Hobsonville Point flying the flag for rainbow and takatāpui communities

The event, known as ‘Hobby Pride’, will involve the flying of 300 Pride Flags around the Hobsonville Point residential area between 18 and 27 November.

This action was inspired after there was a complaint regarding a pride flag being flown when Hobsonville Point Secondary School had their ‘Lil’ Gay Out’, an event intended to make rainbow rangatahi feel safe at school.

This, along with the knowledge that a house in the community which regularly has a pride flag raised has a history of being targeted for egging, showed a need for the community to rally together for their rainbow and takatāpui communities. Emily Davidson, a Hobsonville resident who volunteered at the school event, was the first to raise the issue of the complaint which sparked the idea.

Mr Kaneko, a Programme Coordinator for Professional and Continuing Education (PaCE) at Te Kunenga Ki Pūrehuroa Massey University, is also a member of the Hobsonville Point community. After the incidents were raised, Mr Kaneko says he was keen to do something that would make Hobsonville Point feel safer and more inclusive for everyone.

“The hope is that supplying these flags provides those who want to show support a way to continuously do so. Often people want to be involved and show allyship but don’t know how. These flags can be used throughout the year, especially during Pride, and is a simple way to signal support.”

After pitching the idea to the Hobsonville Point Residents Society, Mr Kaneko and Ms Davidson began leading the planning of the event, with input from Massey’s Diversity and Inclusion Advisor Connor McLeod. Mr Kaneko is dedicating his non-profit working hours towards the event and says he’s grateful to have Massey’s support.

“It’s been great that Massey has been able to support this initiative by allowing staff to dedicate a percentage of their time to these causes. Knowing about Massey’s work to be Rainbow Tick certified, having them as a sponsor is a perfect collaboration.”

Mr Kaneko was successful in applying for a community grant and raised a total of $2000 with the help of local businesses.

The money has gone towards purchasing 300 flags, 150 of which are Progress Pride Flags. These show greater inclusivity by incorporating black and brown stripes to represent marginalised LGBT communities of colour, as well as the pink, light blue, and white of the Transgender Pride Flag and the purple circle over a yellow triangle representing the Intersex Pride Flag.

Flags will be available for members of the community to collect between 30 October and 27 November while stocks last. Collection locations have been advertised on the Hobby Pride website, where people can also make voluntary donations. Any remaining funds and raised money will be shared between two chosen charities – Rainbow Youth and Gender Minorities Aotearoa.

Mr Kaneko says the two charities were specifically chosen to support the message of inclusivity.

“It was important to align with charities that have a clear involvement with this cause and are making a difference in the space. It was particularly important to highlight Gender Minorities Aotearoa as we’re using the Progress Pride Flag that represents intersex and transgender identities.”

There is a map available on the Hobby Pride website where residents can add their flag, so people can see where the flags are flying and visit high volume areas.