Surf Coast Shire Celebrates IDAHOBIT with Rainbow Flag Raising Event

The Surf Coast Shire displayed its support for the LGBTQIA+ community by raising the rainbow flag outside its council chambers on Friday, May 17, commemorating the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersex Discrimination and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT).

In Geelong, a celebratory event in central Geelong was planned to mark the occasion.

A gathering of around 50 attendees including councillors, shire staff, students from Surf Coast Secondary College, and community members assembled on the council chambers’ front lawn. The event featured speeches from shire mayor Liz Pattison and shire youth facilities and engagement officer Ella Sweeney, culminating in Cr Pattison hoisting the flag to the top of the flagpole. The rainbow flag will continue to fly throughout the remainder of May.

Cr Pattison expressed her pride in the shire organizing the event for the International Day against LGBTQIA+ Discrimination, highlighting the importance of supporting an inclusive workplace that stands against discrimination and serves as an ally for the community.

Initiatives by the shire for LGBTQIA+ inclusion include the establishment of the Surf Coast Rainbow Playgroup in 2020, progress towards creating an LGBTQIA+ reference group, and the formation of a Gender Champions working group.

Annually, IDAHOBIT commemorates the World Health Organization‘s decision to remove homosexuality from the Classification of Diseases in 1990. While acknowledging progress in LGBTQIA+ equality, Sweeney emphasized the ongoing work required, citing alarming statistics from Minus 18 research revealing high levels of abuse, harassment, and discrimination faced by LGBTQIA+ youth and employees in Australia.

Later on the same day, the shire planned a youth-focused LGBTQIA+ event for individuals aged 12 to 25. In Geelong, Platform Arts hosted a Speakers’ Corner event in the evening, providing a space for LGBTQIA+ individuals from Geelong and surrounding areas to connect, share stories, and celebrate identity and community. The event, overseen by Jo Bangles from Splatters Cheese Bar, was part of the FAIRY exhibition program and restricted to individuals aged 18 and above, with alcohol available for purchase.

For more details on these events, interested individuals can visit the respective platforms and organizers.