Gay.co.nz
gay.co.nz is the leading Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender personals website for New Zealand.
It provides daily local and international news stories, monitors fundamentalist anti-gay pressure groups, and provides a safe online meeting place for New Zealand's LGBT community. It also works in association with QNA in regard to larger social and community issues within New Zealand.
Background of LGBT life in New Zealand
New Zealanders are GeneRally accepting of gays and lesbians, although low level homophobia (such as the use of the word 'gay' as an insult) is still common.
The gay social scene in New Zealand is small by international standards, especially outside Auckland. However, many smaller centres have LGBT organisations and social networks that cater to their community.
The internet is heavily used by gay men in New Zealand to meet others, especially in areas which lack specifically gay venues. gay.co.nz has been the most popular website for most of the last three years and is used by the LGBT New Zealand population to connect with each other and learn AbOUT community issues. This has been particularly important for younger members of the gay community who still suffer bullying at school, and a safe place to meet peers has been a key need . Similarly special focus has been put on the growing LGTB Asian community within New Zealand.
Additionally the Government run Lesbian & Gay Archives of New Zealand (LAGANZ) provides an online resource of the historical and cultural records of lesbians and gay men.
In April 2005 civil unions went into effect in New Zealand, allowing LGBT couples the same rights as heterosexual couples
History
gay.co.nz was started in 2003 and has had three (?) major revisions. It was started as a community project by The Domain Name Company Limited, a New Zealand based internet company and has been run free for use ever since.
AIDS in New Zealand
In conjunction with the New Zealand AIDS Foundation (NZAF) which has a particular focus on "high risk" groups within New Zealand, gay.co.nz works closely to promote the message of "safe [...]". More than 3000 people have been diagnosed with AIDS in New Zealand since the epidemic began , small in absolute numbers, but nonetheless of concern - particularly amongst the LGBT community. Like other major gay personals site such as gaydar in the UK "safe [...]" banners and messages appear everywhere on the site.
In line with a focus on integrating minority groups within the LGBT community, gay.co.nz and the NZAF also focused specific attention on the growing Asian community within New Zealand .
Controversy
In 2008 the New Zealand Advertising Standards Authority was contacted in regard to the news site GayNZ.com who claimed to be New Zealand's most popular LGBT website. Investigations showed this was not the case, and GayNZ.com modified their website in favour of gay.co.nz.
See also
- Civil unions in New Zealand
- Hero Parade
- Homosexual Law Reform Act
- LGBT New Zealand
- LGBT rights in New Zealand
- List of lesbian periodicals
- Out Takes: A Reel Queer Film Festival
- Same-[...] marriage in New Zealand
External links
- gay.co.nz: http://www.gay.co.nz
es:gay.co.nz