The title of this recording is "Rally for feminism and trans rights". It is described as: Audio from the rally held on Wednesday 3 May 2023 in Parliament grounds, Wellington. It was recorded in Parliament grounds, 1 Molesworth Street, Wellington on the 3rd May 2023. This is a recording of an event and features the voices of Eliana Rubashkyn, Emma-Jean Kelly, Sandra Marekino, Terry Bellamak, Tiaki Sharp, Tristan-Cordelia, Will Hansen and Willow Heron. It also includes interviews conducted by Gareth Watkins. Their names are spelt correctly, but may appear incorrectly spelt later in the document. The duration of the recording is 1 hour and 20 minutes, but this may not reflect the actual length of the event. A list of correctly spelt content keywords and tags can be found at the end of this document. A brief description of the recording is: Audio from the rally held on Wednesday 3 May 2023 in Parliament grounds, Wellington. The rally was organised by the Pōneke Anti-Fascist Coalition to counter a rally being held at the same time by Speak Up For Women. Special thanks to the organiser and participants of the PAFC rally for allowing it to be recorded and shared. The content in the recording covers the decades 1950s through to the 2020s. A brief summary of the recording is: The recording captures the essence of the event, the concerns, and opinions of people who took part, including interviews and speeches made by various participants who stood in solidarity with transgender rights. It details the atmosphere, the chants, the signs, and the general sentiment of standing against transphobia and advocating for trans rights as an integral part of the feminist movement. Throughout the rally, attendees emphasized the importance of inclusivity within the feminist framework and the need to fight against hatred and misinformation that targets the trans community. There are accounts from individuals who expressed the sentiment that the struggle for trans rights is deeply interwoven with the wider feminist movement, highlighting common goals like the fight for abortion rights as a matter of bodily autonomy for all genders. The rally served as a platform to demonstrate unity in the face of an opposing rally, whose beliefs were perceived as exclusivist and harmful to the rights and safety of transgender individuals. The participants rallied not only to affirm trans rights but also to call attention to the global spread of anti-trans sentiments and the necessity to actively combat these ideologies. References are made to Posey Parker's visit to New Zealand, which is said to have stirred up transphobic sentiments and served as a rallying point for those with hateful views. However, the counter-protesters responded by showing up in numbers and voicing their support for the trans community, highlighting the fact that trans individuals, particularly trans women, face the same challenges and dangers as cisgender individuals, merely wishing for the freedom to exist and be accepted. One of the speakers provided a historical perspective, reminding the audience that the path of social progress has always involved struggle and resistance, implying that the fight for trans rights is another chapter in the continuous journey towards equality and justice. The hope was expressed that just as past battles for rights have been won, so too will this fight for trans rights eventually be victorious. Additionally, this year being an election year in New Zealand, there were appeals to politicians and potential political leaders to advocate for and support the trans community not just in words but through policy and action. The full transcription of the recording begins:  I'm an 18 year old trans feminine woman, um, I'm currently studying at Te Heranga Waka University of Wellington, um, and we are on the Parliament lawn. Um, where Parliament Security has put up, uh, some metal barriers and, um, there are some TERFs here already on the other side. I can see a few shirts saying adult human female, which is always lovely. Um, and we're just waiting on the rest of our group to arrive in, oh, about half an hour. Um, And, it looks like we already outnumbered them, so that's good for safety, but it looks like Parliament and Security are expecting a bit of a confrontation, so hopefully everything goes well and peaceful and, um, no one gets hurt. This counter rally is, uh, titled, uh, Rally for Feminism and Trans Rights. Why was it important to bring those two things together? Um, well, as I'll say in my speech again later today, um, I think it's, it's.. Uh, very important that, um, transfeminism and other, um, branches of feminism are kind of inextricably linked. They, um, complement each other really importantly, and I think it's a really good way to, um, achieve everyone's goals. Um, and also, uh, our fights are very, very similar. You know, the, the fight for, um, abortion rights, uh, is very closely linked to bodily autonomy and the right to transition to trans people. Um, and, and then, you know, all the way through, um, feminist history, there've been, uh, parallels, um, to.. Trans, um, pushes for trans rights as well. So, um, I think it's really important and Um, it also shows the, uh, TERFs, that they don't speak for all women, you know. If, if it was just trans women getting up and speaking, then they could make the argument that we're kind of alone. But when we have cis feminists and other feminist groups, um, also standing up to oppose their, um, hatred, it, it makes it much easier for our arguments to be defensible to, sort of, the general public. Since the visit of Posey Park, uh, a couple of weeks ago, or maybe a month ago now, has there been an increase in, kind of, anti trans sentiment in New Zealand? Definitely. Yeah, there has. Um, I, I think it's, it's, it's definitely come to the forefront, but it's important to acknowledge that it's, it's, it was, it was here already. Um, and there were definitely transphobic undercurrents. Um, it's just, uh, her visit imported some more. Um, extremist views and some more extremist hatred, um, onto our shores. And, um, we've now got an important fight to push those back down again and make sure that they don't gain prevalence in our country. Do you think her visit kind of just gives license for people to express, uh, stronger, louder, angrier views? Absolutely. Yeah. Um, she, she acts as a rallying point around which, um, hateful people, uh, justify their views by saying, Well, look at this. You know, powerful, popular person who supports us. Um, and yeah, I, I mean, I was very disappointed when she was let into the country at all. Um, but um, yeah, hopefully, hopefully we can outnumber them today and get some more media attention and, and just show that actually TERFs are not the, um, majority at all and that they share a very hateful, um, minority view. Speak Up for Women has been around for a number of years and they've campaigned against a number of.. different pieces of legislation. What do you think is like their endgame? Like, when, when do you think they will kind of stop, or will they just keep going? Um, well, the thing about, um, transphobia is that their argument is that we don't exist. And so that leaves us with the ultimatum of, um, either we win or we stop existing. Um, and so I don't think they're going to stop fighting. Uh, ever. Because until there's no trans people left in the country and in the world, um, their, uh, mission of hate will never be complete. So, it's really important that we stamp them out at the early age before we start seeing things like, um, what's happening in the United States right now where, um, trans people are being, uh, quite a significant way through the different, the ten steps of genocide. And it's quite a scary situation over there. And, and hopefully we can stamp it out in New Zealand before it gets to that stage. We are currently outside, uh, the steps of Parliament. Uh, Speak Out for Women has organised a, um, speech or event of some kind and we're here as a counter protest, um, for trans and queer rights. Why was it important for you to be here today? Uh, well, a lot of my friends are queer and a couple of them are trans, uh, specifically trans women, and they're really important to me and it's important that, um, I stick up for them, and, yeah, my role as an ally is really to be there for them, and that's the best I can do. Do you think there's been an increase in anti trans sentiments since the visit of Posey Parker? Um, from what I've read, there has been, yes. Uh, there have been some, uh, Much more aggressive stances, uh, from what I read. Reports of more aggression towards trans people following the, um, following the initial instance of her visits and, uh, then fleeing. But, uh, that's only from what I've read. It's hard to, it's hard for me to say that I've seen it in, with my own eyes, in society, but I've definitely read the accounts and I've heard from others who have, uh, experienced that. So, yes, part of that is I'm not personally a target. But, um, I do my best to keep an eye on it. You mentioned Speak Up for Women and the event today, and they've been around for a couple of years now, and they seem to be campaigning against a whole range of different legislation going through Parliament. Do you have any sense of, like, what their kind of endgame is? Like, what, like, what do they, what do they want to achieve? It's hard to say. I would say from, um, from what I'm seeing. It's simply a standing against something we don't like as opposed to fighting for something or fighting for something else. I understand it can be, um, when, when many of my friends started coming out as trans and um, other gender identities, it was a little confusing to understand, but I took the time to understand it and now I have a really good idea of the situation. What I don't think they're willing to do is that they don't seem willing to Think about or consider other perspectives. It's simply a I don't understand it. I don't like it. It's got to go mentality and that doesn't really bring It's not a progressive mindset and it doesn't get you anywhere in the long run or does is kind of filibuster for other movements This is happening in New Zealand, but I'm also aware that it's happening internationally. Do you think this is? Is that part of an international thing that's happening at the moment, the kind of anti trans feeling? Um, I would definitely say so, however, um, many surveys have reported that these anti trans sentiments are not in fact popular. In fact, um, there was a report on Fox News, which I know is interesting to bring up here, but, uh, they said only 15% of American households, um, saw, Trans people is a problem and others didn't either were fine with it completely or just had some minor things here and there, uh, but only 15% saw it as a problem. So it's these other views most definitely of a minority. They're a very vocal minority, but they're a minority nonetheless. I'm Nella. I use he him pronouns and today we're at Parliament counter protesting a, uh, tariff protest. Why was it important for you to be here today? Um, I just think, like, if we let this kind of garbage go unchecked, then we're just as bad, you know? So, it's important for me to be able to be here and help people that are most vocal, uh, in our community. Yeah, and so you're volunteering today. Yeah. Yeah. I'm just here as a medic today. So just helping out good experience Hopefully we won't need medical attention. Yeah, that's the plan. That's the plan. I'm hoping to be as useless as possible With Posey Parker's visit a couple of weeks ago Do you think the kind of anti trans sentiment has like increased in New Zealand since then? Oh, definitely. I think it's Uh, with like, as well with like all the UK and US kind of stuff going on, it's really been on a rise lately. Um, and I've definitely seen and heard more of it just like in my day to day life. Um, I think Posey definitely stirred up a lot of.. People that were normally more quiet in their transphobia to being more vocal about it, which is a shame. Yeah, hopefully they learn to stay quiet. Do you think it's, um, I mean it seems to me when I'm looking online that it's, you know, there's a lot happening internationally as well. Do you think this is just another kind of arm of that kind of anti trans sentiment worldwide? Yeah, yeah, I think it's just like.. New Zealand sometimes takes a bit longer to catch up on these things, but it's just slowly kind of spreading its fingers in here and waking up the already, like, dormant y, if not rampant, transphobia that we have. Um, I think, yeah, we are very internationally influenced, and it's starting to show, so yeah. But then it must be amazing to see, Hosie Parker here in Wellington, where there was like 4, 000 people. That was, honestly, it was brilliant, and the amount of people I saw there, like, I saw the people that work at my, uh, university, I saw people I haven't seen in years, I saw so many different groups of people come together to stand up against, uh, transphobia, and it was, it was gorgeous, it made me feel very proud live here. So, um, this event is countering the one that Speak Up for Women, uh, are doing today here at Parliament. Um, Speak Up for Women have, um, lobbied against a number of different bits of legislation and so it's not one specific thing. And I'm wondering, like, do you have any thoughts about, like, what their end game is? Like, what do they want to achieve? That's a good question, because I don't even know if they know. Um, I think, yeah, honestly, it, it feels like they all have.. different goals in certain areas and they've kind of just lumped together into one group. So I, I honestly have no idea what they've, what's going through their heads. Not much, really. Yeah. Today, uh, well, this year is the general election here in Aotearoa. Um, do you have any, uh, words that you would like to say to either politicians or prospective politicians? Um, I think just being.. Vocal about your stance right now could be very important, um, because, you know, I find sometimes politicians can kind of just try not to get involved, and I think right now with how high the tensions are, it's important to say how you're, how you stand on these issues and what you're actually going to do for the community. Um, but yeah, that's all I really know. I've come here today and I'll be here with some other feminists of an older generation. Um, we're here because we've been wringing our hands about the fact that some older women and older feminists have been very much presenting anti transgender points of view. And we don't understand why really, because a trans woman is a woman to us. And so, as feminists, we're trying to make a bit of a stand and say, hang on, we need to step back a bit, welcome trans women into our, into our spaces, and, um, and just carry on. Looking at the issues that have always troubled us, like, um, violence against women, poverty, you know, all of those kinds of issues that feminists have been concerned about for a very long time. So where do you think that kind of, um, hatred comes from towards trans people? Like, why is it rearing its head now? I've got no idea. It's a mystery to me. I think, um, maybe some older feminists have been troubled by some of the transgender people they've seen. Seen but not spoken to, perhaps. Um, it is a mystery to me, Gareth. I really just, I'm puzzled by it. Yeah, because if you've met some transgender women and had the talk with them, they're just people getting on with their lives. And, you know, if you want to be a woman, you're a brave person, because being a woman hasn't always been all that easy in our society. So I respect their wish. If they want to be women, then, you know, good on them. They're brave people. When I look overseas, I'm seeing kind of similar things that are happening, say, in the US and the UK. Do you think this is just part of a larger, uh, a larger international kind of anti trans sentiment? It seems to be, and that's very concerning, and that's why we as feminists are wanting to stand up and say, Hang on. Stop this. This is crap. And, um, those transgender women in particular are women, and they're welcome in my space. Well, I'm, I'm a cishet male. Okay, I live in a privileged society, I am privileged, but I see people, vulnerable minorities, who don't have that privilege. And persecuting trans people for all these weird transphobic transgressions that mostly have never, ever happened. This reminds me of 1986, of the gay law reform. And I've heard it all before, it didn't wash with me then, and it's not washing with me now. So can you compare back what was happening in 86 to what is happening now? Is there a difference? How do you, how do you think? At the beginning, it's pretty much the same. The rhetoric is the same. You know, you can't have gay men teaching kids in safe places. They use your bull crap. But there is something different now, and I think it's all amplified by the internet. It's made a lot worse with the internet. Um, and stuff that you could ignore back in 86. It's very hard to ignore it now, and it just seems to, um, I don't know, amplify the hatred. And is that what you were seeing, hatred? Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Um, you know, and even when women speak out for, on behalf of trans people, so this is, you know, women, cis women, you know, you still get people saying, you know, just drowning them out, saying, no, let women speak, let women speak. Well, they are speaking and their message is quite clear. You know, we've got nothing to be afraid of. You've brought a sign today. Can you tell me what's on the sign? Sure. The sign says, love prevails always. Yeah, it's just my favourite saying. I mean, you can argue with that. You can argue with that. So, were you also protesting during 86, 87, or 85, 86? Yep, absolutely. Um, I wore my hug badge, um, to work. And I just about dared my boss to tell me to take it off, but he never did. He was actually quite cool about it. And I wore my hug badge with pride. With absolute pride, you know, um, you know, gays, trans people, you know, they're my, my siblings. So, and I'm a New Zealander, and I'm quite proud of the fact that, you know, we lead the world, you know, with um, LGBTQI plus rights, you know, absolutely. But how does it make you feel when you think that, that, that was 40 years ago, 85, 86, with the homosexual law reform, and these same arguments are coming up now? Look, it's just gobsmacking that all the same arguments have been, uh, brought back, dredged up again, and they're almost word for word. But you might as well just replace the word, uh, gay with trans, and it's almost exactly the same. You know, people and.. so called safe spaces, but I tell you what, you know, what women have to fear is not trans women, it's cis het males who do most of the violence, you know, Marama Davidson in the Greens, she was 100% spot on, yep. This year is an election year, uh, would you have any, uh, messages for our politicians now or would be politicians? Yeah, stand up for what's right. You may, uh, you may lose a few votes, you know, from certain, um, transphobes and hatemongers. Just stand up for what's right. You know, in your heart, I say to the politicians, in your heart, you know what's the right thing to do because you never know, the next person affected could be someone in your family. So we're in Parliament Grounds, and I'm standing here in the wind with my mate, and we're holding a banner that says Feminists for Trans Rights. I'm in my 40s, I'm a strong feminist, and I believe that trans and non binary people need to have exactly the same rights as everybody else. Why was it important for you to be here today? Ah, to support my whānau, to support rainbow communities. Yeah, and just make that point that.. Stand up for women, don't stand for me. Posie Parker didn't stand for me. I'm a cis woman and I'm proud, but I also love my trans and non binary whanau. Posie, well Posie wasn't here in Wellington, she actually left New Zealand but there was a rally against Posie Parker a few weeks ago here in Wellington. Did you attend that? And if you did, what was the feeling like? I did attend it. It was such a joyful event. It was huge. And I know it's just Yesterday on Taro Encyclopedia of New Zealand, they just put up a beautiful photo of our attendance and we could see ourselves in the crowd. Um, it felt like an event where everybody knew that this was the point where we had to say, we don't want this kind of anti trans kōrero, we don't want it to enter legislation, we don't want it to enter our workplaces. It was amazing. We also heard from trans people themselves, and that was so powerful for me, to hear about people's experience of every day walking down the street being yelled at and slapped and shouted at, and how hard that is, and then to have feminists They've challenged their right to be themselves, just seem to me so extraordinarily messed up. This rally today is a counter rally to the Speak Up for Women rally. And, I mean, they've protested a number of bits of legislation. It's not just one issue they're going for. What do you think is their kind of end game? I try very hard to understand. I even looked up their website, which has all these generic photos of white people looking very fit. It's very strange. I don't know what their end point is, except I do know they feel genuinely threatened. But I can't get to the bottom of why. I've asked people. There is no rational explanation for this response. We've just had the PA start up with music. Um, I might just end this very shortly, but if you could just describe what you can see around us. Oh, it looks amazing. We have purple haired people, purple glassed people. We have pink beanies. We have banners. We have, um, trans flags, trans t shirts, and all sorts of different kinds of humans here together to celebrate in their beautiful shoes, in their beautiful wairua. I'm Sandra Marikino. What we're here today is to come and support my sisters, all my trans friends, and women's rights. And we're fighting for women's rights as we are speaking for today. Can you look around you and just describe what you can see? I see a lot of trans sisters and brothers all here today for today's rally, and hopefully we'll get women's rights accepted today. Acceptance saves lives. Hate kills. And that's the big banner at the front of the rally, yeah? Yes. Yes. Um, hopefully it will be a good turnout today. Well, as we slowly see that people are showing up and we are supporting each other of all colours and rainbow. Why was it important for you to be here today? I'm here to support my friends, who are also trans, sisters and brothers, and to fight for their rights. To be with them fighting for our women's rights. And make friends and meet people. I've seen you at a number of trans rallies over the years, and you're always quite vocal. I mean, it's really, it's fantastic. But what is the feeling you get, say like, I think I saw you at the um, the uh, Aunty Posy Parker rally. Um, the feeling I get is good vibes that I'm actually in the crowd with them, and chanting with them, and meeting people and talking about what we really need. With the Hikoi March in March, not so long ago, It would turn out to be a very big crowd, and I started chanting for everyone, and everyone was following me. Hence why I was chanting, is to cheer the crowd up and let people know that we are here, loud and proud. And we all care for each other, and we're all for one. We're not just individual people asking for something that we want. We're all as in one equal, asking for what we want. Our woman's rights. Give us what we need. This is us. Whether we are trans men, trans sister, we are still one people, one person. We're still under one colour, the rainbow flags. Do you think since Posie Parker's visit to New Zealand that there's been an increase in kind of anti trans sentiment? Ehh, honestly I can't answer you that. Since she's been back home, we are so proud that she did not come to Wellington. Very proud that we did not come to Wellington. Uh, I feel sorry for her. She should realize her family comes first. She's, she's a mother, a wife, a sister and auntie. Her family comes first. Her life is more important than protesting against trans people. We are all as one. She, we fought for what we are doing. And we are still fighting for our, for our women's rights. So I'm glad she did not come to Wellington. And I'm sure the whole of Wellington is proud of what we did that day and why she did not come down here. This year is the general election here in New Zealand. Is there anything that you would want to say to politicians or would be politicians? Please come out and support us and be with us. We are here for our rights, for our rights, women's rights. Please give us what we need, especially to our trans sisters and brothers. They really need us as much as we all need us. So please be with us and support us. Kia Whanganui a Tara. Tēnā koutou e ngā irawhiti. Tēnā koutou e ngā homi. Anui te mihi kia koutou. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou katoa. Uh, we are gathered here today, uh, organized by Poneke Anti Fascist Coalition, standing up against anti trans rally that's about to get underway shortly over the other side of Parliament. And we are here to say that trans rights are women's rights, that women's rights are trans rights, and that the trans community and feminism are together. Just want to give a shout out to Maniapoto, who are here today gifting a tree to the Crown. Um, after having settled their treaty settlement. Uh, that's dope. Welcome. So, my name's Tristan Cordelia. I'm going to be emceeing. Um, I'll run through a safety briefing. Then I will hand over to Tiaki to do a karakia. Then I'll hand over to our four speakers. Um, Sarah, who's going to speak on trans rights and feminism. A couple of representatives from the Fired Up Stilettos who are going to speak about the intersection between, um, SWERFs and TERFs and stand against both. Um, Terry from Abortion Law Reform to speak about this movement. Um, and then Alice to speak about some of the more hidden aspects of transphobia, uh, and transmisogyny. And then we will wrap up with some noise and hopefully a good time and a minimum of confrontation. So, we're here today for a peaceful protest. Um, we have marshals to keep us safe. Um, our head marshal is Felha. Uh, we stand for collective well being, including a need for the protection and support of the trans members of our community, and for the rights of all those marginalized to be included and to be safe in society. We stand against the anti trans rhetoric, disinformation, and conspiracy theories against the far right's politics of violence, hatred, fear of trans people. In the future, it may be necessary to confront the threats they pose more directly. Today is not that day. Today we are gathered, gathering peacefully to demonstrate and resist. This is not about passive resistance, it is, but it is about non violent resistance. We are actively non violently resisting those who hate us. Which means we don't lie down and let them do what they want to us, but we do de escalate any hint of violence that is to come. Specifically, we are resisting the extremely harmful views spouted by a very small number of their leaders and by agitators within their ranks. With that in mind, we urge you to adhere to our kaupapa by doing the following things. Attack the anti trans ideology. Don't attack the individual protesters who have been misled and lied to by charlatans. Be part of the community. Look out for one another. When you need to go and find a public loo, go and come back with buddies. When it's time to leave, leave with buddies. Keep everyone safe. Include everyone. Talk to one another. Have fun! This is.. Rrrrrrrrrrrr! Meow! This is also a celebration of the diversity of our community. Meow! Have fun with that community. Look after the Svenua. Find a public glue. Don't litter. We are on Taranaki whanau land, and we are here to respect that land. Marshals are in orange vests. Follow their leadership. Their goal, our goal, on this occasion is to de escalate potentially dangerous situations and ensure we successfully counter protest the TERFs without any of our community coming to harm. First Aid and Welfare team are in green. Shoulder tap them to help with injuries, mental and medical health and wellbeing advice. If you can't find one, ask one of the Marshals to find one for you. Our med team are not a substitute for an ambulance in a critical situation, but they can help. We are not setting out to be arrested, but in the event that you are, we have spoken with a lawyer who is willing to be involved. You can ask a marshal for their number and write it on your arm in case you need it. Watch out for far right media trying to create incriminating footage, disrupt their footage or move away as you feel fits the circumstances. The reporters we've spoken to so far and that we have seen around us are not from the far right. Um. Thank you. They'll generally be a bit more shifty than the people we currently have. Cool. So let's have an overview of how the day is likely to go. First of all, you are all inevitably going to be your wonderful selves, and you're going to talk with and look out for one another. The turfs will be gathering and protesting starting at 12. 30 and ending at 1. 30 over that side of the barrier. There will likely be other right wing groups also heading to parliament, possibly coming from other directions. There will likely be right wing social media agitators and wannabes hanging around too. Don't give them your time unless it's to disrupt their footage. We're protesting all of these groups, we're letting it be known that they do not speak for and decide what's best for trans people, for women, for queer people, and all those in our community. But, we're not stopping them going up into parliament grounds. We will be staying here till 1. 30, making noise to disrupt them, and then having fun. The Marshall team will communicate a plan beyond that as the day progresses. It's likely our numbers will swell around lunchtime when those who are unable to work to avoid work commitments join us. On the other hand, it's possible we'll close things down early or relocate depending on how the situation develops. Look to the Marshall team for directions and listen for announcements. We'll have a mix throughout, speeches, music, and chants. Um, we're really just going with simplicity today, so if we need to chant, we will chant. Trans rights are human rights. Or just trans rights. Thank you for your time and attention and the love you've brought here to share today. I'm going to hand over to Tiaki now to open with the karakia. Tēnā tātou katoa. Whakataka te hau ki te uru, whakataka te hau ki te tonga. Kia mā kinakina ki uta, kia mā taratara kei tai. E hii ake ana te atākira. He tio, he uka, he auu, ti he wā mauri ora. Tēnā koutou katoa. Kia ora. I'm now going to introduce our first speaker, Sarah. UA Coursera ua. My pronouns are she her. I'm a proud member of the International Socialist Organization, of Paunake Anti Fascist Coalition, and of Queer Endurance Defiance. Groups with significantly overlapping mahi, and full of amazing people. We stand up against fascists and far right forces. We build community, and we ensure collective well being. Today, just behind me, in front of you all, a group called Speak Up for Women is holding a rally. Now, genuinely, speaking up for well, the well being of women is an excellent idea. And I'm sure all of us gathered here today agree, women in Aotearoa face many injustices. Sadly, the group gathered over there exists solely and expressly for the purpose of demanding the removal of rights from transgender people. Kia ora, and again! The work of transphobes serves to shift social attitudes rightward towards a world of individualism and hierarchy. That rightward shift must be fought. We don't need to look far to see a far right and fascist presence in the anti trans movement. Only as far as Nam Melbourne, where Neo-Nazis rallied with anti-trans trans icon Posey Parker, or just with an RO itself, where Neo-Nazi Kyle Chapman, former leader of the National Front, recently organized anti-trans stand by your women rallies. So we all stand together against those who spew hate, seek harm, and sow division. Transphobes argue that transgender people somehow threaten cisgender women's rights. But rights are won for communities through collective struggles. And winning rights for one group doesn't mean losing rights for another. We can ensure everyone in this society gets what they need to survive and thrive. There is enough resource to go around. Let me hear that more! There is enough resource to go around! Kia ora. We must build towards a society truly embodying the motto from each according to their ability to each according to their need. That's an achievable goal if we are all united. Transphobia is just one of the many tools used to divide the working class. So we'll continue to rally mass resistance against hate. We'll resist the bigotry of all kinds. Who will work together towards common goals of social, physical, mental well being for all. And we will show, through a unity, a glimpse of an achievable future based on love and community. We are already doing that. ALL of those things, right here, and right now. Kia ora! Kia ora Sarah. We next have two representatives from the Fired Up Stilettos who ora. Kia ora. I am one of the organizers of the Fired Up Stilettos, and I'm here today to speak about the connection between trans exclusionary radical feminism and sex work exclusionary radical feminism, and how the two are inherently connected. Swerves.. They really are. I'm about to tell you. Swerves and TERFs really do go hand in hand. Just as trans people have always been here.. Sex work is often considered the oldest profession in the world. From the 1970s, it is well documented that anti sex work feminists, anti trans feminists, religious conservatives, and the moral right have aligned themselves politically in a war against our communities. Swerves and TERFs both hold essentialist understandings of man and woman, and promote a patriarchal desire to control our bodies, our sexualities, our identities, and our labor. Swerves will tell you that our industry must be abolished to protect children, to stop human trafficking, to stop child trafficking. to stop men from committing violence and sexual violence against women. They label sex workers as bad women, whose existence harms real women. They push these labels onto sex workers, ignoring the diverse experiences and identities in our industry, to advocate for laws that compromise our safety with absolutely no legitimate evidence to back up their claims. While these examples are a pervasive injustice, these arguments are a distraction from the true causes and perpetrators of these crimes. It is a way of locating a familiar scapegoat, relieving men of accountability, and of blaming sex workers for male violence. TERF arguments use the same discourse, that a trans person is threatening to children, that a trans person's control over their bodily autonomy is threatening. That a trans woman is not a real woman. That a trans person's existence harms real women. They use these arguments to advocate for laws that make trans lives precarious, susceptible to violence, and deny access to healthcare. Again, if you think there is valuable statistical evidence to back up these claims, you would be wrong. What is important to remember is that arguably the most vulnerable members of our sex work community are trans, street based sex workers. And some of the most vulnerable members of the trans community are trans, street based sex workers. Now there is nothing inherently vulnerable about a sex worker or a trans person. We are made vulnerable by societal prejudice and by policy that discriminates against us. This is why we cannot forget each other when we stand up for our rights, because our rights, like the hate perpetrated against us, was born from the same hands. It is also important to remember that there is privilege even within our own oppressed communities, but that privilege does not belong to trans sex workers. I have worked with few trans dancers in strip clubs across Aotearoa because they don't often even have the privilege of working in the same shitty, exploitative venues that the fired up stilettos are advocating to improve right now. That is why it is important for the entire rainbow community to show up for all sex works rights movements, especially full service workers. With the very real need for identity protection, we rely on the support of our allies. It is equally important for all sex workers to show up for trans rights activism Trans rights! trans rights! Trans rights! Our biggest oppositions may not have a stronghold in Aotearoa like they do in places like the UK, but they do have a lot of money, a lot of power, and a lot of time on their hands to make all of our lives unsafe. Liberation for sex workers is inherently connected to liberation for the trans community. Thank you. Tena koutou katoa. My name is Molly, or Mago and Vago, and I am a member of the Fired Up Solidos as well. Oh, thank you. This is the second time I've spoken on behalf of Fired Up Solidos at a trans rights protest, and I see that as a huge achievement for our communities, because Fired Up Solidos was only formed two months ago. The volume of anti fascist action taking place in our city by our people is something that we should be very proud of. To wake up every day and see the brutal impacts of a self sustaining patriarchal society is not easy. But here we all are, standing together, being honest about who we are and what we want. It is our refusal to conform with the status quo that brings us all together. The refusal to accept that we should be treated as other or as less than. Queerness opens the door for us all to question the aspects of society we live in, decide what is right for us, and live that way. Like all marginalized groups, we are not homogenous. But to truly live authentically, we must recognize and accept that we are different, and in turn respect the differences of others. We must keep in mind that division among our community is not born from feminist ideology. It is a strategy used by our oppressors to discourage our unity and make us weaker, because together we are a threat to the system. We cannot achieve intersectional feminist liberation without sex workers and trans people. We cannot work towards justice using the strategies of our oppressors. And it is work to live your life honestly and intentionally in a world that relies on control and exploitation. It is work to sacrifice the comfort we all deserve in order to secure that comfort for everyone. And I am proud of you for doing that work. I am so grateful to you for doing that work. Because none of us can do this alone. We are all rebelling against the same system, and if any of us manage to find justice for ourselves at the expense of others, we have failed. Every day that we choose to live authentically is a step towards liberation for ourselves. And every day that we decide to show up for each other is a step towards liberation for everyone. The effects of our oppression are diverse, but the solution for all of us is the same. Burn the fucking patriarchy. And, uh, sign our petition. Thank you. Thank you. This is just currently speaking with the media, so I'm going to introduce our next speaker, Terri Bellamack from Abortion Law Reform New Zealand. Tēnā koutou. Kia ora koutou. Ahi ahi marie. My name is Terri, and I'm a life member and a former president of ALRAN's Abortion Rights Aotearoa. And I'm here to tell you that Al Rans supports trans rights. LGBT folks were there for us during abortion law reform, and now we are here for them. During the fight for law reform, especially at the end when we were organizing rallies and petitions and marches, the LGBT community was front and center. They were all in. We appreciate that. And we have not forgotten. It's important that everybody who supports the bodily autonomy of pregnant people and of everybody come together. Trans rights are human rights! Trans rights are human rights! Trans rights! Trans rights are human rights! Damn right. So now it's trans rights that are under attack. From the same people who were opposing reproductive rights. What a coincidence. And now, so these same right wing extremists and their fellow travelers are out there. Yelling about, who knows what they're yelling about. And here we are. And here is Al Rantz. We are in it for the long haul. We're not going anywhere. Now the fight for reproductive rights is not over. We see it all over the world. Reproductive rights and trans rights are getting hammered. Especially in places like the U. S. Where right wing coalitions of people like, you know, TERFs Fundamentalists, Christian Dominionists, white supremacists, and other racists in cells. And other anti feminists, and of course, you're straight up Nazis, are coming together to try and remove, fuck off, to try and come together and strip the human rights from people they do not consider to be human. Fuck that. And make no mistake, right wing extremists right here in Aotearoa, including TERFs. They're trying to drag us all back to the world of the 1950s back when cis white men and their authority were not questioned. Abortion rights matter for everybody. Human rights matter for everybody. Absolutely everybody, even if it's not your rights that are being challenged today. So, we have an election coming up. And National's leader, Christopher Luxon, evangelist. Yeah. Dude, who says he believes that abortion is tantamount to murder. Has promised that he would not repeal the Abortion Legislation Act. Well, there's a problem with that. Because there's an awful lot of damage that an anti abortion administration can do to abortion rights and abortion access without even repealing. Like, for instance, they could change the Care of Children Act so that teens who want to get abortion care have to get their parents permission. This is something that Posey Parker supports. As if we needed another reason to dislike that idea. Or safe areas. An anti abortion government could just not approve any, and thus harassing people outside abortion clinics. Would continue to not be illegal as it is, as it is not illegal right now, because unfortunately the present government has also not approved any safe areas after a year. So to preserve our rights, we need to vote like our fundamental human rights are at stake because they are. Yeah. So today we are here and we stand together. And we will win. Our opponents would like nothing better than to divide us. Fuck that. Especially Terps. Trying to paint themselves as feminists. No. That's bullshit. The feminist movement is intersectional. If feminism does not include LGBT people, well, that's not feminism. Because we are all here for the same purpose. To fight the patriarchy. And the sensible people of Aotearoa support us. 74% of New Zealanders support reproductive rights. And 80% of New Zealanders support trans rights. Trans rights are human rights. Trans rights are human rights. Trans rights are human rights. Trans rights are human rights. Trans rights are human rights, transparency, human right. So that's why we're out here. Al Rantz is here to support our trans siblings. We're here today. We'll be here next time and the time after that until everyone, everyone is safe from violence and their, their human rights are recognized and respected. So, thanks for listening. Thanks for coming out. Ka kite ano. Trans rights are human rights, and trans rights are also women's rights, just as women's rights are trans rights. I'm now going to introduce our final speaker, Alice, after which we will hear a brass band playing in our support, and then we're Welcome, Alice. Kia ora, everyone. My name is Alice. I use she, her pronouns. Thank you. Transmisogyny is a unique evil. While it's common for less powerful groups to be scapegoated for all things that are wrong in the world, it's rare that members of those groups are simultaneously deemed not to exist. Our existence is caricaturized and mocked. Our resistance to these false characterizations is turned around and used against us. The trans debate is a broad and terrifyingly common specter that has been imported to Aotearoa and used to bolster the small sex of transphobia in our country. Many cis commentators and bystanders miss. That transphobia has existed and been pervasive here, long before this international bigotry became the norm. Western right wing extremism has arrived through our media, and British transphobia has landed on our shores. And they both join a long running and scarily ignored underworld of hate. Ooh, I've got a halo. I moved to Pōneke for university from a small city with even smaller views. I was disappointed to find that the same fight we started at home is still being fought here. I'm only 18, I've been out as trans for only 3 years, and already I'm tired. We are tired. Why is it that people are still unsure as to whether we even exist? Haven't we been here long enough? Haven't there been enough papers published and enough articles written? Being a trans person requires a constant expenditure of emotional energy devoted to justifying our existence. We are made to be experts in biology and sociology. Surgery and endocrinology, philosophy and psychology, and uncountable other fields, and it still ends up being ignored. Social rights movements are always met with resistance, and often deadly resistance. But ours is unique because in addition to our rights being opposed, our very existence is doubted too. We are dehumanized and ignored. We are told that who we are is false. Every piece of evidence we provide is dismissed with, well, how do you know? And we're given the impossible task of proving reality to someone who will never believe us. When we express our discontent with the oppression we experience in contemporary society, we invariably receive the same overused response from cis people. Why don't you just ignore them? If you don't give them your attention, they'll go away on their own. Aside from being obviously reductive, this ignores the reality of transphobia, and shifts the blame onto the trans community. By failing to challenge their hate, their door towards overt violence is left open. What these cis people miss, then, is the web of far right extremism, and the calls for violence that exist just below the surface of the acceptable society in which they live comfortably. We do not have that luxury of comfort and complacency. The rise in anti trans hate is glaringly bright in the eyes of every trans person today, and the threat to our existence is omnipresent in everything we do. It is essential that cis allies of trans people make their own conceited, uh, concerted efforts to combat, sorry, I made a typo when I was writing this out and printed it out, and printing is expensive, so I, um, yeah, um, concerted efforts to combat these transphobic undercurrents and oppose all those who spread them. This is a fight that trans people cannot win alone. Anti trans rhetoric at its roots calls for the non existence of trans people, and thus we are constantly forced into arguments with a deadly ultimatum. We cannot and will not compromise with those who call for our eradication. There is no platitude they can offer, there is no platitude they can offer that does not jeopardize our rights and safety. A core issue arises in the powerful use of stereotype by the opposition. By characterizing trans women as violent, angry men in dresses, any pushback or realistic emotional reaction to their genocidal ideals is captured and thrown back at us as justification for their views. It is because of this that cisgender allies are so important in this fight. And why intersecting transfeminism with other feminist movements is so important. The push for abortion rights carries vital and relevant themes of bodily autonomy and the right to self actualization. And feminist healthcare campaigns are intrinsically linked to our fight. Trans rights are inextricably intersectional. We must work together and present a unified front of unwavering support and resistance if we are to defend the right to our future. Thank you very much. Trans rights are women's rights. Women's rights are trans rights. We are here together. All for one. And one for all. Kia kaha Poneke. Trans rights are human rights. Trans rights are human rights! We are one! We are loved! We are one! We are loved! Trans rights! Human rights! Trans rights! Trans rights! Human rights! Human rights! We are loved! We are loved! We are one! We are one! Trans rights are human rights! Trans rights are human rights! Woooooo! I am Emiliana Ravashkin. I was born in Colombia, uh, to a Ukrainian.. Jewish refugee, which is my mom, and I grew up in a very dangerous country where being intersex and trans is very, very, very difficult. I came as a refugee in 2014. I was in a refugee camp in China for several months as a result of discrimination caused by my gender identity and expression and my variations of sex characteristics. I came to this country in 2014 and this country has been amazing. This country has given me all the peace, harmony, love that I never imagined was possible. And I love this country. I love Kiwis. I love, I love this land. And I feel so fucking safe. I feel so safe here that I, whenever I feel that my existence is going to be challenging in any way or where somebody is actually actively advocating for. against my existence, my rights. I just, you know, I just don't find another way. Other than smashing them and splashing them. And I guess this brings us to the Posey Parker event that happened in Auckland. Can you describe what the feeling was like at that event? That day, I felt how much love there is for trans people in this country. I just couldn't believe it. Uh, I would, I don't want to talk about the situation itself because that's something that we have to talk on 4th of July when we go to court, but the energy, the, how, how alive I felt that day and how all the community was so strongly together with the trans funnel. It was so many. Amazing, like an energy I've never seen in my life. It was one of the most beautiful days of my life. It's one of the days that I will never forget. Because that day, trans rights were human rights. And the entire country said no to transphobia, no to fascism. It was so clear. It was crystal clear. And I just love that she left the country that very same day at night. Because she said, I can't. stand. I can't handle these people because she wants fascism to take to be in this country and I don't know, I will say always not a fascism. We won't talk about what's currently before the courts at the moment, but after, after that event happened, how has it been like for you in terms of getting hate mail or people getting any kind of feedback? I've been getting multiples, I would say dozens of dead threats. Um, it is a reality. I am in Kiwi farms. Kiwi farms is one of the worst stalking places in the world. Uh, it's a, it's a place where they stalk and harass. Trans people or everyone that the far right deems reasonable, reasonable to be harassed. So I've been harassed. I've been followed. I've been doxxed. I've been, I've experienced harassment in many places where I go including here in Wellington and people just feel like they can just do whatever they, whatever and, and I've been, there's been attempts of my life as well. I cannot go into detail on to these three instances where I've, I've Nelly Fira will die. Because that's something that we will let the police to deal with. But they've been very serious and police are taking care of those situations. Um, but I mean, I'm not surprised when the big enemy that we're fighting is actually new Nazis. Like action slanda and these type of people are, they are the ones that are inciting violence against me. So I'm not surprised, uh, to, to, to experience what I'm experiencing because that's the language they use. They don't know, they don't speak any other language. They just speak violence. How does all of that make you feel? I, I'm not afraid of dying because I've been, I experienced so many difficult things in my life that I honestly, I don't feel afraid of dying. I actually, I only feel happy about being alive because I am very happy. I'm the happiest person because I am so happy that this country has given me the opportunity to just be authentically hundred percent who I am and I have fallen in love with myself. I love everything about me and I love myself so much that I'm not afraid even of dying. The life expectancy of trans people in my country is 35 years old. I am 35 years old right now. I made it! I am an octogenarian in my country already, so every single year, every year that I have more in my life is just bonus for me and I'm just gonna keep living, slaying, living my truth, being happy, genuine, authentic, and fighting for and with my community. You must also head. a huge amount of support. Can you tell me a wee bit about the support you've had? Yes, look at this. Look at, look at people dancing and my community, not just in Oteroa, in Australia, in all over the world. Tomatoes are a symbol of trans liberation. Tomato juice is just like, such a like, stupid thing to be like, such a powerful tool to To fight fascism, it's such a pacific way of fighting such a big demon, such a scary enemy and I'm very happy that we crystallize our, this symbol in such a beautiful way. Yeah, slay. Trans rights! Trans rights! Trans rights! Trans rights are human rights! We support trans wrongs. Trans rights are human rights. I've got a bigger megaphone Tartle, tartle wedge. Tartle, tartle wedge. There is now quite big crowds on both sides, um, they're trying to give a speech through a steady little megaphone, um, and they're trying to block me from seeing them, which is dumb because I can see between them. Um, we've got a much bigger crowd with a much bigger speaker and much louder chants, and they're kind of just spouting their same old asinine bullshit, um, I'm just taking the piss out of them. It's quite fun actually. Um, yeah, you know, they love to try and instigate violence against us, so if any of them come across and say anything to me, then it kind of proves them wrong. Are you able to, uh, read some of the signs? Yeah, so there's one big one held up high that says turf premises are flawed, um, a big banner at the front says acceptance saves lives and hate kills, um, and then feminists for trans rights and liberation for all. Um, there's one up there that says this fruit kills fascists with a bunch of, um, tomatoes, which is of course, iconic. Um.. Yeah, lots of signs, lots of love on our side. Lots of hate on theirs. We're not going anywhere, we're here! We're not going anywhere, we're here! We're queer! We're not going anywhere! We're here. We're queer! We're not going anywhere! We're here. We're queer! We're not going anywhere! Go home trans folks, go home! Trans rights are human rights! Trans rights are human rights! Trans rights are human rights! Trans rights are human rights! Woo! Yeah, uh, we're here today to counter protest Speak Up for Women on May 3rd, 2023. Can you describe the scene? Um, it's kind of a party over here. Lots of chanting. Um, the people over there are trying to block us out. But it's not really happening because we're pretty loud. Can you describe the kind of numbers and the signs as well? Um, yeah, we've got over.. I think we have bigger numbers than they do, but um, They have a few, they have a few signs. They've got one big white, white and green sign with um, with the Venus symbols on it. Sex can't be changed, protect gender and non conformity in our youths. Don't trans the gay away. Another sign is real LGB allies won't tell lies. Your body is your authentic you. Which is like, Well, we know our bodies are our authentic selves. That's why we change them to, to, to like really greater, like reflect it. It's getting quite noisy here. Can you describe the, some of the chants and some of the feelings that you're feeling? Yeah, um, there was trans rights or human rights, uh, puberty blockers save lives. Uh, we're here, we're queer, we're not going anywhere. Um, I really like that one. Uh, personally I was trying to chant, um, trans rights are women's rights as well, because, because it is. Like, um, trans people have historically worked hard with feminist movements for, for bodily autonomy of everyone. We shall overcome! We shall! We shall overcome! We shall overcome! We shall overcome! We shall And we will overcome. We are the future. And you are the past. I'm going to speak to the other side now. We don't hate you as much as you hate us. We are predominantly young. And we do not want to go into the future with hate in our hearts, the way that you are walking towards your graves with hatred in your hearts. It is not too late to change your minds. I guarantee you, you have loved ones who are trans, and instead of making their lives harder, you could be supporting them. We are over here living our lives, being ourselves. I do my hair toss, check my nails. Baby, how you feelin I do my hair toss, check my nails. Baby, how you feelin Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Te Faka Pono, Me Te Rangi Te aroha. One more time. Te whakahono. Me te rangi marie. Ta tau, ta tau e. We stand together in solidarity. Trans rights are women's rights. Women's rights are trans rights. You will find us in the front row. Of the women's rights movement standing up for our cis sisters and our trans sisters. We are together. You would divide us, but we will not be divided. Trans rights are human rights! Trans rights are human rights! Human rights are trans rights! So my name is Will Henson, um, I'm a trans man, um, and I've been here at the, um, anti, uh, the counter protest, um, that's pro trans, anti TERF, the Speak Up For Women, uh, trans exclusionary radical feminists. Or anti trans crowd opposite us, on the barriers opposite us, with all their really long and badly worded signs. And we're here with lots of colour and noise and, um, we've been protesting to show our support for trans communities. Can you describe what the feeling's been like? Uh, it's been, I feel like it's been a whole mixture of feelings for me. I've felt, it's been kind of tense. And when the anti trans groups started to come up towards the fence, it was a bit tense. And they started getting closer, but it turned pretty quickly into celebration, as you can probably hear behind me. It felt really good to have everyone around. supporting and all the color and all of the signs and all of the music was fantastic. So I feel really hopeful and really proud. You've just been overseas. I think you're in Canada. Yeah. Um, can you tell me what, give me an international perspective on what we're seeing here in Wellington? Yeah. So I've just been in Canada at the Making Trans Histories. Moving Trans History Forward, um, conference at the University of Victoria over there. So I got to meet trans people from all around the world, and everywhere around the world everyone is so concerned about this growing right wing of fascism that is, um, targeting trans people as their kind of primary scapegoat at the moment. TERFs, the allyship that they have with fascists, um, is really, really strong. And in the United States, of course, there's about like, I don't know, 300 anti trans bills going through at the moment, something ridiculous. So, um, Americans are really, really freaking out and, and everyone around the world, they're facing all of these, this kind of backlash. So, um, yeah, so, um, so there was definitely a feeling that everywhere around the world, everyone's really concerned and wanting to. figure out ways to strategize together. Why do you think there's a groundswell of kind of anti trans sentiment at the moment? What is driving that? Oh, that's a good question. I'm not sure. I think, um, in general, capitalism is driving the right wing and fascism and, um, TIFs just happen to be at the kind of visible point in that and I guess the trans visibility that we're having kind of has this backlash as well. Trans liberation is growing closer, I think, and so I think that we're getting this backlash as well. When you were over in Canada, were you able to report to delegates from overseas about what was happening in New Zealand? Because this was at a time when Posey Parker was here, yeah? Yes, I was actually on my flight like the day that the Posey Parker protest in Wellington was happening. Um, so I was telling everyone over there, everyone had kind of.. Started to hear about things, um, and they were all pretty, um, they were all pretty, uh, impressed that so many New Zealanders were out and about, but, um, yeah, I, I think the, the sense I got from a lot of people from the Americas and from Europe was, wow, it's happening even in New Zealand, but I think maybe they don't necessarily They didn't necessarily realize that, um, we have a really strong anti trans current over here as well, um, and a lot of that's been, but it's been driven by, um, the UK, and it's been driven by the United States, and, uh, I believe Posey Parker was funded by a right wing U. S. lobby group, so, um, even though we do have a strong and vocal contingent here, they are a minority, They're very, very small. Um, we've got way more people in support, and especially way more lesbians in support. And I think that's a narrative that gets drowned out a lot. But the lesbian group that are part of Speak Up for Women are very, very small and tiny. They're just very loud. And we have to say, because actually you, you, you weren't here, but um, it was an amazing feeling in Civic Square when Posey had left New 4, 000 trans supporters in Civic Square. So the um, size of support, particularly here in um, Te Whanganui o Tāna is huge. Yeah, which is fantastic. And I guess the other thing I've been thinking about, I've been thinking while I've been standing here at Parliament about, in 2004, the first protest on record that was for trans issues in front of Parliament, um, I believe it was for the gender identity amendment to the Human Rights Bill, I think, that Georgina Beyer was leading and the The size of the crowd was quite small, but I saw some familiar faces even from then, like Roger Swanson, he was in that crowd, and now he's here again 20 years later. I was thinking about that, and I was thinking about, um, in 1974, the first trans protest on record outside, uh, public bathrooms in Christchurch, uh, was a sit in by the Transsexuals and Transvestites Union. joined by the local lesbian feminist group, She, and by the Christchurch Gay Liberation Front. And I don't know how many numbers were there, but I imagine it was quite small, so I guess seeing, uh, how many more numbers, and knowing that we've got that long and proud history, but it's a history that's growing in momentum, um, is really exciting. And it's hugely courageous to be here today, because actually there, there is.. There is, there is kind of rhetoric being spouted that is like really hateful. It is scary, and I feel especially for, um, my trans siblings who are more visible, and uh, for trans women especially, um, I know Eli Rubushkin was here, um, who's a friend of mine, and I was pretty, yeah, nervous for their safety, nervous for everyone's safety really, because. Yeah, they're pretty spiteful over there, on that side of the barrier. But the protest organisers managed it really well. They did a really awesome job and kept everyone feeling safe. So this year is going to be an election general election in New Zealand. Do you have any words for politicians or would be politicians? Um, I guess my only words are, um, Support, listen to trans communities, and listen to people who've advocated for trans communities for a long time, like Dr. Elizabeth Kirikiri, who's done fantastic work backing us for a long, long time, and it's people like her that I'm giving my support to, yeah. Uh, we're outside of Parliament, um, I'm a trans woman, a trans teenager, and I guess I care a lot about, uh, advocating for my community. Can you describe the crowds? Yeah, so, uh, there seemed to be two different crowds, uh, Speak Up for Women, which was a group of TERFs who were speaking out against trans people and trans rights, and on the other side we had the queer community, uh, shouting in solidarity for trans people. Were you able to speak at all? Yes, I was able to speak. Um, I waited 20 minutes inside the Speak Up For Women group and, uh, cheered along with them to all their speeches, and I waited my turn and I was able to give a speech. And I said to them, I said, I am a 17 year old biological female. I am scared of my future. My bodily autonomy is up for debate each day. They were cheering along with me. me I said how I've been sexually harassed, walking down the street and I get paid less than my male counterparts in work, they're all cheering along with me. And at the end of my speech I said, and most importantly, I'm a transgender woman. My name is Willow and I'm a biological female and I'm 17 years old and I'm scared of my future. My body is debated by grown men. I have been raped. I am followed home. I am harassed. I am paid less than my male counterparts at my job. What does the future hold for me? My rights are debated on a daily basis. People who have no idea about what it means to live as a woman are debating what's in my pants. And most importantly, I am a trans woman. And we will always be here. I transitioned when I was 15 years old. I walked down this street as a woman. I am seen as a woman. I have been raped by men. I have been harassed. We have existed prior to colonization. Munafuka one and F. Colonizers came and brought hatred And that's when they started shouting mad at me because they had no other, um, argument other than to just call me a man and try, ironically, silence me. So I walked out of there and I think that was.. It's quite an accomplishment showing them that I do in fact go through the same struggles as them and they agreed with that up until they knew my biological sex, which if I hadn't disclosed it, I think I would have gone away with it. It's an incredibly courageous thing to do to go right into that group. I guess so. I thought it was just funny to be honest. I think it's a very ironic thing to do and I think it was successful. How would you describe both rallies today? Very passionate on both sides. Um, I don't think there was. Um, much love coming from the Speak Up for Women group. I think there's nothing but aroha exerting from the queer community today. And I think that's such a demonstration of what's really going on. We've got people who just want to exist and to be loved and to love. And then we've got another group of people who take issue with that. This year is a general election here in New Zealand. Um, is there anything you'd like to say to the politicians? Mmm. Show up for us. Not just when the cameras come out, and not just when you're interviewed and you want to name drop us for the sake of furthering your political career, show up for us in policy and in community. Advocate for us every step along the way because we do need you right now more than ever. So, my name's Tiahi, I'm a queer ally but a cishet man myself. Um, and this is, it's definitely been an experience. I've done marshalling a couple other times, but I, the thing with those is we were more expecting, um. Resistance and we were not met with much, but this one we knew it was going to be here and it was and that was a very different experience, uh, from my point of view, but on the whole, um, I'm really proud of how we did. Uh, there was no real aggression. Um, and there was no Uh, real animosity between the two groups at the time. Uh, it was definitely, you know, yelling and jeering, but that's as far as that went. So I'm proud of us for, um, like, monitoring that, uh, and having some control about how we manage ourselves in that situation. I'm very proud of everyone there. But, um, I just wanted to say, when we fought for the rights of women over a century ago, um, we won. And now we just have to fight to retain those rights. When we fought for the rights of Maori many years ago, we won, and now we are fighting to retain those rights. Uh, when we fought for the rights of marriage, uh, gay marriage and gay couples, we fought and we won, and now we fight to retain those. Um, and one day we will fight to retain these, because we will win. Because that is what history has shown us. The full transcription of the recording ends. A list of keywords/tags describing the recording follow. These tags contain the correct spellings of names and places which may have been incorrectly spelt earlier in the document. The tags are seperated by a semi-colon: 1950s ; 1970s ; 2020s ; ALRANZ Abortion Rights Aotearoa ; Action Zealandia ; Aotearoa New Zealand ; Auckland ; Australia ; Canada ; China ; Christchurch ; Christopher Luxon ; Colombia ; Coming Up ; Eliana Rubashkyn ; Emma-Jean Kelly ; Europe ; Fired Up Stilettos ; Gay Liberation Front ; General election ; Georgina Beyer ; Heterosexuals Unafraid of Gays (HUG) ; Homosexual Law Reform ; International Socialist Organisation Te Whanganui-a-Tara branch ; Job ; Just Speak ; Kyle Chapman ; LGBT ; Marama Davidson ; Melbourne ; Member of Parliament ; Meow ; Neo-Nazism ; Pacific ; Parliament grounds ; People ; Posie Parker ; Pōneke Anti-Fascist Coalition ; Queer Endurance / Defiance ; Roger Swanson ; Sandra Marekino ; Sex Worker Exclusionary Radical Feminist (SWERF) ; Sisters for Homophile Equality (SHE) ; Space ; Speak Up For Women NZ ; Stuff ; Taranaki ; Terry Bellamak ; Tiaki Sharp ; Tonga ; Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminism (TERF) ; Tristan-Cordelia ; United Kingdom ; United States of America ; Wellington ; Whanganui ; abortion ; abortion law reform ; acceptance ; access ; accountability ; activism ; advocate ; aggression ; allies ; ambulance ; amplified hatred ; anti-abortion ; aroha ; attack ; barriers ; bathrooms ; bigotry ; binary ; biological sex ; bodily autonomy ; bottom ; camp ; campaigns ; capitalism ; career ; celebration ; change ; chant ; children ; cis ; cisgender ; class ; clubs ; collective ; colour ; coming out ; community ; complacency ; compromise ; conference ; conformity ; conspiracy ; courts ; crown ; dancing ; death threat ; defiance ; desire ; difference ; discrimination ; disinformation ; diversity ; division ; drag ; dresses ; election ; emotional ; endurance ; energy ; exploitation ; expression ; extremist ; face ; family ; far-right politics ; fascism ; fear ; feelings ; feminism ; filibuster ; first aid ; flags ; friends ; fruit ; fun ; future ; gay ; gender ; gender identity ; genocide ; government ; hair ; harassment ; hate ; hate group ; hate mail ; hate speech ; health ; history ; homosexual ; hug ; human rights ; identity ; individual ; injustice ; international influence ; internet ; intersectionality ; intersex ; justice ; karakia ; kaupapa ; kia kaha ; labels ; language ; law ; lawyer ; leadership ; legislation ; lesbian ; liberation ; listening ; love ; mahi ; march ; marriage ; media ; minority ; mis-pronoun ; movement ; music ; narrative ; news ; opportunity ; oppression ; organised ; other ; pa ; pants ; parents ; passive ; patriarchal system ; peace ; petition ; plan ; police ; policy ; politics ; pono ; poverty ; power ; prejudice ; privilege ; pronouns ; protection ; protest ; psychology ; puberty ; puberty blockers ; purple ; queer ; queer rights ; rainbow ; rally ; rape ; refugee ; refugee camp ; reproductive rights ; resistance ; resource ; respect ; rhetoric ; running ; safety ; saying no ; scene ; security ; sex ; sex characteristics ; sex work ; sexual violence ; shame ; shoes ; siblings ; signs ; silence ; slay ; social ; social attitudes ; social media ; social networking ; sociology ; solidarity ; spaces ; speech ; straight ; strategy ; support ; surgery ; teaching ; teara. govt. nz ; the other side ; threats ; time ; tomato ; trans ; trans man ; trans visibility ; trans woman ; transgender ; transition ; transmisogyny ; transphobia ; transphobic violence ; treaty ; truth ; university ; venues ; violence ; visibility ; volunteer ; vote ; wairua ; waka ; walking ; website ; wellbeing ; whakawahine ; whānau ; wind ; wish ; women ; women's rights ; work ; working class ; writing. The original recording can be heard at this website https://www.pridenz.com/rally_for_feminism_and_trans_rights.html. The master recording is also archived at the Alexander Turnbull Library in Wellington, New Zealand.  For more details visit their website https://tiaki.natlib.govt.nz/#details=ecatalogue.1093105. Please note that this document may contain errors or omissions - you should always refer back to the original recording to confirm content.