Straight Up | Issue 17

Posted 10:46am Sunday 22nd July 2012

“I’m gay, and think your column is crap. Couldn’t you just write about something more positive, like Neil Patrick Harris? I’ll give you a gay reading list if you want. You focus on making well-meaning people feel guilty, and complain too much. I don’t think guilt is a Read more...

Straight Up | Issue 16

Posted 5:14pm Sunday 15th July 2012

Recent life experiences have taught me something interesting: Christchurch is the progressive centre of the South. It seems wherever I go these days Christchurchians go out of their way to welcome my return to our fair city with my favourite nom de slur: faggot. This word is routinely hiffed at Read more...

Straight Up | Issue 15

Posted 5:13pm Sunday 8th July 2012

“So, I always thought queer was a nasty word.” The well-meaning middle-aged cis-woman leans in, her head cocked to the left. “Can you explain it to me? What do you mean by queer?” She has a kind face, and her body language indicates she wants to listen. Often as a queer Read more...

Straight Up | Issue 14

Posted 8:39pm Sunday 3rd June 2012

In case you missed it, the big news this week was the launch of Rainbow Youth and Outline’s new campaign WTF, which stands for both “What The Fuck” and “Where’s The Funds”. If you haven’t checked it out already, you really should. WTF features a number of well-known New Zealanders, including Read more...

Straight Up | Issue 13

Posted 7:40pm Sunday 27th May 2012

If anyone has followed this column you will realise that it has been a rough time in my family of birth A family member has been very unwell, and I have become their primary carer. Throughout this time I have been thinking a lot about family, what it means to me – and what queer/trans folks have Read more...

Straight Up | Issue 12

Posted 7:58pm Sunday 20th May 2012

So Obama has outed himself as a supporter of marriage equality. I am not really queuing up to shake his hand for this. Really, that should have been a given, if there was to be any consistency with the rest of his message. I have written previously that gay marriage is not my priority – it Read more...

Straight Up | Issue 11

Posted 7:08pm Sunday 13th May 2012

My friend Sam had this awesome idea last year. Instead of buying decorations for his Christmas tree, he and his partner decided to make sparklies of their own. Rather than plastic angels and itchy tinsel, Sam created special queer/trans Christmas decorations. His Christmas tree kind of became a Read more...

Straight Up | Issue 10

Posted 12:51am Monday 7th May 2012

This week’s column is about Intersexions, a documentary that premiered in Auckland last week. The film is a collaboration between my dear friend Mani Mitchell and Mark Lahood. It shares the stories of a number of intersex folks across the world, interwoven with Mani’s story. Mani is a part of a Read more...

Straight Up | Issue 9

Posted 4:56pm Sunday 29th April 2012

Before anyone assumes anything. I am a (gender)queer guy who also loves vaginas. I think they are amazing and powerful. After all without the gifts of generations of women none of us would be here in the first place. I really hate the rubbish that some gay bois express around women’s bodies/people Read more...

Straight Up | Issue 8

Posted 5:04pm Sunday 22nd April 2012

The last few months have been really stressful. I have been constantly worried about a member of my family who has been in and out of hospital since the end of 2011 suffering from chronic medical conditions as a result of her addiction to alcohol. I have been anxious – worried about how the Read more...