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Kia ora! Kia ora! Tēnā koutou! We are privileged to be invited to anchor the opening of Out in the City for 2026. The process that we will share with you is that of a whakatau. It's going to involve a bit of singing. And you have, uh, been [00:00:30] placed in the position of being new members of our choir. So when we're singing, we're going to be asking you to join in the singing. Okay, so as we go through, I'm going to be inviting you to to get in there and do it with us. This is Tīwhanawhana. Tīwhanawhana has been going since 2001. We're a Takatāpui whānau. Māori, rainbow and everything [00:01:00] in between. And we offer a place for people to come and connect up and support community kaupapa and do a little bit of advocacy every so often as well. So kia ora, we have a number of acknowledgements as part of our whakatau before Libby invites some of you who are in important roles to come and share some speeches. A no reira, tēnā koutou. Huia weira ki tēnei [00:01:30] te pituone tapu. Kahuraraka takatātai ki roto Ōtakaroa ki tēnei te moana o Te Whānganui -a -Tara. Kātū tēnei ahau ki tēnei te pituone tapu. Hei titiro kei ruka i te taumata tapu teitai ki ruka i Matairangi. Ko Tangita Kel e pōhiri ana. E mihi ana, e karakana ki a tātou [00:02:00] katoa hei haro mai kei rāro. Ko tēnei te wāhi noho o te aro. Kei rāro nei i tāua mauka. Te kōrepe nui, te kōrepe roa. Te kumu toto awa, te waimapihi awa. Ko tū, ko Roko. E putaka ariki no Roko. Mai e, mai e, mai te tipua, mai e, mai e, [00:02:30] mai te tawhito. Ihara mai rā koe e whakahotu nuku e whakahoturaki. Ko tau manawa, ko tōku manawa, ko tāne kairi here. Tūturu mai kia whakamaua, kia tīna, tīna! Aumi e, hui e, tāiki e! Ano reira te mihi tuatahi ki te ahi kā te mana whenua o tēnei rohe o te upoko. O te eka a maui tiki tiki a tarak. Ano reira, kia koutou [00:03:00] no Te Atiawa, Taranaki Whanui, Ngati Toa Rangatira, Tainoa kia Ngati Raukawa ki Te Tonga. Ah, ko koutou, ah, te mana whenua, te ahi kao o tenei roopu. No reira, kai a tuohu kia koutou i tenei ata. Ah, te tuanua, whakaaro aroha kia rātou, kua haere, kua riro atu ki te pō. Ah, nō reira, kia [00:03:30] rātou, kia rātou, ah, kamoi, ah, piti hono, tātai hono, rātou, kia rātou, tātou, te hoko ora kia tātou i tānei, ah, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa. Ah, nō reira, kia koutou. Te huka ora a kua tatu mai. Ah, te mea tuatahi, ah, Te Komiti Whakahaire o Tūwhakahihi ki te Whanganui -a -Tara. [00:04:00] Ah, Joe, tēnā koe. Te Komiti Whakahaire, tēnā koutou. Ah, te tuarua, kia a koe, ah, te Timuaki o tēnei tō tātou, ah, rohe, Whare, ah, o te Whare, ah, Kaunihera. Anaru, tēnā koe. Nau mai, nau mai. Hoki mai kei Waikanui a tātou i tēnei wā. Ah, me hoki te tuarua, ah, kei where a Dez? Konei? [00:04:30] I think maybe Dez is running on rainbow time this morning, but kia ora! Ah, Dez Smith, maua ko John Jolliffe, he mihi aroha ke a, ke a rāua. Ah. E taina i te wapato. Ano reira, ko koutou ka tangata tino whakahirihira o tenei ata, ahakoa, uh, tenei [00:05:00] te mea, uh, nui hoki, koutou kua tatu mai i ruki te kaupapa o te hikoi. Ano reira, nau mai, nau mai, haramai te hikoi. E kauea mai, ka wawata, ka moemoea o te iwi. Tēnā koe! Tēnā koutou.[00:05:30] Kia ora everyone. This is the start of a fabulous day. Welcome to all of you. Welcome and acknowledgements to our organising group, acknowledgements to the Mayor, to our very important speakers, but particularly those [00:06:00] of you who are carrying this morning the hopes and dreams of the people who have arrived here in the hikoi. Greetings to you all. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa. Kia ora! This is... This is where you get to join the choir. So, this is a greeting to everybody. It's an echo song for the most part. So, uh, we're going to gather around the microphone. I'm going to lead. [00:06:30] And the rest of the crew are going to teach you your part. Tēnā koutou, e hoa mā Kua tāi mai nei, i tēnei wā Nō reira rā, e hoa mā Kia ora rā, koutou kato [00:07:00] Kia ora rā Kia ora tātou. I just want to make [00:07:30] one further acknowledgement. You'll see that there are a couple of gentlemen standing on stage with us wearing rather fabulous golden kākahu. So just a big warm welcome to Lance and Charlie who've joined us from our Uh, sister organization in Tāmaki Makaurau, Ahako te Aha. Um, so, great to have you fellas standing with us. Tēnā koutou. Tēnā tōrua. Tēnā tātou katoa. [00:08:00] Can I please get a round of applause for Tīwhanawhana? E te whanau, thank you so much for joining us at the Hīkoi this morning and for coming together as a community to show your passion and solidarity for one another. Nau mai te paki paki, please give yourselves a round of applause! My name is Homa Neurotic and I am so honoured to be one of your MCs for today. It is with such joy that I am here. I am [00:08:30] chosen to be the tiny sparkly man holding the talking stick for part of today's proceedings. Now, as we all know, this out in the city is special. It falls on two very significant anniversaries. This year is the 40th anniversary of the Homosexual Law Reform Act of 1986 and the 40th anniversary of the Gay and Lesbian Fair! On this very day, 40 years [00:09:00] ago, a Fair for a Fair Law was held as part of the incredible campaigning that Rainbow activists did to progress homosexual law reform in Aotearoa New Zealand. We stand here today because of the bravery of those activists who came before us Who put their safety and their livelihoods on the line so that we can live as our authentic selves. You've already been doing such a good job of cheering, [00:09:30] but can we get a round of applause for the activists who came before us? I also want to take a moment to thank the politicians who supported the bill. In particular, the current mayor of South Wairarapa, Fran Wilde, who unfortunately could not be here with us today. Thank you very much. Fran met with gay activist groups and championed the homosexual law reform bill and it is because of her mahi that it is legal for us to be standing here celebrating openly as who we [00:10:00] are. Though she unfortunately could not be with us today as she is celebrating pride in the Wairarapa today, she wrote a few words that she wanted me to share with you all. Kia ora tatou, greetings Wellington friends. Sorry I can't be with you today as I'm marking pride week in Wairarapa. As we celebrate 40 years of law reform, a huge thank you from me to all who helped with the campaign in the 1980s. And thanks to those on whose shoulders [00:10:30] that we stood. The people who tried for many years to change the law when the time wasn't right for it. The heroes of the 1980s campaign were the gay men who came out when being gay was still a criminal offence. They risked jobs, homes, and in some cases family ties, by showing other New Zealanders that they were not monsters to be feared, but just ordinary Kiwis who wanted to live their lives in peace. If we had failed to change the law, the consequences for them would have [00:11:00] been catastrophic. So, a big shout out to all of the activists who campaigned in the 1980s. Now of course, there is still work to be done. We know that bigotry remains embedded in many parts of our society, and that our kids in particular need support. But it's important to celebrate progress, and today we can. I hope that your events are well here, outstanding, and that you all have a great time. Ngā mihi nui, [00:11:30] Fran Wild. Now today is a day of celebration and visibility. Through many battles, we've won many rights to exist proudly as the people who stand here today and the allies who love them. I want to acknowledge that not all of those rights are felt equally by all of us. There are still significant barriers to being a rainbow person, and particularly to being a trans and gender non -conforming person.[00:12:00] It's not the easiest time to exist as a rainbow person, and there is a certain amount of luck. And self -created luck that comes with existing in a city like Pōneke, the gayest city in Aotearoa. Our existence is resistance and you never know which person, young or older, will see the photos and videos of today and think that maybe one day everything is going to be [00:12:30] okay because of all of us here. So we hope that at least for today you will celebrate and be visible with us. Today we celebrate, and tomorrow we continue the fight for all of us. Ngā maiti paki paki, please give yourselves a round of applause. Now, we have some very special people who want to share a few words, and I want you to give them a gay old cheer to welcome them to the stage. Can you do that for me? Please [00:13:00] welcome the chair of the Wellington Pride Festival Committee, Joanna. Kia ora everyone. It is my pleasure to be standing here on behalf of the Wellington Pride Festival Committee. Before we go any further, I would just like to thank Molly and Sam for organising this event today. Absolutely wonderful human beings. We're all volunteers and we rely also on volunteers. So thank you for everyone who's putting the mahi in. It is our 40th anniversary. And we are so here and we [00:13:30] are ready to party and celebrate. We're halfway through Wellington Pride Festival. There's over a hundred events happening, so I hope you're coming along to them. I hope you're voting in the rainbow windows of Wellington. I hope you drop by our Pride HQ sometime. Um, our two big events coming up next weekend is Out in Brewtown, headlined by Lady Hawke with Art in England, Dateline, uh, Bex Sandridge and Tahini Bikini. And then, um, on Sunday we have the Pride picnic as well in the Botanic [00:14:00] Gardens. Um, we have been talking about partying, and we are going to be doing that today, but I will give you some homework. As well as buying tickets to our events, remember that this is an election year, and we need to show up, and we need to vote for queer rights. And we, so make sure you're enrolled, make sure your friends are enrolled, make sure... Everyone you know is enrolled and is voting, thinking about us and our rights. It's not, [00:14:30] it's not enough to just come to our parties, show up for our protests, show up for us. I'm not going to speak much longer. I just want to thank you all so much for coming. I hope you have a wonderful day. Um, I want to thank our sponsors very quickly. I apologise, I should have done that as well. Thank you so much to Wellington City Council. And for Datacom who are sponsoring our stage today. Two Degrees are sponsoring the Chinao area with Zeal. Um, [00:15:00] and Pub Charity as well. Um, thank you to everyone else who's donated services and everything. Um, I'll let us get on with the party. But, give yourselves a round of applause too. Woo! Uria nei E te hau Horowia Horowia E te [00:15:30] ua Whiti, whiti Whiti, whiti a, e te ra, e te ra. Mae e akena, pōraruraru, pōraruraru. Mākere, mākere ana [00:16:00] ngahere. Erere, erere, wairua erere, ki ngā, ki ngā, o te rangi. Whiti, whiti a, whiti, whiti a, e te rā, e te rā.[00:16:30] Mahiakia, mahiakia. Mae e ake ngā Poraruraru, Poraruraru. Mā kere ana ngā ere. Mā kere ana ngā ere.[00:17:00] Thank you, Joanna, for those lovely, lovely words. Now, please welcome to the stage, we're honoured to be joined by the Mayor of Wellington, please welcome Andrew Little! Kia ora tātou katoa, good morning everybody, um, great honour to be here. Uh, really important, I think, for [00:17:30] Wellington City, I have to tell you that as Mayor, uh, the real pride that I feel as Mayor of the City, With the largest LGBTQ community in the country. Um, that is something that defines Wellington. And it's also why it's important, I think, for civic leaders such as myself to be there, to be with you, to stand with you, to celebrate with you, Um, and to work with you, because as, uh, Homer has said, and others have said, there is still, there is still work to [00:18:00] do. We still have bigotry and hatred in our community. He'll rise up and, and, and say things that are dumb and stupid. Um, and we, it's the job of all of us, all of us, your community, the rest of us, uh, to stand up against that and say that's not acceptable, that's not okay. The idea that in this day and age, or even 40 years ago, that folks had to fight for the basic human right to be who you are, to be who we are, uh, that's wrong. That, that is, that should never happen. That [00:18:30] should not be necessary. And while... Those strands of thought are still out there, those thoughts of bigotry, those thoughts of hatred, then we all still have work to do, we all still have to stand up to it. So you will have the support of the Wellington City Council and its leadership that will stand with you to make sure that your rights, that all human rights are meaningful, are respected, are cherished, and that we all get to live our lives, live our best life in this, the most amazing city in the world. [00:19:00] So thank you. Um, great to see you all here this morning and do understand, do know, uh, that we stand with you. Kia ora tatou. Mē te rangimāki e, [00:19:30] tātou, tātou e. Mē honoa ki te atua. Mē honoa ki te atua. Kā puta, kā ora e. Ka koutou ka ora e, tātou tātou e. And[00:20:00] that rounds out our speeches for today. Are we finishing with an opening waiata? We are finishing with an opening waiata and karakia, so please I ask that you join us in te whanawhana. Again, you get to join in, pretty easy, I think we know this one. Tūtīramoanga iwi [00:20:30] Tātou, Tātou Let's hear the O's Tū tira mai ngā iwi Tātou, tātou e Whaea te maramatanga Me te aroha e ngā iwi Kia tatatahi, kia kotahira, tātou, tātou e. Let's do it again! Tū tēramai [00:21:00] ngā iwi, au e! Tātou, tātou e. Tū tēramai ngā iwi, au e! Tātou, tātou e. Whaea te maramatanga Me te aroha e ngā iwi Kia tapatahi, kia kotahira Tātou, tātou e [00:21:30] Tātou, tātou e Kauri tia ki a maui Kia rehi! Happy, happy out in the city everybody. And just a karakia to set us on our way.[00:22:00] Can I please give a round of applause for Tikanawhana! Rounding out the speeches for today, I would really love to welcome to the stage a trailblazer [00:22:30] of queer rights in Aotearoa and one half of the first gay couple to legally tie the knot in a civil union ceremony. Can I please welcome to the stage, Te Okiwa McLean! Diz Smith. They're making their way to the stage, so please keep that round of applause going. So as well as Diz being here, Diz's lovely partner John is also here. Can I please get a round of applause for Diz and [00:23:00] John, because they're both incredible trailblazers of queer rights. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou [00:23:30] katoa. Nau mai, hapi mai, ki te hulitoa whā hiko o te Whakaturanga Takapui me Te Takapui. Tēnā koutou katoa, tēnā koutou katoa. Which I can hardly believe, 40 years ago, and it almost seems like yesterday, when we struggled to get a venue for the Gay Lesbian [00:24:00] Fair. And, I should say Lesbian Gay Fair, that's better. Anyway, we did it, and despite some opposition, But now when I look round and see what's happened to our community, it is marvellous. We must not forget the brave woman, Fran Wilde, who put the Homosexual Law [00:24:30] Reform Bill into Parliament and the opposition that we had. And forty years ago, before that bill was passed on the 9th of July, I remember I was running around like a cut cat, sticking posters up all around the town. And every time I did it, Fran Wilde would be blasted with phone calls from bigots. But we did, we managed, and with all that. So, that [00:25:00] is one thing we should remember. But also, one of the things I remember Fran saying, the importance of visibility. And also, Um, the two things, visibility and vigilance. And we still have to be vigilant, and visibility is very, very important. And I think you can all understand that. And vigilance, yes, there are those people who unfortunately [00:25:30] misinformed, and they want to attack our community. So, that is one thing. Thank you. The other thing that I'd like to just say is what our organisers of this festival said. Honour the past, build the future, and celebrate the now. With my husband John, where's he disappeared? I've hidden him! With my husband John, uh, and myself, we wish you [00:26:00] a successful and enjoyable fair, and a big thanks to the organisers. And I am very impressed. So there we are. Enjoy your day. Ah, kia ora tātou. We've got one more waiata and that's to [00:26:30] support Des's kōrero. And uh, we're going to teach you to sing it as well. A bit of a theme for the morning. This waiata is taken from one that was composed by Rangimarie Rose Pere. She was a tohunga of Ngati Ruapane on the southern edges of Lake Waikaremoana. And its connection today is its kaupapa. Aeo ki te aurangi, peace to the universe. Aroha ki te aurangi, love to the universe. [00:27:00] And pono ki te aurangi, integrity and truth in all we do. So, just, you'll get the feel for it and just join in as we go through those three verses.[00:27:30] A reo ha ki te aorangi. Pono ki te aorangi. Pono ki te aorangi. Pono ki te aorangi. Aio. [00:28:00] Aio ki te aorangi. Pono ki te aorangi. A i o o ki te ahorangi. Kia ora tatou. Can I please get one more round of applause for Des and for Te Whanawhana. [00:28:30] Thank you so much for joining us all this morning. It is our honour to declare Out in the City officially open! Please peruse the stalls, get yourselves some kai and make sure you come back to the Datacom stage throughout the day for some of the most amazing rainbow talent Porniki has to offer. We'll be kicking off with our first live act at 10:30, so we'll see you then.
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