I guess the sad part about Emmy’s articulate response is that the pro-police lobby won’t believe a word of it.
Why?
Because it doesn’t fit their narrative.
What am I hearing from the pro-police team: PAPA is bad because they’re radicals whose politics is repugnant and they’re just dumb Maoris.
The truth is they’re not radicals and even if they were there’s no rule that says you have to vote National to be queer. PAPA, and NPIP, are an activist group not dissimilar to the groups in NYC in the 1970s who gathered under the umbrella of the Gay Liberation Front. I support their kaupapa totally. The pro-police lobby are privileging a uniformed group of mostly straight people over the rest of us. It’s madness.
Former Pride Parade director Jonathan Smith has written his perspective on the current situation. Unfortunately, from what he has written, it seems Smith has been misinformed on a number of fronts and his letter is, as a result, largely fiction.
Here’s his letter, my observations in red:
‘Time for some home truths from someone who knows the history and was the director of two Pride Parades.
The return of the Parade in 2013 and again in 2017.
In 2013 a team of dedicated volunteers and the Pride Board worked tirelessly to present to Auckland and NZ a Festival and Parade that we as a community could be proud of. We were being watched by local politicians, our main funder (ATEED), the residents of Ponsonby and Freemans Bay, our community and New Zealand. We did them proud and all the concerns about the parade were alleviated. Pride was back and had a fantastic reputation after just one year thanks again to the board, Julian Cook, myself and hundreds of volunteers.
After the 2013 parade it was time for me to renew my contract however what I was offered did not feel right to me. I’m a man of values, a professional and very ethical. I could see that there was going to be a change of structure with the introduction of a CEO … As I wouldn’t agree to the terms of the contract I was told that the contract would not be renewed. I was a board member at the time and can confirm all that Smith says as correct.
I thank the two following parade directors who organised the parade in 2014/2015/2016 including Richard Taki.
As there was no one with the skills to deliver the 2017 parade I submitted a proposal which was accepted. This is when the fun began. Remember there was a major protest in 2016 and there was no way that would happen in 2017 under my directorship. There was also a protest staged in 2015 which started out as peaceful but quickly got out of hand when untrained security guards employed by GABA, now Rainbow Auckland, along with the GABA President herself intervened and a protester was quite seriously injured.
There were two people on this board who had a private agenda. I’m guessing Smith means me. I rejoined the board in July 2016 and my support for the protester’s kaupapa was well known. I have no idea who the other board member could have been. I certainly don’t recall anyone else on the board at that time who shared my views. As Emmy makes clear in her article there were no clandestine meetings between board members and NPIP because, like Smith, I am a professional and that would have been completely inappropriate without board approval and an invitation from NPIP. No such invitation came and I never saw any of the NPIP activists for the remainder of the year. I support the values of the group as do many others but we’re not social friends. I was aware that there was a protest group forming and again it was the same group that sabotaged our parade in 2016 and I was also aware that information was being fed back to them from the board. This is also completely untrue but I can imagine who might have mischievously mislead Smith in this way. Not his fault if he was getting fed malicious information.
So I had no option but to work with the police on ways to protect the participants and crowd watching from such a violent group. NPIP are not a violent group. This is overly emotive. The 2016 protest – I wasn’t on the board at the time and Smith wasn’t the parade director – was a sit in on the road, Parihaka style. It stopped the parade for quite a time I’m told. I don’t really know because I was at the Pop Up Globe reviewing their opening night for Theatreview and I imagine Smith was at home in Hawke’s Bay though I could well be wrong about that. The police were amazing. Together we introduced 3 rescue plans that I didn’t and couldn’t share with the board as there was a major trust issue. There was no trust issue except in Smith’s head. Was I comfortable with this as a professional – no – but our community and supporters deserved more than this. The more I read this the more I realise that Smith’s accusations sit somewhere between scandalous and stupid. Under Kirsten Sibbit, our community had a totally committed board, there was no skullduggery, and we produced an excellent festival. We also mended some very broken relationships which I’m very proud of personally. Working with Sibbit was a joy.
So this whole issue actually commenced in 2016 so there are a lot of people since then that need to be held accountable. Perhaps there are, but not those people Smith is accusing and not for the reasons he outlines. That, however, is another story.
I would highly recommend that Pride 2019 be cancelled and for the community to re-group. Fire the board and and start again. The Pride brand has been damaged – oh dear – does this sound familiar. This is true. However, the board has done no more than it should have done. It could certainty have strategised a media plan more effectively but that’s about all.
Karen Ritchie made a comment about how do I feel and my late husband who died 4 weeks ago. Shocked, embarrassed, devastated but not surprised really.
If people want to protest that is their right but maybe they should look back in history and see how we did it so effectively. The NPIP protests were extremely effective and this from a protester from way back.
There is one thing you should learn from the start – don’t shit on those people that are there to support you – the LGBTT community. Um, NPIP are all queer. They are OUR community. More so than banks and universities and the police who march with dozens of straight ‘allies’. These young people are our authentic future.
To the Auckland and broader community, stay strong, stay focused, stay true and stay honest and we will get through this.
My love to you all
Jonathan Smith MNZM
And for those that don’t know – MNZM – is a New Years honour – Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit – for services to to the HIV / LGBTT Community – I received this from the Queen on behalf of the LGBTT community and I’m proud of it and WANT to stay proud.’
When we talk about our ‘honours’ we should be accurate as to why they were awarded to us … if we’re not, it calls into question just what ‘honour’ actually means. Google will help identify for you just what I mean.
dykiegirl 