Esther Godoy is the editor of a new zine, Butch is not a dirty word, which had its launch in Melbourne in March. Lottie Turner caught up with Esther to find out more about the project.  A: Tell us about BINADW? EG: Butch is not a dirty word is a publication that celebrates butch identity and culture.Whilst we …

Today is Transgender Day of Visibility. It is a day – like many other such ‘days’ – that celebrates or makes prominent something in the public mind. For a day. Of course, the people who are represented by these days are living the issues associated with it every other day. International Women’s Day, for instance, is …

The protest at this year’s annual Pride march in Melbourne, and the violent reaction it subsequently received, draws critical attention to the ethical compromises the queer community has made to gain the power, funding and visibility we now have. A group of queer and transgender activists disrupted the march in front of the NAB faction …

Last week the Victorian Equal Opportunity & Human Rights Commission launched Pride Not Prejudice, a short film marking fifteen years since sexual orientation and gender identity were included in Victoria’s Equal Opportunity Act. The launch night was pretty remarkable, as those in the video and on the panel afterwards reflected on what life was like …

Strolling up and down Oxford Street, you don’t have to think too hard about who advertisers are trying to target. On one corner, two perfectly coiffed, blonde-haired, blue-eyed boys soap each other down on a poster for a foam party. Across the street, a flyer depicts a sea of half-naked, white, muscled men packed onto …

The legacy left by Kat Muscat, Archer contributor, beloved friend and amazing auteur, is one of the best I’ve come across. As a writer and activist, Kat had enormous networks, but she didn’t just exist within these communities. She was a nurturer and mentor, who made deep connections with an unimaginable number of people in different circles. The words tattooed on Kat’s …

Amy Middleton is the founding editor of Archer Magazine. One of the beautiful things about Archer Magazine is how many diverse groups and individuals it brings together through its content. I’m not only talking about the different identities and communities that make up our readership, but also the gap this publication bridges between identity politics …

Yesterday, the Courier-Mail put the gruesome murder of Indonesian transwoman Mayang Prasetyo, killed by her partner Marcus Volker, on its front page. The article is breathtaking in its prurience and voyeurism. Even though Prasetyo was murdered and dismembered, The Courier-Mail deemed it appropriate to include a succession of photos of a seductively-posed Prasetyo in a …

Airing on the ABC last month, Carlotta takes us on the journey of Carol Lee, an Australian icon who went from Balmain boy to Les Girls luminary and cultural phenomenon. But despite a rich and compelling story and an excellent cast, the production manages to miss the point of both Les Girls and Carlotta entirely. At its …

“I REALLY DIDN’T see it as abuse, because domestic violence had always been sold to me as a heterosexual man hitting a heterosexual women.” Diversity is a powerful thing. Generally speaking, it is a positive force in the LGBTI community, but experiences diverge when it comes to domestic or family violence (DFV), occasionally making abuse …