Category: Opinion

Rainbow Counsellor Elijah Michel tackles questions about dealing with a partner’s gender identity confession and being accused of racism. My partner and I have been together for 8 years and suddenly he has shared with me he feels like he is a woman. I can’t believe he has waited all these years to tell me, […]

Hookup apps have become convenient go-to ways of meeting ‘like-minded’ people, but what are the transactional-nature of these apps doing to their users? Dick Richards hopes he doesn’t end up heartless. Obviously apps like Grindr, Tinder and Scruff they have their merits. They’re dicks on tap and sometimes that’s what we need for a season. […]

Rainbow Counsellor Elijah Michel is here to help you. Today he tackles questions about same-sex couples holding hands in public and transphobia within the queer community. Dear Eli, I have recently started dating a guy. It’s going well but while I am used to being affectionate behind closed doors, he likes to hold my hand […]

Ramon Te Wake looks at the Black Lives Matter movement through a trans-Māori lense and questions which way we are heading when we keep returning to the same place. The roar of injustice is so loud right now it’s impossible to be still and silent or ignorant. But remember, this roar isn’t new. As a […]

Immigration expert, Malcolm Pacific’s David Cooper says the new normal has changed the game for long-distance relationships.   If during lockdown you were spending more time on Grindr and Tinder connecting with potential partners overseas, getting them to New Zealand has become a whole lot harder since the border closed. COVID-19 led to tough measures […]

Rainbow Counsellor Elijah Michel is here to help you. Today Eli examines jumping into a relationship head first and trying to stay focused while working from home. I have been bitten by the love bug but am about getting swept up in my new romance too quickly. I am in my forties and met the […]

Blaise Clotworthy discusses his experiences around mental health and sexuality, and why he is taking part in the NZAF’s ‘Sweat With Pride’.   One in five Rainbow youth in Aotearoa have attempted suicide. I was one of them, and I’d like to share my story with you. I realised I was gay when I was 12 […]

New Zealand must be honest about its racist attitudes in order to heal wounds, says Taranaki-based American author and activist Sonya Renee Taylor. “Aotearoa is not a utopia of racial harmony. All places that are active in colonisation are active in white supremacy,” says Taylor, who has been living in New Zealand since 2017 on […]