Columns

W elcome to all the Queer students on campus, and to our allies, whether you are new to Otago or returning. I am excited to be writing my first column and that I get to write about all things great and Queer, and also things that are not so great because the Queer community is still a marginalised one (more of that to come in later columns). In case you are unfamiliar with the term Queer, for us at OUSA, Queer is a reclaimed word used to encompass sexual, gender and sex diversity. We use it as an umbrella term to describe New Zealand’s sexual- and gender-diverse communities.
We realise and honour that it is not the preferred term for everyone, nor is it widely culturally applicable.

But what is sexual, gender and sex diversity, you ask? Again, I shall write more about this throughout the year, but here are just some (mostly Western) terms to describe sexual, gender and sex diversity that you are welcome to search on the internet or read about in a book, whatever your preference …

Agender Androgyne Cisgender Demi Gender Dyadic F2M/FtM Genderfluid Gender Presentation Genderqueer Intersex M2F/MtF Neutrois Pan Gender Trans Transgender Trans Feminine Trans Masculine Transsexual Transvestite Alisexual Androsexual Asexual (Ace) Bisexual Demi Sexual Gay Grey Sexual Gynosexual Heterosexual Homosexual Lesbian Omnisexual Pansexual Polysexual Takatāpui MVPFAFF D/s Dyad M/s Metamour Pack Paramour Polyamory Queer Platonic Triad

You can visit the Queer Support Coordinator (Hahna) for a chat, ask to speak with one of our peer supporters, or visit the resource library at the Student Support Centre, 5 Ethel Benjamin Place. Hahna runs SPACE, a weekly group involving facilitated discussions. We also have UniQ, a university group on campus run by and for Queer students. For more information contact q.support@ousa.org.nz.

Happening this month is Diversity Week, 23–27 March. There will be loads of amazing events from arts and crafts to education and awareness workshops and social events brought to you by Queer Support and UniQ. The Queer community is a broad one, and therefore there are many topics I want to cover this year, but for now I will sign off.