Intersex-inclusive Progress Pride flag with signatures honouring the unveiling of memorial seats to Carmen Rupe and Chrissy Witoko

This Intersex-inclusive Progress Pride flag was signed by attendees at the unveiling of two public memorial seats on the corner of Cuba and Vivian Streets, Wellington, in honour of Carmen Rupe and Chrissy Witoko, whose nearby queer-friendly businesses provided safe spaces for many locals and visitors from the 1960s to 1990s. Carmen and Chrissy are icons of Wellington’s Takatāpui Rainbow communities, with Carmen’s influence extending across the Tasman.

The flags were signed by many of the 70 people who attended the unveiling of the new seats on 1 October 2022. Friends, family and politicians attended the event, including Wellington Mayor Andy Foster and Grant Robertson, MP for Wellington.

The seats were a collaboration between Pride NZ, the Chrissy Witoko Memorial Trust and Wellington City Council’s Cultural Heritage team. Pride NZ directors Gareth Watkins and Roger Smith wanted the memorials to affirm the lives and achievements of Carmen and Chrissy, but also to be touchstones for rainbow and takatāpui people today. Each seat includes a plaque including the term ‘Irawhiti Takatāpui’ – Transgender Rainbow Māori.

Carmen’s plaque also includes a quote from artist Ariki Brightwell (Rongowhakaata, Te Whānau-a-Ruataupare, Raukawa, Rangitāne, Tahiti: ‘It is your ancestors, your tīpuna, that give you the strength to survive today.’ Chrissy’s plaque contains the whakataukī: ‘Hurihia tō aroaro ki te rā tukuna tō ātārangi kia taka ki muri i a koe. Turn and face the sun and let the shadows fall behind you.’

Carmen Rupe (Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Hauā, Ngāti Heke-a-Wai, 1936‒2011), was a flamboyant transgender woman, performer, sex worker, business owner, LGBTQI+ rights and HIV/AIDS activist who became a cultural icon in New Zealand and Australia. She established at least 12 businesses in Wellington in the 1960s-70s, many of which were located in the Cuba/Vivian Street area, including Carmen’s International Coffee Lounge on Vivian Street.

Her ideas were ahead of their time, and she pushed the boundaries of those with conservative attitudes towards gender identity, prostitution, and alcohol licensing in New Zealand during this period. She advocated for homosexual and abortion law reform and ran for mayor of Wellington in 1977. She left New Zealand in the late 1970s to live and work in Sydney but regularly visited New Zealand and was a respected matriarch and cultural icon of LGBTQI+ communities.

Chrissy Witoko (Ngāti Kahungunu, 1944-2002) arrived in Wellington as a teenager in the late 1950s and worked in many clubs and cafes. In 1984 she became the owner of the Evergreen Coffee Lounge on Vivian Street. The Evergreen was a magnet for Wellington’s transgender community. It was also a home away from home for many gay, lesbian, bisexual and intersex people. Gay-friendly spaces were an important part of the gay liberation movement, especially in the 1970s and 80s. They were a place where like-minded people could meet, discuss the issues of the time, and plan protest marches or special events. It also became a drop-in centre for sex workers - a place where they could get help and support.

Chrissy was involved in organising many LGBTQI+ events, and received several awards, including ‘Glammies’ awards for outstanding community service and an ‘Alfies’ award for personality of the year.

The Intersex-inclusive Progress Pride flag was designed by Valentino Vecchietti (she/they) in 2021 (Vecchietti founded Intersex Equality Rights UK). The design incorporates the Progress Pride flag which was developed in 2018 by non-binary American artist and designer Daniel Quasar (xe/xyr pronouns), which in turn incorporated the colours of the Rainbow flag (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple) designed by American artist Gilbert Baker in 1978. The flag also includes the trans flag (blue, pink, white), with brown and black for marginalised People of Colour. Black also represents those who live with, or who have died from HIV/AIDS. The chevron arrow shape represents moving forward and making progress in the community.

Pride flags celebrate the diversity of LGBTQI+ communities and call for a more inclusive society.