome events that you might be interested in coming along to. Check out the deets below!


Dress-Up Storytime
Thursday 2 March, 10.30 – 11.00am
Tapu Te Ranga | Island Bay Library

Okay, okay, I know if you’re reading this you’re probably not a kid, and you’re probably thinking this event is for kids. And it is! Tell the kids in your life to pop down to Island Bay for a delightful morning of rainbows, sequins, unicorns and bubbles, along with gentle and hilarious stories of inclusion and celebration read by our wonderful Island Bay librarians. Folks can come in their own costumes, or make their own at the library!


Rainbow Youth Nights
Saturday 4 March, 5.00 – 8.00pm
Waitohi | Johnsonville Library

Saturday 11 March, 5.00 – 8.00pm
Te Māhanga | Karori Library

Join us at the library to celebrate Wellington Pride with these only-slightly-more-than-usual rainbow-themed Youth Nights! We’ll be open after-hours for rainbow and takatāpui youth (and friends!) to socialise, have fun, and chat to a librarian about your favourite queer literature. As usual, there will be pizza, gaming, movies, crafts, and quiet spaces to chill out.

At both the Karori and Johnsonville evenings, we will offer the chance to be part of a large-scale collaborative art piece that will be toured between all fourteen of our library branches around the city. This creation will reflect our collective and individual queer identities.

Our Youth Nights are totally free (pizza included!) but you do need to be 14+ in order to come, so please come prepared to show your student ID. Once you’re in, our spaces are yours!
No prior sewing or artistic skills required.


Youth Movie Night for Pride
Thursday 16 March, 5.45 – 7.45pm
Te Awe Library

We love movies here at the library! Bring your friends down to Te Awe to watch an LGBTQIA+ themed movie and hang out with other like-minded teens. Popcorn, comfy seats, cool folks, library vibes — what more could you need?


Out in the City
Saturday 18 March, 10am – 4pm
Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington CBD

Yes, your favourite library again has a stall at your favourite LGBTQIA+ community event of the year — Out in the City (it used to be called Out in the Park if the name sounds a little unfamiliar). We’ll be there all day handing out our signature queer literary icon badges (as well as the usual rainbow library ones!), and talking about LGBTQIA+ books, movies, online resources and more. Come and say hi!


Pōneke Poets: Open Mic at Out in the City
Saturday 18 March, 1.00 – 2.00pm
Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington CBD

Poets of all background and experience levels are invited to contribute to the vibrant and dynamic queer poetry scene, in ‘Pōneke poets: open mic’. Wellington City Libraries encourages all LGBTQIA+ poets and allies to join in sharing oral histories, personal stories and creative voices in an open-mic poetry hour, hosted by local poet and comedian Alayne Dick. Get in touch with us if you’re keen to learn more!

What’s On for Wellington Pride?

Wellington Pride Festival logo, dark field, rainbow design surrounding

Join us for the Wellington Pride Festival 2021!

This month, from 13-27 March, is the Wellington Pride Festival | Tū Whakahīhī e te Whanganui-ā-Tara. As New Zealand’s longest-running Pride festival, Wellington Pride is the annual celebration of rainbow pride in our city, featuring LGBTQIA+ performers, historians, writers, artists, musicians, and — of course — librarians doing their thing for the community. Wellington City Libraries always joins in on the fun, and this year we have a selection of awesome events that you might be interested in coming along to. Check out the deets below!


Queer Stories: Discovering LGBTQIA+ History at the Library
Friday 19 March, 5.00 – 7.30pm
Newtown Library

Join some very cool librarians as they trace how LGBTQIA+ stories are told through the library’s collections in print, online, and on film. The event will conclude with a free screening of a queer film from our collection, and we anticipate rainbow cupcakes will be consumed voraciously!


The Queer History of Te Whanganui-a-Tara
Thursday 18 March, 5.30 – 7.00pm
Te Awe Library

Join us for an evening of sharing Wellington’s queer and takatāpui oral history. We’ll being hearing kōrero from historians Will Hansen and Roger Swanson, both involved in the Lesbian and Gay Archives of New Zealand (LAGANZ), as well as Kay’la Rian representing Tīwhanawhana celebrating the organizations 20th anniversary. More speakers to be announced!


Queer Experience and Expression
Thursday 25 March, 5.30 – 7.00pm
Te Awe Library

Hear from a variety of local queer and takatāpui artists about their experiences through their unique form of artistic expression. Celebrate the LGBTQI+ perspective that comes through in all varieties of expression. We’ll be hearing from illustrator Sam Orchard, Wellington-based artist and musician Olga Lapin, and Dr Elizabeth Kerekere — artist, LGBTQ+ activist, scholar and NZ politician with the Green Party.


Rainbow Storytimes with Hugo Grrrl and Friends
Sunday 14 March, 2 – 3pm at Johnsonville Library
Monday 15 March, 11am – 12pm at Karori Library
Saturday 20 March, 2 – 3pm at Kilbirnie Library
Sunday 21 March, 2 – 3pm at Te Awe Library

Okay, okay, I know if you’re reading this you’re probably not a kid, and you’re probably thinking these events are for kids. And they are! But they’re also for you. Come along for a most enchanting hour of stories, songs and games with some of Wellington’s most excellent drag performers, including Hugo Grrrl, Harlie Lux, Amy Thurst, and many more. So wholesome, so fabulous, so great — even if you’re not a kid, you’ll dig it! And if you’re an aspiring drag artist yourself, you should come along to see how it’s done!


Out in the City
Sunday 27 March, 11am – 5pm
Michael Fowler Centre, 2nd floor

Yes, your favourite library again has a stall at your favourite LGBTQIA+ community event of the year — Out in the City (it used to be called Out in the Park if the name sounds a little unfamiliar). We’ll be there all day handing out our signature queer literary icon badges (as well as the usual rainbow library ones!), and talking about LGBTQIA+ books, movies, online resources and more. Come and say hi!

Looms, flags, and a lot of (queer) yarn

If you’ve visited Johnsonville Library recently then hopefully you’ll know that we have a space downstairs that’s packed with all kinds of exciting stuff. It’s called Tūhura/The HIVE, and it’s a makerspace full of tech and toys, lasers and Lego, robots and recording equipment, and, most excitingly (or so I think, but I may be biased), a loom!

Since we opened the new Johnsonville Library we’ve tried to keep the loom warped up so anyone can come in and try their hand at weaving a few rows. We’ve had almost everyone, local Johnsonvillians, a Paralympian, even the WCC Chief Executive, come in and have a go. And just last week I took the latest scarf off the loom and tied up the ends in tassels.A newly finished scarf lies folded on the small loom in the Johnsonville makerspace. The stripes on the scarf go (from left to right) blue, pink, white, pink, blue.

Isn’t it beautiful? Admittedly, we did strategically fold it to only show the neatest end of the weaving, but it’s still beautiful when unfolded and laid out. Look at those warped stripes! The lovely colours! Wait a minute, those colours look familiar. Could that be the Transgender Pride Flag?

Why yes, yes it is!

Claude, a grey, green, and yellow caterpillar is sitting on a cushion crocheting the last row of a scarf. The stripes of the scarf are, in order, yellow, white, purple, and the last one is black.

And that’s not all! Claude, our favourite crocheted caterpillar, was so inspired after seeing this scarf come off the loom that they decided to crochet a creative scarf of their own. Is that colourful close-to-completed scarf there another Pride Flag? Of course! It’s the Non-binary Pride Flag.

But I digress.

When we warp up the loom (attach the vertical threads to the loom. There are two yarn components you use when weaving. The warp goes up and down. The weft goes from the weft to the wight. Yes, I know that’s bad), we get to choose what pattern we put on. And if we want to show our support for trans people then we will damn well do that! And write a blog post about it too.

Now, I hope that this particularly excellent scarf shows you that knitting, weaving, crocheting – fibrecraft in general – is pretty cool. And there are so many cool things you can do! There are more things to create than these (undeniably amazing) scarves. Crochet your own Claude! Knit a political hat! There are so many free patterns available online, not to mention the books available through your local library. You could try your hand at some Subversive Cross Stitch, or create yourself some Literary Knits. Literary crocheting is also available.

OR you could get into something a bit bigger and a bit more public. Have you ever heard of yarn bombing? If you haven’t, then you are in for a treat! Yarn bombing, guerrilla knitting, knitted graffiti, whatever you want to call it, is when you create a carefully crafted cover for something out in public. It could be for a pipe, a tree, a statue, or whatever you feel would benefit from a bit of beautification. We’ve got a few books about yarn bombing, or you could just wander around Wellington and keep an eye out for artfully decorated bollards and poles.

A picture taken looking down the street towards the Tawa Community Centre entrance. It is a sunny day. Lining up with the left side of the picture is a pipe attached to the building, that has is wearing a rainbow cover.There’s a particularly fine example of yarn-bombing outside the Tawa Community Centre, just around the corner from the Mervyn Kemp (Tawa) Library. Yes it’s a rainbow. Did you really think I would let go of the queer thread weaving this post together?

Speaking of queer threads, that wonderfully proud scarf that you may remember is now on display in the HIVE at Johnsonville Library. And speaking of the HIVE, I can highly recommend dropping in there on a Friday evening for our fibrecraft HIVE 101. If you ever feel like learning a bit more about weaving, talking to someone about knitting, or just settling down for an evening with some crochet, come on by!

Wellington Pride!

Book cover courtesy of SyndeticsHooray! Wellington Pride Week starts tomorrow and goes for a full two weeks. We’ve got an amazing selection of Queer YA fiction (check out our awesome display at Central) but I think the Non Fiction needs a bit more love.

Telling your own, authentic story is a central part of Queer culture. So we’re lucky to have a cool selection of memoirs: Finding Nevo : how I confused everyone by Nevo Zisin describes their own unique journey towards their understanding of their own place in the world. We also have Some assembly required : the not-so-secret life of a transgender teen by Arin Andrews with Joshua Lyon and Being Jazz : my life as a (transgender) teen by Jazz Jennings. A particular favourite is The full spectrum : a new generation of writing about gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, questioning, and other identities. It’s edited by David Levithan and Billy Merrell, whose names you probably recognise from their own writing.

There’s also a great collection of “big” names in Queer history, called (appropriately) Queer, there, and everywhere : 23 people who changed the world. I’d also recommend Queer: a graphic history.

Sometimes everyone needs a little bit of help and we’ve got some books that (hopefully) will help. Queer : the ultimate LGBT guide for teens by Kathy Belge and Marke Bieschke and The Trans teen survival guide by Owl and Fox Fisher are just two.

Stay safe, be kind, and have a wonderful Pride.