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“Love takes off the masks we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within.” - James Baldwin
Pride Month: Drag Trivia with Ruby Royale
Friday 16 June, 6 - 8pm
Get ready for a pop culture trivia night hosted by Ruby Royale! Join us for a night of fun, laughter, and friendly competition as we put your knowledge of all things pop culture to the test. From music to TV, movies to memes, and everything in between, this trivia night is sure to have something for everyone.
Adult Programs
Queer CinemaFriday 9 June, 6.30 - 8.30pm Join us for a fabulously camp night where we will be showing a classic queer Australian film. When drag queen Anthony agrees to take his act on the road, he invites fellow drag queens Adam and Bernadette to come along. In their bus, named Priscilla, the three performers travel across the Australian desert. But when the other two performers learn the truth about why Anthony took the job, it threatens their act and their friendship. |
Education: How to Study EffectivelyThursday 15 June, 6.30 - 8pm How will you prepare your child for the challenges and opportunities of high school? This lecture will provide practical advice, resources, and tips for success. Navigate the complexities of high school and assessments and develop strategies for managing your social life & extra curricular activities. Whether your child is just starting high school or is in the middle of it, this event is for you. |
IndigiGrow: Culture & Connection to CountryWednesday 5 July, 6.30 - 7.30pm Join Peter Cooley, CEO of IndigiGrow, to learn about local Aboriginal culture, connection to country and caring for country through endangered native plants & bush foods. Peter will share his story including vital work reviving the critically endangered Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub (ESBS) which is Sydney's original coastal plant community. |
The Watchful Wife with Suzanne LealTuesday 11 July, 6 - 7.30pm Warm up and listen in as prize-winning author Suzanne Leal shares her brilliant new page-turner, The Watchful Wife at Waverley Library. How well do you know the person you love? In a world of swirling suspicion and accusations, Ellen will need to fight to prove her husband’s innocence. But what will that cost her? And what will she discover about him along the way? |
Digital KnowHow
How to steer clear of online scamsFriday 16 June, 2 - 3.30pm Each year, online scams are becoming more sophisticated and dangerous, and in 2022 Australians reported losing over $568 million to them. This session will guide you through the most common types of scams, and teach you what to look out for and how to identify the various tell-tale signs that something is likely a scam. |
Find your next great read onlineTuesday 27 June, 11am - 12pm Are you looking for something to read next, but feel stuck and can't work out what to pick? Or are you the parent of a child who's an avid reader that's constantly running out of books? This session will introduce you to a variety of both Waverley Library's reader resources, as well as ones available elsewhere. |
Children's Programs
Children’s Book Council of Australia Meeting Tuesday, 6 June 6.30 - 8.30pm, Adults Join the CBCA Easter division branch and socialise, network and connect with authors, illustrators, librarians and literary lovers who are all passionate about literacy and the value of sharing beautiful stories with young Australians. |
World Ocean Day Thursday 8 June, 4 - 5pm, All ages In celebration of World Ocean Day, Waverley Library is hosting a fun and creative afternoon of craft, with the opportunity to make ocean creatures and learn about the role we can all play in protecting our precious oceans. |
International Pride Month commemorates years of struggle for civil rights and the ongoing pursuit of equal justice under the law for the queer community, as well as the accomplishments of LGBTQIA+ individuals. But why is Pride Month celebrated in June? It all starts in June 1969 at the riots at Stonewall Inn in the U.S. which has become widely recognised as the start of the modern day gay rights movement. Jump forward 9 years to June 1978 in Sydney, a march is organised in solidarity with the queer community in the U.S, now known as the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras. Pride continues to be celebrated in June as a mark of respect and recognition of all LGBTQIA+ individuals.
Pride Month Collection Highlights
Book: The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi They burned down the market on the day Vivek Oji died. One afternoon, a mother opens her front door to find the length of her son's body stretched out on the veranda. The Death of Vivek Oji transports us to the day of Vivek's birth, the day his grandmother Ahunna died. It is the story of an over protective mother and a distant father, and the heart-wrenching tale of one family's struggle to understand their child. |
Book: Rainbow History Class by Hannah McElhinney Rainbow History Class is your entry into LGBTQ+ history, sharing queer and trans stories from Ancient civilisations all the way up to the internet. So much of queer and trans history and culture has been erased, but Hannah McElhinney is here to help us all with this crash course. This history lesson isn't dry and academic. It's a comprehensive and entertaining romp through queer and trans history. |
Film: Pride Denied This film tells the story of how corporate sponsors co-opted the concept of LGBTQ pride, turning it into a feel-good brand and blunting its radical political edge. The film locates the origins of pride in sites of grassroots resistance and revolt, going back to the anti-police Stonewall uprising led by queer and trans people of color in 1969. |
Film: God’s Own Country A young and emotionally closed-off farmer finds his world turned upside down when a Romanian migrant worker comes to help on the family farm. As their initially reluctant relationship deepens, both men must confront their own vulnerabilities and societal expectations. |
Graphic Novel: Stone fruit by Lee Lai Bron and Ray are a queer couple who enjoy their role as the fun weirdo aunties to Ray's niece, six-year-old Nessie. Their playdates are little oases of wildness, joy, and ease in all three of their lives, which ping-pong between familial tensions and deep-seeded personal stumbling blocks. As their emotional intimacy erodes, Ray and Bron isolate from each other and attempt to repair their broken family ties. |
Graphic Novel: They Called Us Enemy by George Takei George Takei has captured hearts and minds worldwide with his captivating stage presence and outspoken commitment to equal rights. But long before he braved new frontiers in Star Trek, he woke up as a four-year-old boy to find his own birth country at war with his father's and their entire family forced from their home into an uncertain future. |
Local History
Image: The Recreational Arts Team (RAT): Rendo Dal, Billy Yip and Jac Vigden at the OceanRATting Party, Bondi Pavilion 1986. Photo by William Yang, courtesy MAAS.
Pride Month
"For those who are born to rage, on the night after the full moon with madness still in the air, a mind-reading chicken called Ingrid will predict your future at the 21st RAT Party." SMH, 1 April 1988. RAT Party organiser, Jac Vigden Sydney's RAT parties changed the nightlife landscape, kickstarting the popularity of massive dance parties and underground music events. The Recreational Arts Team (RAT) organised more than 35 parties during the 1980s throughout Sydney's eastern suburbs. Bondi Pavilion was often used as a venue for the events, a mix of music, theatre, cabaret, performance, visual arts and "outrageous celebration". The parties were known for being inclusive, queer-friendly and wildly fashion-aware, and utterly unlike the pub rock music events that were standard at the time.
Exhibitions
2 - 28 June, Opening Friday 2 June, 5pm
Returning for 2023, the Prize is open to everyone aged between 9-18 living, studying and playing in Sydney’s East. This year’s theme, Climate Utopia, was decided by a young people’s focus group and is intended to get young artists thinking about hope, possible futures and the environment This theme has created a thoughtful and provocative exhibition. Join us to view these insightful works from Waverley's future artists and leaders.
What's On
Brenda Matthews: The Last Daughter
Tuesday 4 July, 6.30pm, Bondi Pavilion Theatre
A powerful evening of storytelling. A journey of heartbreak, love, and hope, one that shows a way forward for all Australians. Brenda Matthews is a member of the Stolen Generation who was removed from not one, but two loving families. A proud Wiradjuri woman, a mother, a grandmother, a sister, a daughter, an aunty, a storyteller; Brenda is the author of The Last Daughter (Text Publishing) and co-director of the feature film of the same name, a documentary of her life. Brenda will be visiting us exclusively, from her home in Bundjalung Country QLD to share her remarkable life story.
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