OUT THERE! Youth Development Project
MEDIA RELEASE
Kaha: A Queer Youth Leadership Hui
(November 29, 2006) A two-day hui that aims to provide educational and networking opportunities for those involved in
queer youth groups nationally will be held at Wellington’s Tapu Te Ranga Marae on the weekend of January 26-28, 2007.
The word kaha (which means strong) was chosen to set the tone for the young people attending. “You don’t have to be
running a queer group to attend the hui,” says organiser Nathan Brown. “One of the main aims of Kaha is for our young
people to have fun and make new friends but we also want them to feel that they can make a difference.”
Brown is the National Co-ordinator of the Out There Youth Development Project, which aims to create communities that are
safe and inclusive of sexuality and gender diversity. The project chooses to use the word “queer” as an umbrella term
that it defines as encompassing (but not limited to) lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, fa'afafine, and
takataapui identities.
“Kaha will bring together young people from across the country to talk about being queer, to just be queer, and
hopefully take back some of the experiences and discussions and apply them in their home regions,” he says.
The first day of the hui is a special training day aimed at anyone who wants to set up or run groups for queer youth, or
who may be running such groups already. Rod Baxter, Chairperson of the National Youth Workers Network will facilitate
the training, which will feature workshops on transgender issues, Treaty of Waitangi issues, and working with
boundaries.
The rest of the weekend will include a hands-on programme, with workshops in utilising the media, activism, kapa haka
and forums, “to discuss some of the issues facing queer youth,” Brown says. “We are feeling the effects of the growing
popularity of evangelical churches and other morally conservative groups, so we’ll make time to discuss ideas of working
with these groups.”
Kaha is open to all young people who are under 25 and “fit somewhere under the queer umbrella”, Brown says. “We’re
hoping to have a real mix of ages, genders, ethnicities and backgrounds.”
Registration is $25. Where possible, transport will be arranged to and from the hui. More information can be found on
the Out There website: www.outthere.org.nz/kaha
ENDS