Community Spotlight Archives - Star Observer /category/features/community-spotlight Setting Australia’s LGBTI agenda since 1979 Fri, 13 Mar 2026 05:14:44 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.1 /wp-content/uploads/2023/02/starobs.png Community Spotlight Archives - Star Observer /category/features/community-spotlight 32 32 Where Are Melbourne’s Lesbian Bars? Queer Women Are Building Their Own Nightlife Instead /news/where-are-melbournes-lesbian-bars-queer-women-are-building-their-own-nightlife-instead/241198 /news/where-are-melbournes-lesbian-bars-queer-women-are-building-their-own-nightlife-instead/241198#respond Fri, 13 Mar 2026 05:14:44 +0000 /?p=241198 It’s a question you hear a lot: where are the lesbian bars in this day and age? Amelie McIntosh explores how lesbian nightlife has evolved, and how queer women in ...

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]]> /news/where-are-melbournes-lesbian-bars-queer-women-are-building-their-own-nightlife-instead/241198/feed 0 The Ongoing Fight Against Queensland’s Trans Youth Healthcare Ban /features/the-ongoing-fight-against-queenslands-trans-youth-healthcare-ban/240734 Wed, 04 Feb 2026 01:07:01 +0000 /?p=240734 What began as a “pause” on gender affirming healthcare for trans youth in Queensland has become one of the most controversial and legally contested healthcare battles in the country — ...

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]]> 2026 Gifts Us Yet Another Glorious Midsumma Night’s Dream /features/2026-gifts-us-yet-another-glorious-midsumma-nights-dream/240732 Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:51:51 +0000 /?p=240732 By the time the last glittering shows took their bows, Midsumma Festival 2026 had once again done something quietly radical: it carved out time and space for queer joy, creativity ...

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]]> Narelda Jacobs & Karina Natt On Rainbow Family & Writing Their Book As An Act of Resistance /artsentertainment/narelda-jacobs-karina-natt-on-rainbow-family-writing-their-book-as-an-act-of-resistance/239935 Mon, 08 Dec 2025 05:23:39 +0000 /?p=239935 When celebrated Whadjuk Noongar journalist Narelda Jacobs and communications specialist Karina Natt join our interview with their eight-month-old daughter Sanna, it’s clear that their new book If Queers Weren’t Meant ...

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]]> There’s A Bear In There: The Harbour City Bears Celebrate 30 Years /features/theres-a-bear-in-there-the-harbour-city-bears-celebrate-30-years/238437 Wed, 03 Sep 2025 00:43:25 +0000 /?p=238437 Bears might not be native to Australia, but there’s plenty of them to be found in Sydney — if you know where to look. This year, the Harbour City Bears ...

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]]> Meet Some of The LGBTQIA+ Candidates Fighting for Visibility & Change in the 2025 Election /features/meet-some-of-the-lgbtqia-candidates-fighting-for-visibility-change-in-the-2025-election/236086 Wed, 02 Apr 2025 00:49:18 +0000 /?p=236086 The LGBTQIA+ Candidates Fighting for Visibility & Change in the 2025 Election is a feature story by Naomi Lawrence in the April print edition of Star Observer. See the latest ...

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]]> Marketing The Margins: The Long Fight For Sex Worker Inclusion in Mardi Gras /features/marketing-the-margins-the-long-fight-for-sex-worker-inclusion-in-mardi-gras/235623 Wed, 26 Feb 2025 03:37:43 +0000 /?p=235623 ‘Marketing The Margins: Decades of Fighting For Sex Worker Inclusion in Mardi Gras’ is an opinion piece by Barbarella Karpinski, a 78er, journalist, and former striptease artist who is currently ...

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]]> God Save The Kings: ‘They Will Be Kings’ Takes The Crown at Mardi Gras in 2025 /features/god-save-the-kings-they-will-be-kings-takes-the-crown-at-mardi-gras-in-2025/235136 Wed, 05 Feb 2025 01:57:25 +0000 /?p=235136 This Mardi Gras at Qtopia, audiences are invited to step into a world where everyone can be a king. They Will Be Kings is more than just a show — ...

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]]> Midsumma Pride March: 30 Years Of Marching (And Reporting) With Pride /features/midsumma-pride-march-30-years-of-marching-and-reporting-with-pride/234744 Wed, 08 Jan 2025 00:33:18 +0000 /?p=234744 This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Midsumma Pride March on February 2, an event celebrating LGBTQIA+ pride and unity, spanning one kilometre and bringing together almost 60,000 people. ...

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]]> Alex Greenwich & Rainbow Labor On The Equality Bill & Where We Go From Here /news/alex-greenwich-rainbow-labor-equality-bill-where-we-go-from-here-conversation/233635 Wed, 30 Oct 2024 08:48:37 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=233635 Last week, with the support of the Labor Government, Independent MP Alex Greenwich‘s Equality Bill finally got over the line in NSW Parliament. It was something to celebrate: the Equality ...

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]]> Claire’s Kitchen Will Be Closing For Good After Mardi Gras 2025 /news/claires-kitchen-will-be-closing-for-good-after-mardi-gras-2025/233507 Tue, 22 Oct 2024 04:32:40 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=233507 Claire’s Kitchen at le Salon, a gay-owned and run French restaurant and cabaret room on Oxford Street, is set to close permanently in March after Mardi Gras.  In a message ...

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]]> Celebrating LGBT History Month: The Past is Political, But It’s Also Deeply Personal /news/celebrating-lgbt-history-month-the-past-is-political-but-its-also-deeply-personal/233110 Mon, 07 Oct 2024 07:39:45 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=233110 October is LGBT History Month, making now a perfect time to reflect on how far we’ve come, and how far we have to go. Founded in 1994 by Missouri educator ...

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]]> The Brisbane Pride Formal Returns This November /news/the-brisbane-pride-formal-returns-this-november/233238 Sat, 05 Oct 2024 01:00:34 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=233238 Brisbane Pride have announced the return of their free pride formal for LGBTQIA+ young people. The annual event returns to Brisbane City Hall this November to help provide young people ...

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]]> LGBTQIA+ Community Heroes Shine at The 2024 Honour Awards /features/lgbtqia-community-heroes-2024-honour-awards/233185 Wed, 02 Oct 2024 03:16:24 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=233185 Over 400 people celebrated inspirational community service and outstanding achievements – as exemplified by rainbow youth advocate Abbie Jane – at the 2024 Honour Awards. Among the recipients of 2024’s ...

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]]> Will Kostakis Wins Prime Minister’s Literary Award With Queer YA Novel /news/will-kostakis-wins-prime-ministers-literary-award-with-queer-ya-novel/232920 Sat, 14 Sep 2024 04:16:10 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=232920 Queer author Will Kostakis has taken out the top prize for young adult literature at the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards. The popular author won the award for his recent book ...

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]]> Celebrating 30 Years of Eagle Leather /news/celebrating-30-years-of-eagle-leather/232766 Tue, 03 Sep 2024 08:10:14 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=232766 This year marks the 30th anniversary of Eagle Leather, a cornerstone of Melbourne’s LGBTQIA+ and kink communities.  For BJ, a co-owner of the store, this milestone is not just a ...

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]]> Brisbane Pride 2024: Louder and Prouder Than Ever /features/brisbane-pride-2024-louder-and-prouder-than-ever/232762 Tue, 03 Sep 2024 05:41:45 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=232762 Brisbane Pride started in 1990, following the downfall of the state’s conservative and notoriously anti-LGBTQIA+ Premier Johannes Bjelke-Petersen. It began as a rally and pride march through the streets of ...

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]]> The 2024 Queer Ball Set For The Sunshine Coast /news/the-2024-queer-ball-set-for-the-sunshine-coast/232716 Sat, 31 Aug 2024 02:02:18 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=232716 The Sunshine Coast is set to step out in style this October with their very first Queer Ball. After several years of planning the event is set to light up ...

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]]> Sydney Celebrates Opening of The Inner West Pride Centre /news/sydney-celebrates-opening-of-the-inner-west-pride-centre/232441 Mon, 12 Aug 2024 03:38:05 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=232441 The Inner West Pride Centre (IWPC) has officially been opened! The new Pride Centre is being housed in the old Newtown Town Hall, which has been converted after a $2.6 ...

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]]> Candy Box Is Officially The Host of The 2024 DIVA Awards /news/candy-box-host-2024-diva-awards/232401 Thu, 08 Aug 2024 07:09:33 +0000 https://starobserver.com.au/?p=232401 Everyone’s favourite host Candy Box will return for the 2024 DIVA Awards, which will take place on Monday 2 September, at the UNSW Roundhouse. With her legendary droll and dry ...

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