Let's remember and celebrate Carmen Rupe:
It's pride month, and in the midst of the protests around the world, it is good to remember our trailblazing forbears. I'm from New Zealand, so thought I would tell y'all about Carmen. She was an absolutely epic Maori trans woman, activist, entertainer, drag queen, sex worker, and mayoral candidate, who was well known in Wellington in the 60s and 70s.
She did so many awesome things in her life, so to keep this brief I'll list some of them here:
Was arrested several times for "behaving in an offensive manner in a public place" (aka appeared in public dressed as a woman), eventually leading to a judge ruling that it was not illegal for men to dress in women's clothing and dismissing the case, which was a massive win for the times, and she never wore male clothing again.
Proprieter of Carmen's international coffee lounge, the Balcony strip club and several other establishments, which were staffed by a mix of drag queens, trans folks, gay men, straight men and lesbian women. The coffee lounge was very popular, and many local/international celebrities made regular appearances. (Unfortunately these businesses were also the target of threats, vandalism, and police raids)
She was very protective of those new to the sex industry, and helped those transitioning.
Became a local celebrity, who caused a national scandal in 1975, when she claimed that an unnamed member of parliament was gay, and that others were bisexual (during a TV interview). This lead to her being called before the parliamentary privileges committee (saying that MPs were guilty of illegal sex was a pretty big breach of parliamentary privilege)
She turned up to the hearing in a limousine, dressed super dramatically in black, and was met with a crowd of fans. Of course the media went crazy, bc... can you imagine the level of epicness?
Went to the Trentham races topless, and was on the front page of the Sunday newspapers
Used her fame to support many charities and community initiatives, participating in fundraising events etc
A particularly important appearance was when she joined dame Whina Cooper on the steps of parliament at the end of the 1975 land march (which if you aren't aware, was protesting Maori land alienation, I reccommend reading more about it if you're interested, it's an important part of New Zealand history)
In 1977 she stood for Mayor of Wellington, campaigning for extending bar opening hours, lowering the drinking age, making sex work legal, Homosexual law reform, and decriminalization of abortion. -> many of these policies were later enacted, even though she lost the election.
Throughout her campaign she appeared wearing glamorous ball gowns.
In 1979 she moved to Sydney, and at her farewell ball, was crowned Queen of Wellington.
In Sydney, she managed a community centre helping homeless and vulnerable people. She was an advocate for safe sex, HIV/AIDS education, and LGBTIQ+ rights.
She was a respected member of the Te Rau Aroha kapa haka group, and raised money for the casualties of the King's Cross fire.
Later on in life, she received several awards for her activism, and performed in the 2002 Sydney gay games. She died in 2011, aged 75, but her legacy lives on.
In 2016 pedestrian crossing lights depicting Carmen were installed on Cuba st, Wellington, to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the Homosexual law reform act 1986. "Her out and proud attitude paved the way for transgender visibility and LGBTIQ+ rights in New Zealand and Australia."
It's sad that a lot of the people I've talked to here in Wellington don't know about Carmen, and just assume the lights on the rainbow crossing are some random drag queen. Let's take the opportunity to remember our history!
This information is an abridged version of the biography found on the teara.govt.nz website.
