Shaneel Lal: Recognise the immense value of queer people to NZ

New Zealand's national treasure, Black Fern Ruby Tui. Photo / Photosport.co.nz

New Zealand is blessed with queer excellence. Many New Zealanders frequently indulge in things created by queer folk. However, the appreciation for what queer people produce has not resulted in a safe New Zealand for queer people. Queer New Zealanders dominate every industry, from sports to politics to reality TV to the arts, yet hatred and violence against our community are rising. It leaves me with one question - why is there such a significant disconnect between the love many New Zealanders have for what queer people produce and the safety of queer people?

Chlöe Swarbrick is one of the best politicians we have seen in our time. She did the impossible by beating Labour and National for the Auckland Central seat in the 2020 election. Swarbrick has championed the movement to legalise cannabis, ban greyhound racing, get better student support, and reduce alcohol harm. She is an advocate for the most vulnerable, and she does it well.

Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson has kept New Zealand’s economy in a better shape than most comparable countries after the Covid-19 pandemic. In her time in Parliament, Louisa Wall was the most successful MP who was not a minister. Wall’s members’ bills allowed same-sex marriage in New Zealand, banned the posting of digital communication comprising intimate visual recordings of another person, and gave abortion facilities the power to create safe zones.

Then there is our national treasure, Ruby Tui. She was a starring member of the Black Ferns team that led New Zealand to a victory at the Rugby World Cup in 2022. The Rugby World Cup brought our country together, selling out Eden Park for the first time for women’s sports. Tui is one of the kindest and most loving people I know. That, combined with her charismatic personality, is why New Zealanders love her. People stood in lines for hours to get their copy of Tui’s book Straight Up signed. Tui dominated sports and ruled over New Zealanders’ hearts last year.

In 2021, Anton Down-Jenkins became the first New Zealand man to compete in diving at an Olympic Games, almost 40 years since Mark Graham and Gary Lamb in 1984. Down-Jenkins is the first New Zealand diver to qualify for an Olympic final. Also, in 2021, Chris Parker won Celebrity Treasure Island. Parker’s sense of humour got many through the lockdowns. In 2022, Sam Low won MasterChef, and Chris Tse became a laureate, the youngest New Zealander ever to hold the title.

Queer people are inherently assiduous people. Our history of criminalisation and oppression by the state and discrimination by society have shaped us to be vigilant. It has also forced us to be debilitatingly exceptional. For years, our craft was frowned upon, and to this day, discrimination against queer folk bottlenecks the number of queer folk who get to thrive.

There is so much talent that we never get to see because homophobia and transphobia limit the potential of queer folk. It locks people in closets, takes away opportunities from us, and takes away our people too soon. Imagine the greatness we would have in this country if all queer people were allowed to grow into happy, healthy adults. I want New Zealanders to recognise that queer folk add immense value to our country.

I feel that people want to keep what queer people produce separate from queer people. Accepting that the things they indulge in are made by queer folk requires them to accept that queer folk are just as competent, if not more, as non-queer folk and that queer folk are integral members of New Zealand. New Zealanders must accept that they rely on queer folk for entertainment, advocacy, and leadership. We end prejudice towards queer folk by recognising that queer people are human, just like everyone else.

Let’s start 2023 by making a commitment to making New Zealand a safe place for queer people.