Week of 5 February 2024

This was the last week (or half week) of school holidays and I had a few days off before I went back to work.

Pride week

Flags and marches

This week was also the start of TasPride’s 2024 Summer Festival, ‘Together We Can . . .’

TasPride originated in 1992. The group came together to establish a Gay and Lesbian Community Centre to provide support and resources for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. They hold a number of events each year, including the Artfully Queer exhibition I went to last year.

Flag raising

On Friday, my work’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion working group organised a walk to Town Hall for the Festival’s flag raising. This was followed by the official program opening ceremony.

Hobart City Councillor Dr Zelinda Sherlock launched the Pride Week festivities, and we also heard from TasPride representative Sielito. (Here’s evidence I was there . . . )

The day was a good chance to reflect on how far Tasmania has come in the past 25 years. Tasmania was the last state to decriminalise homosexuality (in 1997) following years of advocacy from the community, and events such as the council banning the gay rights group’s stall and having people arrested.

It was also a chance to think about how, while a lot of good has happened—including changes to Tasmania’s laws around recording gender on birth certificates—there is more to be done, especially to support trans and intersex people and accepting their identities.

Minus 18 has a heap of great resources and user friendly articles if you don’t know where to start, and I’m a big fan of their work.

The Pride March

Saturday was the Pride March through the city streets. Our group joined the rest of the groups in the very well-organised mass of people preparing for the march. I’d never been to a march like this before. I’ve stood on the streets and watched them but never seen the work that goes into getting everyone together before the start so it all runs (or sashays) smoothly.

Our lesson for next year is we need shirts or something to give us a cohesive look like the group in front of us had!

But something very cool instead of shirts. Our colleague’s partner had designed lion pride stickers for us to wear, so that was lovely.

I also need to learn to take better selfies in groups!

It was wonderful to be part of something so big where there was so much community support—it’s reported to have been the biggest turnout for this parade they’ve ever had.

I didn’t stick around for the party in the park afterwards. I was people’d out after the morning but I’m sure everyone had a great time.

Supporting the community

Everyone at the parade was encouraged to look at information on the government’s draft legislation on conversion therapy and Equality Tasmania’s petition opposing the current bill.

According to this article, the Tasmanian government promised to outlaw conversion practices after a Tasmanian Law Reform Institute report found these practices continued to cause severe harm to sexually and gender-diverse people. But advocates say that the legislation doesn’t actually ban this therapy in practice, and there are too many loopholes.

Equality Tasmania is seeking our support to sign the open letter to the government opposing the legislation because it doesn’t do what it’s supposed to do.

The government’s consultation period closes on 16 February.

Week 6 summary

Habit tracker

• 9.30 shutdown: 6/7 days
• 8,000 steps: 6/7 days
• 25 minute timer setting: Still working out how to track this one

What was the best thing about this week?

Being part of the Pride parade was great.

Also, spending the day before school went back with Kramstable, including lunch and seeing the Mean Girls movie was loads of fun too.

We’d seen the original (2004) movie a few years ago and were a bit unsure about a remake. But then we learned that it was actually the movie version of the stage musical produced in 2017, and were very keen to see it.

Turns out Tina Fey, who wrote the original movie, also wrote the musical and the musical movie.

There is no truth to the story that I’ve been sashaying around the house singing Regina George’s number. None at all.

What did I notice this week?

I’ve been watching this agapanthus flower that got decapitated from the plant growing at the side of the house a few weeks ago.

What did I learn this week?

I learned that cake is bad for me and makes me feel really unwell the next day. I shouldn’t have it.

What I’m reading this week

• The Woman’s Voice by Patsy Rodenburg
• A Girl Called Corpse by Reece Carter
• The Art of Possibility by Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander