Shanan Halbert MP Spokesperson for Rainbow Issues reflects on World Pride Month.
Following Pride Month and Schools’ Pride Week, we’ve been reflecting on how Labour can best advocate for our Rainbow community, amid National’s reckless choices which are taking us backwards.
Labour has a proud track record of advancing equal rights. We led the charge on homosexual law reform, civil unions, and marriage equality. We stood up for what is right and banned conversion therapy.
We have come a long way as a country, but there is more work to do. After a Budget that delivered little for the rainbow community, it’s important that we voice our support for the organisations that work to help our community.
Youth-led organisations like InsideOUT Kōaro (which runs Schools’ Pride Week) are instrumental in raising awareness, influencing policy, and building safe and inclusive environments for our rangatahi.
Worryingly, the National Government is looking to remove sexuality guidelines from schools, which would be a huge step backwards. These education resources were created to answer the call of communities and teachers for more action against bullying and violence. They teach our rangatahi about consent, healthy relationships, and digital safety, while creating space for meaningful discussions around sexuality and gender.
Removing these guidelines will result in worse outcomes in mental health for rainbow rangatahi, which is why we launched our petition to protect sex-ed resources, which you can find on our website. We will continue to advocate for increased funding for mental health services, so everyone can access the support they need.
We will continue to listen to our rainbow community and work to protect the progress we’ve achieved together so far.
Authorised by Shanan Halbert MP, Parliament Buildings, Wellington. Funded by Parliamentary Services.