Petitions to stop pride crosswalks and lack of visible safe spaces make it hard for the LGBTQIA+ youth to feel accepted in Tauranga, Rainbow Youth regional co-ordinator Leanne Fry says.

“Tauranga is quite conservative compared to many other places in New Zealand,” Fry said.

More prominent centres such as Auckland and Wellington had shops and cafes with stickers in their windows, indicating a safe space for the LGBTQIA+ community, she said.

Visibility for the rainbow community was essential for the wellbeing of its members in Tauranga because the ability to not be themselves led to severe outcomes, Fry said.

“There are higher rates of anxiety, depression, self-harm and suicide attempts in the rainbow communities issue and rainbow young people,” she said.

“There’s a lot of isolation and loneliness.”

Fry helps run the Rainbow Community drop-in centre at 208 Grey St, Tauranga, along with Bay of Plenty peer support worker Chelsea Evans.

“The centre’s open Wednesdays from 2 to 5 and Fridays from 2 to 6. And during that time, people can come and go as they like,” Fry said.

The drop-in centre at 208 Grey St, Tauranga, is an oasis for LGBTQIA+ youth. Photo / Tom Eley

Rainbow Youth facilitator Connor King said places like Rainbow Youth were essential because the drop-in centre provided a comfortable, safe place where people within the community could be themselves.

“Being in a space where you don’t have to explain yourself or justify your identity to anyone is massively beneficial to mental health and wellbeing,” King said.

“Especially for young people who have to deal with their LGBTQIA+ identity on top of everything else that comes with growing up.”

As a rainbow youth, growing up in Tauranga had its challenges because the lack of support in the area coupled with the stigma surrounding it had dire consequences on King’s mental health.

“I first came out as transgender when I was 13, but it took until I was 15 for me to fully accept and embrace it due to the stigma surrounding it,” King said.

“If there had been more education in schools as well, maybe I wouldn’t have felt so ashamed for so long.”

He first became involved with Rainbow Youth after King came out, and a group of friends suggested telling him about the community.

“The first time I went, it felt like I was able to breathe properly for the first time in years,” King said.

The noticeable lack of LGBTQIA+ youth-friendly spaces concerns King because apart from Gender Dynamix, there is a scarcity of amiable places.

Gender Dynamix is a charitable trust in the Historic Village in Tauranga supporting trans people.

“Tauranga City Libraries also host occasional LGBTQIA+-themed events, but these may not be easily accessible to everyone, with many of them being 18-plus to enter,” King said.

King would like to see more spaces open up for LGBTQIA+ youth specifically, because that is one of the demographics at the biggest risk of discrimination and mental health issues.

Tauranga has a yearly pride picnic at the start of the year and a transgender pride event in November.

Events such as these increase awareness for people outside the community and show people who may not feel safe that there is a place for them.

“And people who will accept them for who they are, even if it feels like they are completely alone,” King said.