Rabelais - Edition 2, 2019 by La Trobe SU

EDITION TWO

RABELAIS h MEET THE LTSU QUEER OFFICERS C A P TA I N MARVEL REVIEW (RMDb) M OAT FESTIVAL RECAP POETRY

INTERVIEW WITH NINA OYA M A

acknowledgement of country 0 The Rabelais team acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander peoples, the traditional owners of the lands in which La Trobe University and its student union are located. We acknowledge the Wurundjeri, Latjie Latjie, Barkindji and Yorta Yorta peoples, whose sovereignty was never ceded. Rabelais is committed to honoring Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; unique cultural and spiritual relationships to the land, waters and seas. We pay our respects to Elders both past and present. Rabelais | Edition Two

We hope you have enjoyed all the festivities of Pride Week and Pride Festival, including all the stalls, JOY Radio right from the Agora, speeches and of course lots of free stuff brought to you by the La Trobe Student Union (LTSU). We’d like to thank the LTSU Queer Officers Remmy and Hannah for helping us construct this edition and for all their submissions. This is our first edition since the University year has well and truly started and people are starting to not check Allocate+ every hour to see if they’ve missed something. With the start of class, Rabelais has been receiving many more submissions and it’s great to see the talent that La Trobians all around the state have in writing, poetry and art. Our movie review section, RMDb (Rabelais Movie Database) has taken off with reviews of films past and present. Remember, you too can submit any movie review

If you were lucky enough to see one of the Moat Festival shows, or even if you weren’t, you can find our review and quotes from the cast and organisers about their time over the festival. If you enjoyed what you saw and want to get involved, you can join La Trobe Student Theatre and Film on Facebook, Instagram, the Union building- above Eagle Bar- and around campus at one of their many events. We would like to appologise for something we included in Edition One. On page 63 of our edition one copy (it’s the one with the awesome cover art of LIMS) there was a poorly placed joke along the lines of “How many tickles does it take to make an Octopus laugh?”. We would again like to apologise for anybody who unfortunately had to read this joke we thought was funny. The answer was “tenticles” if you didn’t get it. But on a lighter note, enjoy our Second Edition of the Rabelais Student Magazine and keep your amazing submissions coming! Our details can

be found throughout this magazine as well as reaching us on Facebook and Instagram (but not Twitter… yuck). There’s more going on in the world than your Bowling High Score on Wii Sports, so put down the controller, crack open a cold one and get in to this edition of Rabelais. P.S. If anybody out there is a secret Bob Ross with artwork, cartoons, drawings, graphic design or anything of the sort. hit us up. We’ll owe you a year’s supply of high-fives.

In this edition we are celebrating the diverse LGBTIQ+ community here on campus, alongside the La Trobe University Pride week as well as, of course, continuing with all your Rabelais favourites.

you would like, it doesn’t matter if it has already been done, we want as many differing opinions as possible. A little birdy told us that there’s a new Avengers film coming out soon and we may just have to include a few reviews of that, too!

Hello and welcome to Edition Two of the Rabelais Student Magazine- the Pride edition.

LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

RABELAIS Edition Two

John Dewar

LETTER FROM THE LTSU PRESIDENT

Abood Shehada

EVENTS CALENDAR

LETTER FROM THE QUEER OFFICERS

Remmy & Hannah

MOAT FESTIVAL RECAP All that happened at the 2019 festival held by LTU Student Theatre and Film

Various

BENDIGO CAMPUS

Natasha Romas

WOODONGA CAMPUS

Georgia Seth

TRANS AND GENDER DIVERSE INCLUSIVITY IN MIDWIFERY language use in the specific field of midwifery is important

Coco Axford

SMILE THAT BIT BRIGHTER

Claire Kearns

PRIDE

Emma Noack

THE CRONE

Axelle McKeller

QUEER CHAT

Sav Zwickl

NAME CHANGING A comprehensive guide to changing your name to something that reflects your identity

Hannah Proasheck

MIDSUMMA PRIDE FESTIVAL Find out about La Trobe’s involvement in the annual festival

Various

NINA OYAMA NEEDS A LIFT TO THE MICF Rabelais magazine got to sit down with one of Australias up-and-coming comeians

Sean Carroll

THAT GOLD STREET SOUND AND MELBOURNE’S SOUL HUB A dive into Melbourne’s soul scene

Kristen Settinelli

RABELAIS MOVIE DATABASE One of Lermontov’s masterpieces and the new Marvel film

Andrew Drake William Chesterfield

THE ARCADE

LETTER FROM THE VICE CHANCELLOR

CAMPUS

CREATIVE

AND MUCH MORE...

QUEER

CULTURE

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LETTER FROM THE VICE-CHANCELLOR 0 Hi students, staff and alumni of La Trobe University,

students and staff. ALLY provides training and awareness programs and a supportive network of peers across the University. Every year we celebrate events like Pride Week and the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia to make our commitment visible to everyone at La Trobe.

RABE I am delighted to provide a welcome message for this Pride edition of Rabelais. La Trobe was built on a foundation of inclusion and openness. We have an active LGBTIQ+ community across all of our campuses, and we continually celebrate and support our LGBTIQ+ students and staff.

We believe that universities have a special responsibility to lead the way in building a stronger and more diverse society for everyone, and in helping to increase our collective understanding of the lived experience of LGBTIQ+ people.

We have a whole-of-University plan to ensure that the University is a safe and inclusive place for LGBTIQ+ people. This includes support for our ALLY network which has helped to create a more diverse and inclusive culture and to increase visibility and awareness of issues facing LGBTIQ+

Whatever your gender or sexual identity, we want you to feel safe and supported so that you can focus on your studies and enjoy the social and cultural side of student life to the full. Finally, I hope you make the most of Pride Week this week. Events and activities are being held across all of our campuses to celebrate the Pride 2019 theme of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Individuality and Inclusionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and to support all members of our LGBTIQ+ community. We look forward to celebrating with you during the week and to hearing positive stories from across the La Trobe community. Professor John Dewar Vice-Chancellor, La Trobe University

L E T T E R F R O M T H E LT S U P R E S I D E N T 0 Hello La Trobians,

a welcoming, safe, and inclusive culture for all. We want La Trobe and it’s students to celebrate the richness and vibrance of the community. We promote diversity and acceptance both within the LTSU and La Trobe - whether you are a staff member or student.

ELaIS I would like to start by acknowledging the traditional owners of the lands that the La Trobe University Student Union operates within: to the Wurundjeri, Latjie Latjie, Barkindji and Yorta Yorta peoples. I would also like to acknowledge that the lands on which each campus is built are Aboriginal lands, whose people’s sovereignty was never ceded. I pay my respects to their elders past and present. I would also like to acknowledge the many different cultures that make up La Trobe University. The community that exists at La Trobe is rich and unique and has people from all walks of life. Welcome to the second edition of Rabelais - an edition celebrating the LGBTQ+ community at La Trobe. Throughout this edition, you will see the vibrance and beauty of our thriving LGBTQ+ community. You will get to see the talent, power and pride of this community at La Trobe, of which we are so proud. I am proud to come from a university which is at the forefront of LGBTQ+ rights and issues and where some of the leaders in LGBTQ+ activism come from.

We here at the LTSU support the LGBTQ+ community and want to ensure that we maintain

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I would also like to this opportunity to acknowledge the incredible work of the LTSU Queer Officer - Remmy Hooper. Remmy’s exceptional work resulted in Pride Week - an amazing display of how La Trobe can come together and celebrate. We showcased the best of what we as a community have to offer. Remmy and the LTSU have worked tirelessly to ensure that every member of the LGBTQ+ community feel welcomed and safe here on campus. We devote this edition to you - the beautiful and inspiring members of the LGBTQ+ community. Continue being yourself and know that the myself and LTSU are supporting you each and everyday. With love,

Abood Shehada 2019 LTSU President

m a r c h , a p r i l & m ay e v e n t s 0

Artwork by Phoebe Moloney

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letter from the queer officers 0 Hey there, we’re Hannah and Remmy, the LTSU Queer Officers for 2019! Our aim for 2019 is to make La Trobe a safe and accepting place for Queer people. We aim to do this by running cool events, maintaining the Queer lounge and through creating awareness of Queer identities, especially those which don’t get much visibility such as; asexuality, non-binary, pansexual and so on. We have a range of events planned throughout the year, in particular we are proud to be working in conjunction with the La Trobe Counselling Department to run Pride Festival- an annual celebration of Pride. This year’s Pride Festival will feature events such as indoor picnics, movie nights and board games. Something we are really excited about is the Stalls Day hosted by the Queer Department. Here you will find an assortment of interesting and fun stalls, such as; ARCSHS, Bi+ community of Melbourne, GSDS Society and more! Joy FM will be playing music and there will be interviews from folks like Roz Bellamy and Ro Allen. There will also be free food like fairy floss, popcorn, ice cream, slushies and a vegan BBQ! We hope that Pride Fest will have something for everyone! So we hope y’all can come down, for what is going to be a truly excellent time! We’ve also started, what will hopefully be a tradition, Trans and Gender Diverse Celebration Week! We’ll have some trans* focused events like a clothes swap, movie night showing trans* documentaries and trans* focused book club. Another thing we are happy to announce is that we are hosting a talk by Queer non-binary author Nevo Zisin! We hope it leads to many more talks by Queer authors and spokespeople in the future! Further in the year, we look forward to having more fun events for Queer students and initiating some cross-club and cross-department documentary screenings! Ultimately, our goal is to provide and facilitate

a safe, welcoming space for Queer students, with a particular focus on intersectionality and acceptance of other cultural and religious backgrounds. In 2019, we wish to make the queer community at Latrobe more diverse and hope you join us! Remmy & Hannah LTSU Queer Department

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CAMPUS

Artwork by Phoebe Moloney

MOAT FESTIVAL

tudent Theatre and Film is a community of students and staff who are committed to staging, supporting, and watching live performance and film. We have a series of projects on each year, including the annual Moat Festival, a collection of short student-written plays called Short Works, a season of performance that pushes the boundaries called the Activate Season, the LTSU Revue, an annual Cabaret show, and the 24-hour Play Project. Student Theatre and Film can take you across the world. In 2017, seven La Trobe students and our Artistic Director, Bob Pavlich, travelled to Bandung, Indonesia to devise, rehearse, and perform with seven Indonesian students and a director in an ambitious cross-cultural collaboration with Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia through Main Teater. The show â&#x20AC;&#x201C; entitled Light Within the Night- then came to Melbourne for a performance season at La Trobe University and a sell-out season at La Mama Theatre. The Crossing Borders Project won the Most Successful Student Outcomes Program at the Campus Link Awards in 2018. Student Theatre and Film has also performed in the UK at the International Drama Festival with a performance of Wake in Fright in 2012 directed by Bob Pavlich, in Brisbane at the Festival of Student Theatre (FAST), and across various venues in Melbourne, including La Mama and Northcote Town Hall.

Photography by Melissa Viola

2019 MOAT FESTIVAL

MOAT FESTIVAL

he Moat Festival is the longest-running student theatre festival in Australia. The festival was launched in 1984 by then Vice-Chancellor J.F. Scott as an initiative to bring the University and the public together to participate in the performing arts, making Moat 2019 the 35th Moat festival to be staged at La Trobe University! Our 2019 Moat Festival featured five full-length theatre productions as well as a work in development cabaret, the Moonlight Cinema, and a closing night drag show â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Barely a Queen. Our full-length productions were If the Truth be Told, Vernon God Little, They Saw a Thylacine, Dream Play, and The Drag, with over 50 students involved in directing, acting, tech, volunteering at front of house, and more! The festival aims to showcase some exceptional emerging talent on campus (including the following cast members who have put forward their experiences for you to read!).

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had only been at La Trobe for a couple of weeks when I heard about Student Theatre and Film. Someone came into our class and handed out cards where we could sign up. I filled it out straight away and tried to find my way to the office inside the Union Building. I got lost and it was daunting, nonetheless as soon as I was sitting in the Introductory Meeting listening to these passionate people, I was too excited for words. I first participated in the 24-Hour Play Project, where I met the most kind and talented people. I would highly recommend participating in this show as it is short but there is limitless creative freedom. You choose your own role as an actor, writer, director, or take up multiple roles, and get to see how these incredible people work. The Moat Festival is the first cohort of performances put on by Student Theatre & Film for the year. We auditioned for STF staff and 4 to 5 directors. It’s a group audition in a very fun and relaxed environment. We took turns to speak about ourselves then performed funny scenes in pairs with scripts we’d been given. Afterwards we moved around to each director hearing about their play, their creative ideas, and reading through some of their script. If you’re chosen by one or a few of the directors, you hear back, and get asked to be in their play. What an honour! In the 2019 Moat Festival I was lucky enough to be a part of the show The Drag, inspired by the plays of Mae West and directed by Cole McKenna. I played two characters, Clair and Clem, which was an exciting challenge. Clair Kingsbury is a young woman miserable in her marriage and in her life. She has been married for a year to her family friend Roland, by her father’s demand. She gets hardly any attention from her husband as he’s trying to understand

The Drag ANNA SMITH

the life of business, after being coddled his entire life. She also gets no love or affection from Roland as he is hiding his sexuality from her and their families. In contrast, my other character Clem Hathaway is whatever gender the audience wants him to be. He’s an avid party animal who loves to spend time with his sexy taxi driver. Whilst he loves hanging with friends and making jokes, he doesn’t get along with comical queen, Duchess Swanson. The thing I get out Student Theatre and Film at La Trobe is confidence, fun, and experience. Confidence is a big thing, especially for new students or new performers. During the Moat Festival, we rehearse scenes so many times that by the time the audience is there, you do your thing without worrying what they think. Instead they give you energy and afterwards, if you’re a shy person, you feel so proud of yourself. Fun is a major gain. I’ve spent months in rehearsal and I don’t think I’ve gone one hour without laughing hysterically with these talented people. Experience was the main reason I join Student Theatre and Film. I’d never been in a play before and wanted to learn more about acting, staging, script analysis, and the whole rehearsal process. Every piece of work they create is entirely different so you’ll always be learning. I would love to be involved in all of the Student Theatre & Film productions. I cannot wait for the next 24-Hour Play Project and the Activate season. The amazing thing about Student Theatre and Film is the flexibility. Unlike classes you don’t have to participate in anything you don’t want to. They put on incredible shows and you can choose what you’d like to be a part of. The Drag is directed by Cole McKenna

i, I’m Belinda Graham. You may remember me from such plays as Vernon God Little. Awkward Simpsons references aside, I played several characters in an ensemble cast, but for the most part; I portrayed Doris Little - Vernon’s mother. I initially got involved with Student Theatre back in 2016 to fill in for another person for the LTU Revue. The biggest mistake that I made after that was being too scared to audition for other shows! As such, this was my first time actually participating in the Moat Festival, which is the largest arts festival Student Theatre and Film has to offer, with this year offering 8 theatrical shows in total and an exclusive performance of the award-winning cabaret Creatures of the Deep featuring La Trobe Alumni. The process of getting involved was really simple after finally booking that audition. We all sat in a room together (directors and prospective actors) and introduced ourselves and acted out little scenes in front of one another.

DREAM PLAY

NIHIT Naphrey

Then we sat in little groups with each director to hear the stories of their shows and find out what they wanted from their cast and have a little read of the script. I walked out unsure that I’d be anyone’s choice for any role... but then I got the call - I was invited to work with Bob (the Artistic Director of Student Theatre)! There were so many hilarious mishaps during our rehearsal process that it would be hard to pick just one! Our cast frequently came up with jokes and silly stories about our characters or accidentally missed lines. We’d also managed to learn most of Vernon’s raps, so we’d be constantly spinning those verses during our downtime. I’m not sure what I’d like to do next with Student Theatre, because it’s my last semester at La Trobe and things are a little hectic. But I know I’ll definitely be watching the cabaret, one way or another! Vernon God Little is adapted by Tanya Ronder, and directed by Bob Pavlich.

first got involved in Student Theatre and Film by auditioning to perform in the 2018 Moat Festival. I was cast as the Guard in Exit the King – my first ever play for Student Theatre and Film. For Moat Festival 2019, I was a part of a play called Dream Play which was directed by Walt Dyson. I played the roles of Stage-Door Keeper, Liam, Christian, and the Dean of Law. The funniest moment must be when Walt started dancing in our rehearsals. He also did this a lot when I worked with him in Short Works 2018. I get a sense of a strong community and belonging whenever I do something with Student Theatre and Film. Everyone that works there supports you in becoming a better performer and to put on the best show possible. I have also made many friends that I would have never met had I not joined Student Theatre and Film. Overall, it is a positive experience that I look forward to. Dream Play is adapted and directed by Walt Dyson

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If the Truth be Told Carl Michelangeli

t a time when I felt really lost and out of place at university, I was searching really hard for a place where I’d fit in. In late 2016, I managed to find La Trobe Student Theatre and Film. I signed up for auditions for the 2017 Moat Festival, and I’ve never looked back. I’ve met some of the best people I’ve ever known throughout my time in Student Theatre. I like being with Student Theatre because it’s given me confidence that I could never learn elsewhere. The Moat Festival is a several-week-long event celebrating many forms of art, often completely manifested by students. It’s most commonly known for the plays that are put together by students and alumni. I was involved in the 2019 Moat Festival, and I was in the cast of If the Truth Be Told, written by Margaret Hickey and directed by my good friend Josh McFarland. The play was composed of eight monologues, and there were four actors, so we all did two each. In the first act, my monologue was called “The Entertainer”, and I played a man named Darryl, who was in prison for accidental arson, who’s clinging to his days of small-town glory in Northern Victoria. In the second act, I played a man named Trevor Morrow, who was attending his niece’s wedding and reflecting on his upbringing without a mother. In my time at La Trobe, I’ve had a fair share of experiences. Ups, AND downs. Amidst all the downs (and believe me, I’ve had a lot of them), the highlight was getting a play I co-wrote with my partner approved to be in the 2018 Activate

season. The Activate season is the second performance season of the year, with more intense plays. The play I co-wrote was named Orgy (such a profound name!), and it explored the many parameters of sexual identity in society. My partner was the director (for most of the show, anyway), and I was an actor in the play. Overall, I’m very proud that we managed to put a show together. There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing your creativity come to life on stage. Moving forward, I’m beginning to think about my final project with Student Theatre. I’ve had many ideas. Should I act again? Should I write something? Should I direct? I’ve been thinking about directing a play for the Moat 2020 season as my La Trobe Student Theatre swansong. I’ve been in five plays with Student Theatre, and I think I’ve had an amazing run. If I could direct something as my last ride with Student Theatre, then I think I’d be going out on a good note. If The Truth Be Told is written by Margaret Hickey and directed by Josh McFarland.

y start in Student Theatre and Film was doing front of house for the Moat Festival in my first year of university. I didn’t know anyone but volunteering for front of house means you get to see each play you work for free, you get to know the amazing people in the office, and you meet some of the student theatre veterans and newbies, just like you! I then auditioned for Activate which is the season of plays later in the year and got a role in Spring Awakening with a big cast of fantastic people including some who I’m still super close with today! I’ve since volunteered again at front of house, performed in another play called Constellations, and even directed! My course had a MASSIVE cohort and I found it hard to make friends that stuck. Being a part of Student Theatre and Film was really like being in a family and having a supportive and creative community around you is such a great way to break out of your shell and actually start to enjoy university. I’ve made some wonderful friends through STF; everyone from my directors to my co-stars to my lighting techs and everything in between. There is truly a place for everyone in Student Theatre and Film no matter your talent. I had never directed anything in my life and STF allowed me to choose a play, cast it, make it my own, and really give it a go. There’s no such thing as impossible in theatre! Moat is the first season of performance at La Trobe and it’s a chance for new kids to come and watch, do front of house, and try out some new things and it’s a chance for us continuing

university kids to keep busy over the holidays, have some fun, and stay a little distracted when classes start up again. Getting involved is as easy as calling up or sending an email or Facebook message and just saying you want to be involved. When I decided I wanted to direct I did a lot of freaking out and researching trying to figure out if I could and eventually got the go-ahead after scouring bookshops to find a play that really excited me. I sent through an application thinking “I might as well” and it very much paid off. In Moat 2019, I directed They Saw a Thylacine, an awesome two person Australian play about the Tassie Tiger. For the first time ever, I had a go at directing and had so much fun. The best moment of Moat and in fact, my whole STF experience was on the final night of They Saw a Thylacine when the original writers and performers of the show came to watch us (one of them had flown in from Hobart!!). They not only came to see us but also had hugs waiting for us at the end and were so genuine and friendly and warm. It was the most magical way to end the whole experience and really one of the best days of my life! The best thing about STF is you don’t have to stick to one thing. I think I’d really like to go back and do some acting again or maybe try my directing chops with an ensemble play. I guess we’ll have to see! They Saw A Thylacine is written by Justine Campbell and Sarah Hamilton, directed by Stella Tehan

For more information about our 2019 program of events, jump onto the LTSU website and navigate to our pages: https://latrobesu.org.au/stf or follow us on Facebook and Instagram. You can sign up as a member through the website, or sign up to our upcoming events – 24-Hour Play Project on the 11 to 12 April and the Cabaret Show, running from 28 May to 1 June.

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By NATASHA ROMAS

BSA PRESIDENT WELCOME

elcome back to Uni everyone! I hope you have all had a relaxing break and are re-energised to take on Semester 1. To those beginning their journey with La Trobe this semester: Welcome! As someone who is commencing their fifth (and final!) year of study (hopefully!), I can say that university is a wild and fun ride. I’m excited for all of your just hopping on the roller coaster. I hope you’re ready to get going! During your time at university you’re going to make heaps of friends, make loads of memories and maybe learn a thing or two about your elected course. I hope that you make the most of your time at La Trobe and you see university as an opportunity to not only learn, but to get involved!

If you’re super keen to get involved in the Student Association, keep your eye out for elections time this semester and at the end of the year. Put your hand up and run! As someone who has been on the association for the last 4 years I can say that it has been a super fun experience! I’m sure to see you all around campus but if I don’t get the opportunity to chat with you, I hope you all have a great semester full of new experiences, learning and fun. For those people graduating this semester: enjoy the last loop of the rollercoaster! Exciting times ahead! To keep up this semester be sure to like our Facebook page, snapchat and Instagram @BSA_Bendigo Natasha Romas Bendigo Student Association President

If you have never heard of the Bendigo Student Association, we are the student association on the Bendigo Campus with the mission to ‘make student life better’. All of our events, activities and services are geared at this simple objective. The BSA aims to not only provide social activities, but to provide key services such as advocacy, legal and financial counselling, cheap stationary and short courses for example… any issues really. If we can’t help ourselves, we’ll direct you to someone that can.

BEND The BSA will make its first acquaintance with Bendigo student you through this weeks’ week long party that is the famous O-Week celebrations. This program is designed to create a fun social environment to make friends and have fun, but also to celebrate the start of semester two and, for some, your university journey. I highly encourage both returning and new students to get around all the activities of the week and make new friends and memories. I also encourage you all to become members of the BSA. If you become a member you’ll get all sorts of added benefits including a BSA hoodie or power bank, vouchers to our café, Sweeny’s, and discounts on your clubs and societies’ memberships. There’s so much more too!

Artwork by Phoebe Moloney

BENDIGO STUDENTS ASSOCIATION Y

What is the BSA?

The Bendigo Student Association (BSA) has a simple purpose: Making Student Life Better. Our services are designed to help you get through University without failing subjects, going broke or getting too homesick. We want you to finish your time at La Trobe with a qualification in one hand and suitcase full of life skills and lifelong friendships in the other. How does the BSA save you money and help you pass? Our aim is to give you the best possible chance of completing your studies without incurring additional HELP fees from repeating subjects or jeopardising your future by dropping out.

the New Year and funds are allocated accordingly for the following year. Is the BSA part of the Uni? The BSA is an Incorporated Association which means that although our offices are located within the University, we remain independent of the University as a legal structure. Our relationship with the University is strong but our structure means we can represent students fairly and without compromise. How is the BSA managed? The BSA has a Board of Directors made up of nine current students who are elected on an annual basis. The President and Vice President are elected by the Board from within its ranks. The Board is responsible for strategic planning and making major financial and directional decisions for the BSA.

DIGO To do this we provide services that students at risk need as well as trying to make life at Uni as enjoyable as possible. Our support for Clubs & Societies and our social program aims to encourage friendships and support groups amongst other students. Studies show that students who develop these support groups and have a healthy social life are more likely to stay at university and complete their studies. Our Advocacy Service ensures that you are treated fairly by the university and helps you find solutions that keep you at Uni without costing you extra in HELP fees.

We help you save money by putting on free brekkies, discounting goods and services, and offering a great membership program. How is the BSA Funded?

The BSA is funded by the University with money raised from the Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF) but we are not the sole beneficiaries of the SSAF pool of funding. Budgets from the BSA and other eligible university services are tabled in the months leading up to

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There are a number of full and part-time paid staff (led by a General Manager) that deals with the day-to-day operations of the BSA. Volunteers also play an important role in supporting the activities of the Association. 8

Georgia Seth gives a look into life at the La Trobe Wodonga Campus BY GEORGIA SETH

elcome to 2019 and La Trobe University from the Wodonga Campus! My name is Georgia Seth and I am the elected president for WSA for 2019. I’m looking to meeting as many of our AlburyWodonga Students (and where possible those from other campuses!) as I can and try to ensure that you can make the most and have a great time while studying with La Trobe University, here in Wodonga!! The Wodonga Student Association is an independent student body, from La Trobe University, made up of ten elected students who fill varying positions con the WSA executive committee. WSA is always looking for new members, both elected and general unelected and we would love to hear from you!! WSA is here to help you make the most of your time here at university and are here to help you in any way we can. WSA also provide many of the events that you will see happening around the campus, including social, educational and welfare events and activities. We can also help you to start up your own club or society based on any interest you might have, or course related! The 2019 orientation program WSA offers has a diverse range of evening activities for all students to experience – a Chill and Tunes evening, a Wine and Cheese afternoon, a Trivia night and of course a Party – ‘Summer Nights’. The evening events are always great fun and an awesome opportunity to meet other people from your course. At Wodonga, because we are a small regional campus, you are extra lucky because you also get to meet so many students who are studying in other disciplines across the campus giving you a welcoming and caring community environment for you to be involved in!

WODONGA

ORIENTATION AT WODONGA CAMPUS

Plenty of fun is always had and so many new students get to socialise together and make new friends!

This year WSA has the pleasure of supplying a free morning tea and 4 free lunches during the two days of orientation, and the two days of the ‘One Step Ahead’ program. Meals such as hearty BBQs with salads, homemade casseroles, pasta and ‘Build-a-Burger’ days are always a hit with students! If you think this is something you might like to do, you don’t know what’s involved or you’re not sure how much time it will take (or time you can commit to?) then join our general committee and check it all out! You’d get to go to general committee meetings, get to have an input on idea’s and get a general feeling of what it’s like to work within a functioning Executive Committee and learn real life skills! Contact the WSA with any questions, or for further details. 8 Your 2019 WSA Student Executive Committee

President - Georgia Seth Vice-President - Fiona Garvie Treasurer - Sarah Maoney Secretary - Kate Eddy Residents and Social Networking Officer Taitum Hanley Sports and Recreation Officer - Vacant Publications Officer - Monica (Nic) Tomuelupe Wellbeing Officer - Stephanie Curcio La Trobe Student Representative - Melissa Bell Entertainment Officer - Kaeden Jenkin

Artwork by @t.ynique

Rabelais | Edition Two

Trans and Gender Diverse Inclusivity in Midwifery 4

by Coco Axford a queer and genderqueer student midwife In the world of having babies, it has been my experience that as well-meaning as people are, we’re not very good at being inclusive in our language. As such, we can be exclusive to queer-identifying people and families having babies. In the field of midwifery, we are taught to care for “women” not “patients” as they aren’t necessarily sick. As a concept this would be great, but what about when we are caring for people and families that don’t identify as women? Yes, the majority of the population having babies identify as women, however, is it enough to simply modify our language on a case-by-case basis? What about the concept of “woman-centred care”? As a student midwife, I’m exposed to this kind of language daily. It is so normalised that very few health care professionals working with and caring for parents and families realise how uncomfortable it can be for queer-identifying individuals, specifically trans and gender diverse people. So, what can be done? For a start, education. Upon arrival at university, perhaps even in the first lecture, students need to be educated on appropriate and inclusive language. It would also be appropriate to normalise asking the person in your care what are their preferred pronouns, even when you think you can assume. Something else to keep in mind, not all parents are going to be “mothers” or “fathers”, it is entirely possible that the person in your care doesn’t identify as a woman, or trans man, and will not identify with

these terms. They may, in fact, identify as genderfluid, genderqueer, agender, non-binary or something else! The take-home message is, you just don’t know until you ask the person in a respectful and genuine manner. So, what about “woman-centred care”? It’s supposed to be about empowering women to be the decision makers in their care and to make informed choices. That’s great, but wouldn’t it be just as easy to call it “personcentred care”? The trouble is, even the midwifery governing bodies use this exclusive language. It’s obviously an attempt to appear receptive to the needs of people having babies (women), but it excludes trans and gender diverse people. And at what cost? Many queer identifying families turn to private practice and away from the public system if they can afford to, due to the lack of inclusivity. And those left to navigate the public system have little support for their individual needs, or continuity in their care; often with lack of continuity, important details such as preferred pronouns, may not get handed over. Even how we name our birthing hospitals excludes trans and gender diverse people having babies. As you can see, language use in the specific field of midwifery is important, but let’s not stop there. The more the general population normalise asking pronouns and using genderneutral terminology, the more likely it is to seep into the wonderful world of midwifery. 8

Rabelais | Edition Two

CREATIVE

Artwork by Xion Kelly

Colors of me By HANNAH LYONS Let me tell you about me I eat too many biscuits in any sitting and I would happily drown in chocolate milk and honey and oranges and fresh squeezed juice like my mother makes Watching the sunrise hurts like knees aching but in my soul there has never been a good reason to be awake before sunrise and though there have been many to stay awake all night always the night ends with the knee-ache thought of coming day and I am too interested in bruises black and purple like summerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s lightning storm sky and soft yellow and brown and fading green and all the story of injury recording the history of skin and though violence can be love less of love like I like to imagine more of often violence so wrong we are afraid of the name remember me as more than what others will leave behind

smile that bit brighter By Claire Kearns How can I say that I am not ashamed? How can I say that I am proud? How can I ask for help? When I will seem ashamed How can I explain grades that plummet? A history thesis that makes no sense How can I explain a lack of concentration? Ask for more time, write the magic words Extension forms elude me Ways to explain myself Steel steel steel force it down 20000 words of nonsense Congratulations! (my ass) Goodbye career Goodbye dreams Hello job working nights!!! What will you be having, mate? How do you explain that your child is gay? That they started self-harming That they want to be dead That no thesis is worth more You just accept the 67% Never submitting the extension form And hold him that little bit tighter And smile a bright smile As the beer filled wanker Says, whatcha doing when you knock off, luv? Silence Nice tits, luv Thanks And you go home And hold him that little bit tighter And smile a bright smile And 67% was worth it Because he will score higher 8

Rabelais | Edition Two

untitled By Jan Trisha Sanchez

You push me down to the ground Blood in my mouth Why am I even trying? I stand and try to fight back You kick me I’m back on the ground again When will this end? Please stop Is it over? I close my eyes shut and pray Defeated I only end up crying Curled like a ball on the ground I look up You smile at me You stretch out your hand, I stare I wipe my tears I take it You say, I’m sorry I’ll change you hug me tight I let you You’re guilty, regretful You cry, I hate it I love you 8

out By Max Taylor My throat clams up and a live frog croaks from within me A noise so out of touch and broken that I can’t help but laugh in pity at my own voice Fear doesn’t suit me, but then again neither does laughter in this moment and it shocks me that I can do so many things without anxiety or remorse, but still, today has left me shaken I am not a weak person, I draw strength from the people who trod this path before me, and those that stand beside me through this journey I tell myself that at the end of the day I will be proud, my nerves will fade to someplace deep within me until only solace remains and I draw comfort from my cat I tell myself that today, although it feels so meaningful now, will one day be naught but a distant memory, or a thought of ‘what was I so scared of’ But although these things will someday be true, my heart still beats like a bird imprisoned by the bars of my ribcage, and my breath comes in short bursts, failing to supply the oxygen my brain needs to go into overdrive My toe taps and I focus on keeping it still, pressing my foot close to the ground in an attempt to quell a burst of anxiety that could perhaps be misinterpreted as a willingness to dance I wonder if the words I have chosen will come out as too rushed, too

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garbled, or even make sense at all It took me so long to understand these labels and definitions, how can I expect them to fall into people’s minds smoothly, without exclamations about grammatical errors and statements that my identity cannot possibly be true You see gender is a construct, and I am a construction site filled with busy workers building an expression that doesn’t quite fit with my sex identity The confusion is bad enough but on top of that I sometimes wish that I could yell at those builders to keep it quiet, stop drilling and hammering all the time, and just let me rest Faces around me are waiting for a movement or a word, and I am standing so still I worry for a moment that I will never move again I see no judgement in the watching eyes, just intrigue and perhaps a tad bit of concern, yet in my head I imagine they are simply waiting, ready to pounce and rip me to shreds when I speak my mind I feel cold at the tips of my fingers and toes, and my stomach fills with the flitting, flapping wings of distressed butterflies vying for freedom But somehow a moment of clarity breaks through this garbled mess of life, and I am able to say what is in the heart of my thoughts 8

PRIDE By HANNAH LYONS I am pride Not festivals and rallies and queer beer But loud and in your face Questions Lamentations Educations I am all aesthetically pleasing people And no, I would not tap that (but if this character offered I might not say no) Shared eye-rolls because Alloromantics I am pride Not rainbows and cakes and weddings But black rings and queer touch Fear Warped boxes Words I am the space between the word and the meaning, The difference between theory and practice (this aro/ace will cut your hands) A study in anomalies and pain and bandaids Singing my heart high 8

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QUEER By HANNAH LYONS My queerness cannot be untied from my atypical neurology. My asexuality has a personality disorder; my borderline is asexual. A borderline personality disorder is stereotyped as promiscuous. I am painfully not sexual. I flee before innuendo. I cannot recognise flirtation. Promiscuity is the result of different traits: a need for attention, search for connection and an impulsive reaction to an attraction. It is using sex to find these answers. I am promiscuous in friendship. Listen to me, I need attention, tell me your secrets, connect with me, be my friend, I want to be yours. It is difficult to have one night stands of friendship but in a day, I will give a stranger all my life. In return give me your attention, affection, laugh with me, live with me, listen to me. Is it not the same kind of thing? Scratch romantic, sexual partners off the list, I can still give you pages of people fixated, favourited. I am not freed by a lack of romance in the world, I can love to heartbreaking heights those whose lips I have never sought to touch. I am asexually borderline. Ask me how what I feel never makes my teeth ache as much as the first time; how budding friendship with certain people makes my fingertips tingle, my heart sings and my tummy turns with the need to hold my friends exactly as far as they are happy with. Ask me how friendship is not blooming love but trimming it to fit. How the closest to attraction my body knows is the need for friends of the heart and the house and to hold; how when invited to crush, my brain can only create a platonic equivalent; desperate wanting, please be my friend. Ask me how I love, how can it be love, ask me, when from one hour to the next I can loathe the ones I love, what kind of love hates? My best kind, I will answer, the kind that burns into murderous fantasy and I must force to remember that it is caring sweet want to glow in my chest. I am disorderedly asexual. I am promiscuously, queerly, chaotically, lovingly me. 8

Rabelais | Edition Two

A diary entry of a creative BY Depasheni Thirumoothy There are days when I have a strong urge to create but I am unable to translate my ideas into something tangible or comprehensible. Some would say that maybe I’m trying too hard to fit it all into something that will make sense to everyone. Some would say I’m trying too hard to perfect it. Some would say I need to relax and let the idea take form at its own pace. And maybe they’re all true. Maybe I do need to slow down, maybe I do need to be patient, maybe I do have to go easy on my creative process, maybe I do have to be gentle with myself. I can, I know that I can but it’s too hard to silence my inner critic, it’s too hard to keep still and not create, it’s too hard for me to not show up every day and try a little harder. Because I have too much simmering within me, waiting to be unleashed, too much that needs to be said, too much that needs to be shown, too much that needs to be understood, not by anyone else but my own self. I create because I need a way to talk to myself. To understand the complexities within my mind, the rage, anguish and obsession that creeps onto me whenever I start to believe that maybe today, today I’m finally okay, it’s just too much to bear. The moments where I curl my fingers into a fist and hurl it towards the air because I’m mad at myself for not being good enough is too bitter of an experience. I create things so I can wrap my own arms around me and whisper to myself, “it’s okay, I understand. I’ll help you, just be patient. One day at a time, dear one.

“I create things because no one else will do it for me. I create things because sometimes, it’s daunting to share my thoughts with a loved one. No matter how loving, receptive and supportive they may be, some razorsharp thoughts are best chained to me. The journey as a creative, more often than not, is a lonely one. We give so much to others and forget to give inwards out of the desire for genuine human connection. It takes us a while to realise when others don’t reciprocate our transparency and our cups are left empty. And the process of filling it up again is as slow and exhausting as the weight of a nine-to-five desk job to end. We dream day and night to escape our realities, we hum and drum our fingers to tunes that take us to different places, we dance as wild as we can when no one is watching, we laugh too hard because the sound of our own laughter recharges us and we’re afraid of not being able to hear the same joy the next day. At times, we bow our heads down and sit still, wishing things would be different and our inner critic taunts us as we entertain self-doubt, nagging at us about our imperfections, dragging us into a pool of black tar that we try to escape from every single day because we as creatives crave for light. I crave for light,a little more each day, so I can find the space to create whatever comes to mind, to understand my present self and for the woman that I will become and to remember who she once was. 8

the adventures dream By Abe Kortekaas They always dreamed of Adventure. Of leaving, without a word and exploring the world. Of disappearing without a trace, vanishing in thin air. Living in a place where no one knows their name or face. A place without consequence. A place of new beginnings.

And when they saw that all too familiar look of longing on the face of a child. A face they knew because they once saw it in the mirror. The face that was destined for adventure but too scared to leave. They walked up to the child each step struggling with the weight of experience on their shoulders. And they decided to give the child one piece of advice.

But they were scared. Something they wish had been said to them. Life isn’t like some movie where you can disappear in the middle of the night.

Scared that they would get lost or hurt and never find their way back to those that meant the most to them.

“Go young one, go and live. Experience a world that has never existed and never will again. Do not worry of fear, it is good it remind us we’re alive and that makes the moments without fear all the richer. So go and come back if you please. But if here is not a place you love with all your heart go and find the place that you do.”

But still felt like they were missing something bigger, bigger than them and bigger than everyone else.

A look of relief fell across the face of the child. The child left with a happy thought in it’s mind.

And so they waited.

And they who once dreamed of adventure also felt relief, for even though they denied themselves.

They were scared of leaving those they loved behind.

And waited. And waited. Until one day they were too old for adventure and excitement.

Rabelais | Edition Two

They gave adventure to others and helped them along the way. And what an adventure that was.

‘Pride’ by Emma Noack Rabelais | Edition Two

To all the women I’ve ever loved By ASTRID LENNE

Britney Evans.

sn’t it wonderful when someone can be a trigger to you understanding your own sexual identity when neither they nor you actually understand that that’s what’s going on? Britney was one of those ones in which you never actually realise that you loved them until you took a look back. A little while after I had finally come to the realisation and acceptance that I was bi-sexual, I began unconsciously, or maybe consciously looking back on the last year or so of my life and began to find things that I’d never really given much thought to then but finally made sense now. Britney was in my literature class when I was in year 12 (and the year before) and I remember how she always had something beautifully intelligent and insightful to say about whatever text we were reading. An example of this was in term four of year 11 literature we were each able to pick a different novel each that we hadn’t read before to write a piece on. I chose ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ and I remember talking about how I found the character of Boo Radley very disturbing and a little bit creepy. It was Britney who opened my mind to the character and people in general when she said that when she read the book, she instead felt sympathy for the outcasted character. I thought it was beautiful and truly admirable the way Britney could find such love and sympathy for a character that gave me bad vibes. Apart from having a kind open heart and being exceptionally good at writing literature essays (as far as I could see) Britney was also a very talented performer. I know this because I was lucky enough to be involved in a production of ‘The Little Mermaid: The Musical’ with her. Britney played the role of Ursula with great gusto and passion. It was her passion for musical theatre and dedication to the show and fellow cast members that ultimately made me love her.

Both pieces of artwork by Claudia Morando-Stokoe @justartsythings1997

I remember when we were doing live shows and Britney was in tears because she wasn’t up for performing and that she was so worried about letting everyone down. It was how caring and concerned she was about the show that she would be so unhappy about letting people down for not doing it that made me love her even more. Britney was such a lovely, kind and happy person to be around it was understandable that I don’t think anyone in the theatre club could not like her. Wherever she was, there were other people too sharing in her loving, joyful nature. As part of the live shows, I got the honour of helping Johanna who played Ariel in and out of her costumes every night Johanna also happened to share a dressing room with Britney. I remember Britney saying something about being slightly jealous of Johanna’s body and all I could think was ‘Britney you have no idea, but your body is gorgeous just the way it is’. Just like with Alice I also remember having the strange feeling or desire that if Britney was ever in trouble or if anyone ever hurt her that I would be her goddess in shining catholic school clothes. It might be a little different or a little unusual that a lot of my fantasy’s don’t involve me being saved by a knight in shining armour but me being the one who saved everyone else.

Alice Jones. I think it is very clear that out of all the women I have fallen for romantically I am yet to fall for one as hard as I fell for Alice. She is so beautiful both inside and out. A way of understanding whether or not you do truly love someone regardless of everything is if they can completely change what they look like and you still love them just as much as before, if not a little bit more. That was definitely the case for me where it concerned Alice. For her 18th birthday, Alice wanted nothing else but for people to donate to her wonderful cause: a head shave for ovarian cancer. How can that not make you just fall in love with someone when they go and do something so courageous, so heartfelt and so selfless? Alice may even be able to congratulate herself on being the main person who made me stop pretending, stop lying to myself, stop hiding from my true sexual identity. I know that no matter how much I love Alice I cannot have her. But I think I’m okay with that because it is such a wonderful honour to even just be able to know and love someone like Alice that it was okay. Why? Why couldn’t I ever be able to have Alice to say that she was mine? Because she’s my step-cousin. I’ve always hated the term ‘stepcousin’ especially in reference to Alice. The way that the word states an unspoken barrier between people. Or how the only references to characters who are part of the ‘step’ family in fairy tales’ are always depicted as horrible. Alice was never horrible, Alice couldn’t be horrible, not in my eyes and aside from my sisters and my parents I have never loved anyone more than I have loved Alice. Whenever I pictured myself with the people that I love (especially if they were women like me) I always saw myself being their hero. That

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was true for Alice too. But do not get this wrong, Alice is not weak, or fragile in fact I feel I’m pretty safe to say she’s stronger than me. But regardless of that if anyone were to hurt her it was in my mind that I would come running to go beat their ass. I wanted to be the one to hold her in my arms, I wanted to be the one to dance with her at family celebrations, I just wanted to love her. I never got to see Alice a lot as she lived a long way away from my smaller family and I, but I thought about her a lot. I thought a lot about this beautiful, strong, intelligent and capable young woman. I remember seeing her when my family went to hers for Christmas it made me so happy to finally, actually see her face, the face that I had imprinted in my mind for the past six months or maybe even longer I felt so happy. But there’s always that strangeness when you know something that you know nobody else knows, especially her. I remember lying in bed the night before we left to go to Sale for Christmas. All I could think about was Alice and how it was only that one sleep, that one night until I was going to finally see her. How I had waited for this moment for roughly six months and that it was finally going to happen, a single tear fell down my face. I tear of absolute overwhelming joy and happiness. Most importantly I have to thank Alice. Thank you, Alice, for helping me understand the kind of person that I am. Thank you, Alice, for making me brave enough to accept who I am. Thank you, Alice, for doing all of this without even realising it. You are more amazing, more wonderful, more fabulous than you could ever imagine you are. One thing is definitely certain: I have never loved anyone more than I have loved Alice Jones. 8

SCIENCE OF THOUGHT By Cathy Langley Science, logic; The prophet, Adherence of the day; Pages and ink, Obliterated and fettered; An explosion of bona fides. Replaced with thorough. Given a reason, An answer; The prophet; Who forgot the question, Had provided the answer. Too cerebral;. Sentimental is sickening; Dry and unfeeling. The creation of logic, Far from me. A sole action from the hearth, Is all I will be. Obliterated and fettered; Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve set it free. 8

The Crone

by Axelle McKeller There was a time, long long ago, The wind smelt sweet where the bellflowers grow, And upon nightfall, there was black in the skies All night every night from sunset to sunrise.

It was told that the Crone was as old as the seas, That sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d lived as a stone, as a river, as trees, And it was well known that the Crone had once been Every animal and insect that has ever been seen.

At home with the Crone sat her peculiar friend, An owl with a tail that could swirl curve and bend, As he flew through the night sky his magical tail Left his essence behind in a glittering trail.

Back in this time, long long ago, Stood a village of people who really did know All the secrets they wanted, they just had to go To the home of the Crone in the valley below.

She lived in a house made from murmuring plants That had grown in a spiral while swaying in dance, The plants spoke to the Crone and placed her at ease With frail voices that sang as the wind touched their leaves.

In archaic times the owls made no sound They just looked at each other and one day they found, A stare that could say much more than just words, The owls became sneaky and secretive birds.

The Crone was a hag with one eye that shined white, It glowed so bright it shone a path in the night For any seeker to follow from their village home Down to the valley to find the old Crone.

Bark rubbing bark in the gusts and the gales, Her spiral tree home moaned with gripping old tales, Dirt whipped from the ground and took shape on the breeze Churning dust in the shapes of the tales from the trees.

The Crone answered all questions, bad or good, Her answers were perfectly understood, But if anyone found out her true name by chance They would gain all her wisdom and fall into trance.g

The owl was too hungry for knowledge and power, He would stare at the Crone for hours and hours Begging she tell all her secrets and name, But the owl could not speak so her truth never came. People in the village would wait for their turn To visit the Crone, on their own they would learn The answers to all of the questions they asked, In the light of her knowing white eye, they would bask. The villagers could only find the Crone in the night, As the shine from her eye was hidden by daylight, And it’s lucky for them else they’d get a big fright! By how wise the ancient Crone appeared in the light. On a fine autumn day, the villagers played As the leaves on the sweet breeze floated away, And the beautiful wives made their plump pumpkin pies, While their husbands went to collect wood for their fires. One curious husband with wood that he gripped, Wandered too far and he tripped and he slipped And rolled his way down to the valley below, He bumped his head badly and scratched his elbow. Confused and lost the poor husband stood up, He rubbed his sore head and he looked at his cut, He decided to go find the home of the Crone, Where he’d rest and could feel

like he wasn’t alone. The home proved very hard to find in daylight, It was made from the trees to his left and his right, Lucky for the husband, on a tree within sight The owl touched down after a long morning flight. The husband approached the owl perching up there And asking aloud, “Where?” gave the owl a great scare, The owl jumped in shock and flew into the air, The husband followed the owl here and there. When the owl finally landed, the husband just knew That the home of the old Crone must be in view, Eventually he saw an old stick and rope fence, He followed it down to a shadowy entrance. Rustling and moaning, the trees swayed in a spire, But the husband had only come down to inquire, Did the Crone have a place for the weary and lost? Or would the husband pay an irrevocable cost? The husband, anxious, gave a tap at the door, When it swung open wide, to his terror he saw The most frightening thing that he ever did sight, The ancient Crone standing revealed in daylight. The husband’s hair turned the whitest of white, His skin crinkled up as he tried hard to fight Peering onto her features all

riddled with knowledge, Screaming he turned and fell into the foliage. With his heart beating fast he fell into a panic, Running and screaming his mind became manic, Before grasping how he had arrived at his home, He stood preaching fear of the evil old Crone. “She’s a witch!” he insisted, “An evil old hag!” “With a heart black as iron and a face full of sag!” The husband was brimming with dread for the Crone, “She’ll eat all our children and suck on their bones!” His wife was so scared that she dropped her sweet pie As her husband cried out “I thought I might die!” Their children gathered up the whole village of people For a meeting right then in the big western steeple. The people all came and excited they sat, They listened in shock as the husband said that... “If anyone goes off to visit the Crone They will have to live out in the forest alone!” The people were scared of the husband’s big threat, So they obeyed his wishes, and every sunset The black night would come and the people would stay Locked up in their houses awaiting the day. The innocent villagers pondered the reasons For why the old Crone didn’t

die with the seasons. For how she had lived for so long and kept living, For why she had been so very wise and so giving. The secret to why the old Crone could live on? If she wasn’t needed, then she would be gone. The people who questioned her kept her alive, So long as they asked, her knowledge would thrive. Very soon the old Crone became withered and frail, The owl became sad and offered his tail, But the ancient Crone knew that she would soon die, And the silent owl needed his tail to fly. The owl flew to the village during the days To tell the scared people to leave their daft ways, But owls back then couldn’t make any sound, And nobody ever looked up from the ground. One night after visiting the village again, The owl flew home as it started to rain, The light from the valley was shining so bright That it started to eat up the dark of the night. The owl reached the door of the Crone and he saw The Crone lying dead alone on the floor, With her wide-open eye shining brighter and brighter, And the once dark night sky getting lighter and lighter. Seeing the wisdom and power of the eye,

The owl felt a hunger he could not deny, With one swoop he pecked out the all-knowing eye, He swallowed it down and then took to the sky. Consumed by power, even though he just stole it, The owl realized that he could not control it, The more wisdom he gained from eating the eye, The higher and higher he flew in the sky. The owl knew that he had swallowed too much, His belly was swelling, and he wanted to touch The earth with his talons but he could only fly, Higher and higher into the night sky. The owl grew so fat he stopped flapping and floated, He saw divine wisdom and within that moment He sat still in the sky but then he exploded! From knowing too much and becoming so bloated. Out of the owl came the bright shining eye, Floating yet still, high up in the night sky, And as his soft feathers fell down to the ground, His soul let cry a long desperate sound. “WHOOO!” he screeched as he begged for the name Of the Crone with the wisdom that couldn’t be tamed, “WHOOO!” he cried for his soul to awaken The name of the wisdom that couldn’t be taken.

The people of the village recognized the great eye Of the wise old Crone as it shone in the sky, And wishing that she had not died so soon, The villagers decided to name it the moon. The soul of the owl had cried out with such force, It gave owls on earth a voice strong and hoarse, Now each time an owl asks the moon for its name, A shimmer of knowledge and truth it shall gain. The villagers missed the wisdom of the Crone, So much that they asked the moon when alone, Some even said if you look up with grace, That inside the glow you can see her wise, old face. 8

By JUSTINE SLESS

NUDGE AND A JIGGLE

ash and Vera sit beneath the vertical plant trellis, their bodies as entwined as the plants above them. “God, that rally was cool” Tash says. “and that guy giving that speech, he was like Jack Nicholsonirate and mobilising all at the same time. “And that little kid next to us,” Vera replies. “every time the guy yelled ‘stop the fracking’, the kid yelled ‘stop the f ***ing!’ So funny.” They gorge from the food on the timber board in front of them. At the next table, Therese eats her quinoa and freekeh salad like she’s in a race, pushing in the food, cheeks bulging. Her head inclines towards the stroller parked next to her. “Yes,” she says to Maisie, voice muffled because of the ancient grains “Yes, you are boodiful.” Dave is fiddling with his phone, not looking at his plate or Therese. When Therese is done gulping down mouthfuls, she places her napkin over the empty plate as if to hide the evidence of her consumption. She leans back against the trellis, taps her feet absently on the concrete floor and gazes into the stroller. A slight grizzle from within the hooded compartment compels her to jog the stroller up and down. She cranes her neck to get a better look at the baby. “You are,” she croons, “Yes you are a lovely Maisie baby, aren’t you?” She turns to Dave. “She’ll need a sleep soon, and I want to put her down. It’s too hot for her to sleep in here. So, let’s get going, can we?” Dave glances at the stroller. “I need another coffee. I’ll have to get one to go then,” he says, then beckons to the waiter, asks for the bill and places his order. “Actually, I’ll get a green tea too, thanks,” Therese

requests from bended-knee at the basket of the stroller. She pulls out a gauze cover that springs into shape as she stands and clips it onto the hood. “Oh, yes, Maisie, it’s very hot out there, isn’t it?” she coos to the baby, who is now in dark shadow behind the visor. “And we don’t want you to get burnt from the nasty sun, do we? Or get caught in the big storm that’s coming later.” Dave gathers up his phone, keys and wallet, pays the waiter and takes their drinks. He slots Therese’s tea into the stroller’s cup-holder. “Thanks,” says Teresa. “This tea is brilliant. It’s the Larsen and Thompson brand – you know, the one I like?” Dave swings open the door, holding his cup up high, like a trophy, as Therese and the stroller pass beneath him. As they walk away from the cafe, he takes a sip of coffee, murmuring something about the heat. Vera turns to the waiter. “Can we get two almond lattes to go thanks, and we’ll pay for this lot.” She scrapes her finger across the wooden board, catching the last vestiges of food, a drip of tahini and a skerrick of crispy halloumi. Tash leans towards Vera’s finger and suckles on it. They giggle and kiss for a while, then pull apart to pay the waiter who is proffering the Eftpos machine and their coffees stacked one on top of the other. They slide out from the seat together as if they are going to join a conga line. Then, in unison, they pull down their sunglasses from their foreheads and, sipping on their coffees, go out into the heat of the midday sun. Jinny scrapes her hand through her hair. “But when they said that, I just couldn’t believe it.”

Tom and Judy are hunched over the small table, listening and nodding intently. Beneath them, the cast-iron lacing of the table legs curls like a semi-quaver. Jinny shakes her head, words tumbling out now, her unfinished bowl of sweetpotato fries cooling in front of her. “The way they said it ... they accused me of not doing my job properly ... the impact it’s had on me. Sorry,” she sniffs, “Sorry.” A tear drips into her fries. Judy rests a hand on one of Jinny’s arms and says, “Awful for you, just awful ... No, don’t apologise.” Tom places his hand on the other arm and adds, “You’ll get other work, for sure. Look at your skill set. Someone will snap you up in no time.” Jinny apologises again and pushes back her unfinished food. She slumps against the trellis, exhausted from the telling of her tale. Tom glances at his watch. “Sorry darl gotta get back to the office. We’ll get this.” As he pays, he orders them some takeaway lattes. They check their phones, as they wait and Jinny comments that the cool change is due soon, “With a storm too,” she adds as they leave the cafe and step out into the throbbing heat of the day. Tash and Vera drop their empty cups into a bin before jumping onto the tram. As the tram departs, the arm of a council garbage truck hauls the bin from its casing. The contents tremble as it’s lifted, and the two cups fall onto the pavement. When Therese reaches their apartment building, she takes a long swill of her drink and discards the cup in the bin awaiting collection. She turns to see where Dave is. His head is bent over his phone and he trips as he gets to the gate. He curses as his cup falls. The contents splatter over him and the footpath. Therese tut-tuts. Dave crunches the cup with his foot and wipes the spray of coffee from his t-shirt. He slips his phone in his back pocket and lifts the front of the stroller up the steps to the entry of the block of flats. Outside the cafe, Jinny sips her coffee, watching the receding backs of Tom and Judy as they head back to work. She checks her phone and finishes her drink, looks around for a bin and spots one

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further up the street. There, she balances the cup on a huge wodge of foam, which is prolapsing from the innards of the bin. Vera and Tash sit under their porch watching the rain and snapping photos of the darkening sky for their Instagram feeds, competing for the most eloquent hashtag to describe the smell of the rain hitting the scorched streets. They follow #worststorminyears as the rain thrums across their galvanised iron rooftop. Therese opens the windows and a gust of wind ruffles her straightened hair, heralding the cool change coming in from the west. The cup that Dave had crushed earlier is caught by the wind and falters along the pathway. Jinny waits for a friend at another cafe and stares out the window, which is starting to fog-up. The rain pelts, bouncing off cars and forming rivulets along the streets. The cup she had balanced on the rubbish earlier topples, then bobs like a boat in the water coursing along the high street. People hunch and rush, side-stepping curbs to avoid the splashes from passing cars. The water rises rapidly and, within minutes, spills over pavements. Shop owners stand in doorways looking at the torrent in disbelief. Some shut their doors and windscreen-wipe the steam from the windows with cloths, so they can see what’s happening. Others look up and down the high street as if they will find an answer on how to deal with the deluge. Vera and Tash move inside as the rain encroaches their porch. Therese inhales the sweet smell of Maisie’s head as she lowers her into her cot. Jinny’s fingers move rapidly over her phone as she texts Tom and Judy that she’s just been offered a new job. a

Like an ecclesiastical convocation, a confluence of the discarded takeaway cups forms in the gushing water. Each meets the other with a nudge and a jiggle. The dregs of drinks thread out from the lids into the whorls and ripples of the rising waters. Some lids pop off with the pressure of the movement, spinning and freewheeling like frisbees flung in a park.

cups, the logos of cafes stamped on by waiters, in between orders: Tribeca, Café Luxe, Brewers, Single Origin.

The deluge gathers force, seeping into cafes, shops and homes. The cups turn and twirl, submerge for a moment then reappear jauntily as they cascade down the street. And like Pied Pipers the cups entice others to join them. Double walled, eco-friendly, fully biodegradable, 8 oz and 12 oz, lids with indents to identify the type of beverage.

“Dave, for god’s sake, get off your phone and look at this!”

Crumpled cups, branded cups, some smooched with lipstick stains. All of them gather. A multitude of vessels, bobbing and roiling in the current of the mighty downpour. “It must be a meme,” Tash says, shoving her phone under Vera’s nose. ‘Wall of cups gathers.’ The wodge of foam dislodges from the bin and surges like a surfboard on the crest of a wave. Some of the cups hitch a ride on the foam, then role gracefully back into the slipstream. Other cups flip and role as if taking a lazy dip in a swimming pool at a resort. All of the cups are impermeable to the rising waters, turning and bouncing till the street-scape is filled with the noise of them jostling. “Dave, come and look at this.” Therese’s hands are paused on the curtains she was about to draw in Maisie’s bedroom. Dave stands next to her and holds up his phone to the window. On the screen, thousands of cups surge together, jiggling, under cars and around lampposts. The rain pours the worst deluge in history. A lifetime of rain falling in one hour. The water still rises and with it, the cups, the hordes of

Vera and Tash stare fixedly at their phones as the images proliferate with #wallofcups #waterrises #damnforms #storm #somanycups. Therese’s shriek wakes Maisie.

The rainwater gushes on. The cups have wedged together forming a wall in the middle of the street. The water hits the wall of cups and doubles backs on itself, forming a tsunami that hurls towards their apartment block. In the cafe, Jinny and all of the other customers stand on chairs which are balanced on tables. The water still rises. The cups batter against the door and press against the windows. Everyone is yelling into their phones. Jinny’s voice rises too, and she shouts above the din. “No! I never used that Keep-Cup you bought me. Did you use the one I bought you?” 8

queer

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Artwork by Claudia Morando-Stokoe

welcome to the La trobe university Queer lounge

By Remmy Hooper and hannah proasheck

t La Trobe Bundoora we have a queer lounge, a little room that is a safe and comfortable space for people to be openly queer with other queer folks. The room itself is located next to the Mature Age Student (MASO) Lounge in the Union building. It has some nice couches and chairs for people to rest on as well as a fridge, microwave and kettle to make it more homely. There’s a box of clothes for folks to try on and take home if they like them. We’ve recently revamped our Queer Lounge library so it has a lot of new good books and comics! The walls of the lounge are covered with beautiful pride flags - one big rainbow and a trans pride flag - these were painted by previous Queer officers and students. There is also a wall which features

all different pride flags from the Pan flag to the agender flag! Claudia and Maddie (past student) painted the wall in their spare time - it was very generous and amazing of them! There’s also an art wall where folks can hang up and share their creations. Now, time to talk about what actually happens in the queer lounge - we often host social events in here, from indoor picnics to board game days. When there aren’t social events happening, there are often people in the lounge either studying or chilling! It’s a great little space - so if you have some free time and want a cool place to chill with queer peeps, feel free to check out the queer lounge! 8

Queer chat Written by Sav Zwickl

i, my name is Sav Zwickl (they/them pronouns) and I am the Queer Wellbeing Coordinator at La Trobe Bundoora Campus. I lead facilitation of the weekly Queer Chat Program and I am also involved in organising a range of LGBTIQ+ events, such as La Trobe’s recent involvement in the Midsumma Carnival and Pride March, collaborations with JOY Radio and the annual La Trobe Pride Festival. As part of the LGBTIQ+ community, I have personal experience into just how daunting it can be to explore your gender and/or sexuality and how scary it can be to enter into a new space. That is why I want to tell you more about our Queer Chat service, in the hope that it will alleviate any anxiety you might have! What is Queer Chat? Queer Chat is a social support group and safe space that meets weekly at Bundoora Campus and is for like-minded students to chat about all things queer. It’s light and fun but there is also space to share hard times with people who understand, or you can just listen. Queer Chat celebrates all sexes, genders and sexualities (including bisexual, pansexual, fluid, asexual, questioning, transgender, non-binary and intersex students). If you’re questioning your sexuality or gender, coming out, or you’re out and want to connect with

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other people dealing with similar experiences, come and join us! Safety and Inclusion We work really hard to make the group safe and inclusive. We facilitate the group in a way that helps people to share experiences and support each other and ideally experience acceptance and belonging. We see it as a warm, gentle place that nurtures individuals as we build a strong queer community together. You always have the right to ‘pass’ if you don’t feel like sharing and you also don’t have to know everything about the queer community or what every word/label means. You’re welcome to ask questions and you won’t be judged as ‘not queer enough’ if you’re questioning, bisexual, asexual, currently in a relationship with someone of another sex, or don’t ‘look’ queer. When and where is Queer Chat? Queer Chat goes for one hour (1pm to 2pm) each Wednesday throughout the semester, from March to December. It takes place at the La Trobe Counselling Service, Level 2, Peribolos East building, above Equity and Diversity.

For more info: Email: counselling@latrobe.edu. au Phone: (03) 9479 2956 In person: Counselling Office - Reception (Level 2, Peribolos East building, above Equity and Diversity) Web: latrobe.edu.au/lgbtiq; latrobe.edu.au/pride Student testimony: “Hi, I’m Remmy and I use they/them pronouns and identify as non-binary. Queer Chat has been so helpful for me to figure out my gender identity. It was so helpful being able to ask questions about taking testosterone and about trying binders to people who have gone through that. It was also so helpful to discuss how I think about my gender and how I’m seen by society and for my thoughts about that to be validated by others who struggle with similar problems. If I didn’t start going to Queer Chat I know I wouldn’t have had the strength to try out new things that help me feel more comfortable in my body and reflect my gender identity. Queer Chat has also given me the opportunity to make some great friends and I love being able to meet new people who share similar experiences to me. I think it’s definitely worth trying out!” 8

It’s simple biology – or is it?

Haylo Roberts, PhD Candidate

s a transgender individual I am constantly bombarded with all kinds of comments trying to invalidate the transgender identity: I’ve heard that people like me are mentally deluded or ill, that we are all ‘special snowflakes’ who are too sensitive or overly offended, that we are trying to reinvent the wheel (of gender) for no reason. I’ve also heard that some of us are opting into gender transition for some ulterior motive (see, trans women weightlifters in particular), the list is extensive. These statements are mostly used as guises by those who are trying to hide their bigotry. However, the worst by far, for me, is that transgender identities and ‘basic biology’ contradict. As a molecular biologist who is currently undertaking a PhD, I can see right through this argument. Often people say that it’s having either XX or XY chromosomes that determine both your sex and gender and that there’s no in between, no leeway. A scientist – more specifically, a biologist, would never say anything is set in stone like this: part of the beauty of what we study is the great variability in living things. It was once believed that a cell containing a Y chromosomeand the masculinising SRY gene within the Y chromosomewas all that was needed to flip the switch of sex development [1, 2]. Female anatomy was seen

as the default setting. It was thought that only the presence of the SRY gene could catalyse male development [2]. This gene was shown to be such an important sex-determining factor that even individuals with XX chromosomes, but also a piece of the SRY gene, would develop male-like anatomy [2]. Since these initial findings, the notion that female anatomy is the default has been debunked – with effector genes such as RSP01 and FoxL2 being essential for both development and maintenance of ovaries [3, 4]. Due to these contesting genes and a ‘gonadal arms race’ that occurs, a plethora of variability in sex development of humans has been fleshed out. The argument that sex determination relies solely on what set of chromosomes one has been debunked almost entirely. Now, this isn’t to presume every transgender individual has some rare genetic characteristic regarding sexual development – it’s just to give some background as to how genetic and anatomical sex isn’t rigid. We all know that there’s sexual dimorphism (and polymorphism in the case of intersex individuals) in the human body – that is, biological and anatomical differences based on sex. But did you know this extends to the brain? That’s right – male and female brains are typically different. Differences in overall brain volume, grey and white

matter proportions and specific regions of the brain have been shown to demonstrate dimorphism have been used to compare transgender and cisgender brain structure [5]. Two established sexually dimorphic areas of the brain are the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BST) and the third interstitial nucleus of the anterior hypothalamus (INAH3)[6]. The BST’s function has not been confirmed. However, the INAH3 is involved in sexual and maternal behaviour, as well that the secretion of gonadotropin [7]. In transgender people, these two structures have been observed to be sex-atypical – in male to female (MtF) transgender, the size and neuron number resemble that of cisgender females [8]. There has only been one female to male (FtM) individual looked at regarding INAH and BST structure, however, the structure was observed resemble that of cisgender male controls [8]. Furthermore, it is worth mentioning, that not every study corroborates findings that sexually dimorphic areas of the brain reflect gender identity rather than biological sex [6]. It should be noted that studies of transgender brain structure and function are often comprised of small sample groups of less than 30 subjects with an uneven gender identity distribution. Further studies with larger

and even sample groups are imperative to strengthen these findings. For a more comprehensive review of hormones and brain structure relating to transgender identity, have a look at Smith et al, 2015 [6] and Nguyen et al, 2018 [5]. So, maybe it’s not basic biology. Also, maybe gender isn’t entirely a social construct. However, it is imperative to appreciate that the mechanisms behind what makes someone transgender aren’t fully understood. They are most likely a combination

of environmental and biological factors. These studies teasing out the biological mechanisms and characteristics of transgender individuals anatomy are important for more than validating transgender identities and informing the larger population: they are also essential for measuring health effects that hormone treatment can have on transgender individuals. Ultimately, something so tied in with personal identity shouldn’t have to be scientifically validated to be respected. However, in this time of overwhelming

1. Berta, P., et al., Genetic evidence equating SRY and the testis-determining factor. Nature, 1990. 348(6300): p. 448. 2. Sinclair, A.H., et al., A gene from the human sex-determining region encodes a protein with homology to a conserved DNA-binding motif. Nature, 1990. 346(6281): p. 240. 3. Uhlenhaut, N.H., et al., Somatic sex reprogramming of adult ovaries to testes by FOXL2 ablation. Cell, 2009. 139(6): p. 1130-1142. 4. Tomaselli, S., et al., Human RSPO1/Rspondin1 is expressed during early ovary development and augments β-catenin signalling. PloS one, 2011. 6(1): p. e16366. 5. Nguyen, H.B., et al., What has sex got to do with it? The role of hormones in the transgender brain. Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, 2019. 44(1): p. 22. 6. Smith, E.S., et al., The transsexual brain–A review of findings on the neural basis of transsexualism. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 2015. 59: p. 251-266. 7. Allen, L.S., et al., Two sexually dimorphic cell groups in the human brain. Journal of Neuroscience, 1989. 9(2): p. 497-506. 8. Garcia-Falgueras, A. and D.F. Swaab, A sex difference in the hypothalamic uncinate nucleus: relationship to gender identity. Brain, 2008. 131(12): p. 3132-3146

ignorance flickering various forums and media, it does help.

past social

Personally, researching the scientific basis of my gender identity has given myself a sense of affirmation and credibility with something about which I had previously felt uneasy and ashamed about.

Background photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

How to stay safe in your bindeR G By AJ Binder Basics What is a binder? A chest binder or binder is a singlet or crop-top like garment that has the magical property to reduce or flatten the chest for people who desire a more neutral or masculine appearance. Typically worn under the shirt it gives a +1 bonus in being super cool. (note: it’s not magic it just squish) Why wear binders? People who are trans or gender diverse may wear one to ease dysphoria, but there are many reasons why someone may feel comfortable wearing one.

Binder Safety Binders’ power is compressing the chest, but this comes with some long-term safety risks. So, in order to not get ourselves in a bind (sorry, not sorry) it’s good to keep a few things in mind: Don’t bind for more than eight hours I know it can be hard but binding for too long can cause damage to the ribs and spine. It’s important to keep an eye on how long you’ve been binding and be aware of your body’s needs. Try not to exercise in your binder When you exercise your chest needs to expand more than normal. A good binding

alternative for moderate-high intensity activity is a high impact sports bra. Do NOT use bandages or athletic tape Usually, the binding method that is shown in the media, I cannot stress enough how dangerous this is. Binders are designed to compress your chest whilst being flexible enough for everyday movement and breathing, based harm minimisation. Note: Some binder companies (such as T-Kingdom, the discriminant and eBay) are not safe, they are often too small and are not flexible enough for everyday activities.

My binder company recommendations are GC2B, Underworks, FLAVNT, and Shapeshifters.Binder Donations Programs (Point of pride, FtmShed) are a good way to get a binder if you can’t afford one or check in the queer lounge on campus for any that have been donated. Take breaks This is anything from a 15-minute break on the lounge in baggy and/or comfortable clothing, to a full day, but do your best to give yourself a break. During breaks on days that you bind take a few deep breaths and stretch. Do not sleep in a binder In sleep, you need to take deeper breaths as your chest expands, so sleeping in a binder can cause a lot of unintentional damage to yourself. You CAN swim in some brands of binders. One of the few physical activities you can do in binders is swim. GC2B says that you can swim in their binders but to remember to listen to your body and use a binder that’s a size up if possible. Try not to bind every day Bodies need breaks and that includes yours too. Do your best to take regular days off and instead maybe try some binding alternatives like a sports bra and a big ol’ hoodie. Listen to your body If you feel uncomfortable or sore remove your binder. Binding should not be painful,

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remember to listen to and respect your body. Binder Breaks Bonus When you take breaks while wearing a binder try some stretching. Below are a few stretches that you can try. Find a doorway or corner, put your hands a bit further than shoulder width apart, or on the door frames and lean through. Hold for 40-60 seconds. Put your arms above your head, take a deep breath, and cough. Interlock your hands and push forward with your palms away from the body. Hunch a bit, like a cat, to really stretch the back muscles and breathe deep Interlock your hands behind your back with thumbs down and carefully push your hand up and breathe. Stay safe and look cool8

NAME CHANGING j By HANNAH PROASHEK

ften, trans and gender diverse people look at changing their name so that they have one that accurately reflects their gender identity. Whilst the person changing their name might not feel dysphoria from their old name, changing their name to something that matches their gender identity will help them feel more euphoric as it is who they are. Now, if you are looking into changing your name and feel like it’s a very daunting thing to do - don’t worry! We have a lil’ guide here to help you out! One way to change your name without having to do all the legal paperwork is to use a preferred name. This way, you can be referred to by your actual name instead of your ‘deadname’! Just be aware that your deadname can sometimes still come up (like in tutorials etc) and you’ll have to ask them to use your preferred name. The following universities allow for a preferred name change at any time: Melbourne, RMIT, Deakin and La Trobe. This should be the case in the workforce as well as university level. One thing that seems to be specific to La Trobe Uni is that students are able to change their name (recorded name, not preferred) without having to undergo a legal name change! All that is needed is a statement from a medical practitioner or psychologist. However, this does come with it’s downsides - in particular it means that university records

don’t match up with Centrelink so there could be issues there. So, if you are lucky enough to be in a situation where you don’t need to rely on Centrelink, this could be an option for you. Now it’s time to talk about the big bad - legal name change. This is very daunting as it’s so official. Fortunately the process is rather simple as it can be done online. The ‘Births, Deaths and Marriages’ website walks you through all the steps involved in filling out the from so that you can change your name. All you need to do it enter some details about yourself, get someone to sign the paper as a guarantor (someone you’ve known for over a year) and then either mail (or hand into BDM) your original birth certificate. This will take about two weeks to be processed and then you will be known by your new name! Then it’ll be onto filling out paperwork for all the companies that have your deadname and change it to your legal name. 8

queer terms & definitions 0 Queer An umbrella term used for folks who fall under the LGBTQIA+ umbrella. Not everyone is comfortable using this term but many use it as a form of reclaimment.

Non-binary/enby/Genderqueer/Genderfluid A person whose gender identity doesn’t match binary genders of male or female. Their gender could vary from feeling mostly like one gender to multiple genders or even no gender.

Lesbian A person, typically a woman, who feels sexual and/or romantic attraction to people of the same gender

Gender identity A sense of one’s self as trans, genderqueer, male, female or other genders

Gay A person, typically a man, who feels sexual attraction and/or romantic attraction to people of the same gender Bisexual A person who feels sexual or romantic attraction to people of the same and other genders or people regardless of gender Pan A person who feels sexual or romantic attraction to people regardless of gender or sex Asexual A person who feels little to no sexual attraction. Aromantic A person who feels little to no romantic attraction. Trans/transgender A person that doesn’t identify as the gender they were assigned at birth Cis/cisgender A person that identifies as the gender they were assigned at birth Afab: Assigned female at birth Amab: Assigned male at birth

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Pronouns Linguistic terms used to refer to someone in the third person. Examples are: he/him, they/ them or ey/em. Social transition A person makes changes to how they present. This is often done in the form of: name changes, pronoun changes and wearing clothing that affirms their gender identity. Medical transition - hrt, surgery When a person undertakes medical procedures to affirm their gender. This is often done in the form of: hormone replacement therapy, bottom surgery or top surgery. Mogai An acronym that stands for “marginalized orientations, gender alignments, and intersex.”. It is often used as a replacement to LGBTQIA+ Intersectionality A concept to describe the ways in which oppressive institutions (racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, xenophobia, classism, etc.) are interconnected and cannot be examined separately from one another. Neurodiversity The range of differences in individual brain function and behavioural traits, regarded as part of normal variation in the human population.

his year Student Wellbeing organised for Latrobe to walk in Midsumma’s Pride March for the first time! We had a turnout of over 40 people. It was an amazing day! Let us share it with you! “I had a terrific time participating in Midsumma with Latrobe! I felt such warm feelings of pride and joy hearing people cheering specifically for Latrobe as we marched. It was great to see such a large group of staff and students representing and supporting queer students, especially since it was Latrobe’s first time being in the march. It’s reassuring to know that my university is so accepting of and welcoming to queer experiences. It was a very fun day and I can’t wait to walk in the march next year!” - Remmy “This year I had the opportunity to walk with La Trobe Queer Department at the pride parade, it was my second time going and I was nervous because the first time wasn’t so great. I had previously walked with a friend and their group I had no real affiliation to, and I felt alone. It was hard for me because I

MIDSUMMA PRIDE FESTIVAL 2019 suffer from social anxiety and being judged on my appearance is something that scares me. This year however I was surrounded by friends and those I had a real connection to, I wore a rainbow across my chest and even ended up walking in front and holding up a banner! The crowd’s energy was amazing and I had such a wonderful time with the Queer Department who made sure I was happy and comfortable every step of the way. I couldn’t have asked for more at Pride, all my love to the special community we have made and thank you to Remmy for your guiding hand along the way.” - Bronte “It was absolutely amazing marching in the La Trobe group at midsumma! The amount of pride that was visible was just spectacular - it was soo nice to see our community come together and march despite the heat. I feel it’s a reflection of how we felt about our uni; that this is especially the case as it was actually my first time doing the pride march and I feel like it was very fitting that it was also the first pride march of La Trobe! - Hannah

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On 12 March 2019 Student Wellbeing organised organised a tour for La Trobe students at JOY.fm radio station. Here’s what they had to say:

“Seeing the Joy.fm studio was so fun! I really enjoy some of their programs like Triple Bi-Pass, Checkpoint and The Gender Agender so it was exciting to see where they record and what’s involved in making a podcast and live broadcast. I was quite anxious about giving an interview but everyone at Joy.fm was so welcoming and lovely. It helped me relax and feel comfortable. It was a wonderful experience and I’m thankful that Student Wellbeing gives us these opportunities!” - Remmy Hooper, LTSU Queer officer

“As much as I hate the sound of my own voice when it’s recorded and played back to me, having the chance to record at JOY was amazing everybody there was really welcoming, really inviting, and I’d love to be able to go back in the future” - James Brown, Facilitator of Queer Chat

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CULTURE Artwork by Phoebe Moloney

culture

Nina Oyama needs a lift to the MICF Written by Sean Carroll

Nina Oyama, one of Australia’s newest comedians will be performing at the 2019 Melbourne International Comedy Festival (MICF) with her debut solo stand-up show Nina Oyama Needs A Lift. With a regular spot on Tom Ballard’s Tonightly show and appearances in the ABC’s show Utopia, Nina has packed a lot into her young comedy career thus far.

comedy gigs in Australia, the MICF:

In an interview with Rabelais Magazine, she was very casual with what is one of the best

Her show got its name (Nina Oyama Needs A Lift) after she found it hard to stay out of trouble

“[Getting a spot in the MICF] isn’t very hard. It’s not curated so… I probably shouldn’t say that. I can make it sound much bigger than it is?” So, after what she then described as ten gruelling years of comedy school, Nina got a spot in the 2019 MICF.

as a young person who had moved from Sydney to Bathurst in her early twenties, “I moved to the country and did a lot of speeding, I got pulled over by the cops. A lot. And growing up and figuring stuff out while also getting in a lot of trouble with the law.” That trouble with the law includes losing her license four times and raking up a huge debt to the government through fines and a notably large Christmas Day fine where she was caught 40 km over the speed limit. An autobiographical style show, Nina draws from real life experiences when performing her routine. It begins with her talking about her first speeding fine after she just got her license. She believes that this one of the best styles of stand-up comedy: “I also love when you tell stories that are autobiographical and true, and I think that makes them more interesting, rather than the outright fictionalised show.” “I really liked Alexis Dubus, he also does Marcel Lucont, he does this awesome kind of spoken words story a few years ago at the Tuxedo Cat which is really amazing called Girls in Cars… and also Corey White’s show, The Cane Toad are all kind of shows that I think have really come from a special place.” Nina seems engrossed in the comedy scene. The scene that she is now a part of, but she still has high praise for people that are now her peers. She has fond memories of visiting the comedy festival as a teenager: “I just remember being so starstruck. During comedy festivals, comedians that you watch on the TV are just wandering the city, it’s very surreal and I remember going ‘oh my god, I just watched Marc Maron’s show and here he is drinking coffee’ and it blew my mind. “So, it’s really crazy being a comedian myself and being, well, that comedian that drinks a coffee and maybe people will go ‘oh that person’s a comedian’.” Following the MICF, Nina will continue to work on a show she is working on, The Angus

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Project that has a pilot on ABC iView which, holding true to her preference for true stories, follows the life of Angus a 20-year old with cerebral palsy and his hopeless carer Erika (played by Nina). “And it’s based on my real friendship with Angus, who plays Angus which is good to see an actor with cerebral palsy actually play someone with cerebral palsy for once. But it’s based on our real friendship when we were in Bathurst, we used to get up to all kinds of crazy stuff and we want to change people’s perception of disabilities with the show, so I’m really looking forward to working with that after the comedy festival.” Nina Oyama Needs a Lift will be showing at the MICF in the Ladies’ Lounge at The Forum beginning on March 28th with the final show on April 21. Maybe you will see her drinking a coffee around Melbourne and think ‘hey, that’s the comedian I’ve seen on TV’. 8

That gold street sound and melbourne’s soul hub 5

The Australian music scene is very strong, but it seems the Melbourne soul scene is bigger. Written by kristen settinelli What is Melbourne soul?” I ask. Within seconds, Steve answers, “It’s like a really little hub, I’m not sure why. There’s a lot of artists that have come out of Melbourne recently that are producing really great soul music. It sits afar from just typical soul music.” Meet Steve ‘Foss’ Forss, the driver (and drummer) of That Gold Street Sound. Within the Melbourne Soul scene sits eight-piece band That Gold Street Sound - influenced by the likes of The Bamboos, Amy Winehouse and most importantly, the sounds around them. What makes this band so unique is the scene it sits within, thriving off participation and knowing how to get a rise from even the shyest punter. “There’s a good community vibe. Bands supporting and seeing other bands perform, always willing to help out,” says Forss, “we could go off and play with other bands and hear what they’re doing, and it’ll inspire us to go try different things. Anyone can just pop out from anywhere, but it’s all a part of a little hub making a great scene.” A fundamental part of their vision of Melbourne soul is taking performances to the next level. “The show is the aspect that takes us apart from other bands,” says Forss. “We like to involve the audience in ways that they don’t generally get involved in the performance. Whether it’s singing, clapping, we might even hand someone an instrument or let someone sing into a microphone. Building a real party and collaborative atmosphere with the audience.” Completely self-funded and managed, the band took recording and writing to the next level, bringing listeners 100% independent Melbourne soul. Their debut offering “Trick of the Light” brings to fruition six years of hard work and storytelling for the band. The 10-track album takes listeners on a journey through disco undertones, R&B influences, slow jams

and soulful romance, making it evident that the band have been performing together for years and rely on performing live. “The show is the aspect that takes us apart from other bands. We really try to perform and not just, play a bunch of songs. We involve the audience in our live performance,” says Forss. “We don’t dedicate enough time to writing new material, we spend all our time out playing and performing. That’s why we play music because we love being on stage performing.” Having gone through a transformation musically, personally and with the change of a few members, the band replicates elements of the Melbourne soul scene into their own sound, maturing their sound and songwriting over the duration of their new album. Although small, the band continues to thrive off the Melbourne soul scene. “We aim to just keep producing really good music, putting on a really good show and just hoping that people coming and see it, experience it and want to be a part of it. We can grow from there.” That Gold Street Sound performed at Rocksteady Records, Lonsdale Street on the 23rd of March but you can find their music and new album Trick of Light on your music streaming service. 8

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CULTURE

RABELAIS MOVIE DATABASE: CAPTAIN MARVEL (2018) 5 “She’s stronger than you think”- Nick Fury BY ANDREW DRAKE

Captain Marvel stars Brie Larson as Carol Danvers, a member of the Kree, an alien race who are in a never-ending war with the green, shape-shifting Skrulls. Plagued with dreams of someone she can’t remember, Carol ends up on Earth after being kidnapped by Skrulls. On earth, she meets a young Nick Fury, who takes her on a journey to uncover the mystery of the person in her dreams. While the film is a standard Marvel origin film fare, the story tries to differ with the aspect of memory loss and discovering Carol’s past. The movie shifts genres between sci-fi with warring alien races and a comedic banter-filled road-trip. Though a strange mixture, it works with the light-hearted tone the film is trying to indulge whilst being complemented by larger elements. The key message in the film of individual strength is well... a little ham-fisted at times is a nice message that can be clearly seen. The weakest aspect of the movie is the script. Brie Larson does a great job with what she’s been handed and brings a fun energy to the role, alongside comedic roles by Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Mendelson. Struggling the most in his character is Jude Law, who gave a lacklustre performance. The soundtrack does a great job of setting the atmosphere of a scene as well as giving energy to some of the action scenes. The start of the movie has a low atmospheric score, helping set the tone of the Kree world. When Captain Marvel arrives on earth the music shifts to the scene of the location, a mix of the 90’s best genres and

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more girl power centric tracks. It adds much-needed personality to the film and some scenes are greatly elevated due to its musical choice. The CGI in the movie varies in quality wildly. Elevating Captain Marvel’s use of her powers and the Skrulls disturbing shapeshifting powers, some of the films scenes take a woeful turn, mainly in the scenes meeting with the supreme intelligence, the Kree’s leader, in a grey CGI lake world. The de-aging effects used on Nick Fury and Agent Colson, for the most part, worked well and are barely noticeable. SFA makeup is noted well on the cast of the Skrulls. The title cards at the end of the movie are a highlight of the film, particularly beautiful, using a night sky motif to great effect. The actions scenes suffer from the movie’s inconsistency, with some being amazing and fun, while others are barely followable. Despite being inconsistent in quality, Captain Marvel is an enjoyable film which brings you along for the ride. The back and forth dialogue between Brie Larson and Samuel L. Jackson is a great addition to the film, as well as Goose the cat being a fun aspect. In terms of preparation for Avengers: Endgame, it’s not essential viewing but there’s enough to recommend watching for a good night. 8 3.5 Angry Ducks out of 5

CULTURE

RABELAIS MOVIE DATABASE: THE RED SHOES (1948) F Lermontov’s Amazing Technicolour Dreamscape BY WILLIAM CHESTERFIELD

Early technicolour films are fascinating for their grandeur; the palettes often striking and vivid, creating a fantastical artifice. As one of the best remembered technicolour films, Powell and Pressburger’s The Red Shoes (1948) is undoubtedly a spectacle, proudly highlighting itself as an opportunity to see ballet on display in luxurious Technicolor. Yet it uses that spectacle to tell a story of obsession and artistry, using the medium of ballet and the lurid colours to examine the characters’ connection to their art and the inevitable conflict that arises as their passions interfere.

under his wing; however, as the film goes on, we see the negatives of his character. His perfectionism leads to intolerance, causing him to fire his leading dancer after discovering she is planning to get married. So, when romance blossoms between Paige and Craster, we know there will only be strife as it goes against Lermontov’s tyrannical demands. Furthermore, after giving Paige and Craster leading roles in performing and composing his new ballet, he enforces strict deadlines and harshly overworks his talent, especially Paige who is tasked with dancing the entire ballet.

Loosely the story follows the tragedy of Vicky Paige (Moira Shearer), a young noblewoman with aspirations to dance with the prestigious Ballet Lermontov, run by the snobbish perfectionist Boris Lermontov (Anton Walbrook). Initially rejected as a spoilt prissy noble, she is given an opportunity to work with her idol, once he feels her passion for the ballet is akin to his own. When defining ballet, Lermontov states “For me it is a religion”, highlighting his devotion as something sacred; Paige in turn challenges this passion when he asks “Why do you want to dance?” to which she responds “Why do you want to live?”, leaving the elite perfectionist stunned for the first time in the film. In this initial stage, Lermontov appears stubbornly tough, but fair in his own way. He gives Paige an opportunity, as well as hiring the young student composer Julian Craster (Marius Goring), after he discovers that the composer of his previous ballet had plagiarised his student Craster’s work. Lermontov first seems a stern and serious devotee yet allows young talent to thrive

This grand ballet performance is the centrepiece of the movie, devoting a solid 15 minutes to the sequence and proudly advertising its performance in the opening credits. The dance itself adapts the Hans Christian Andersen tale ‘The Red Shoes’, a story of a young woman who is tricked into wearing a pair of enchanted red shoes, which curse her to dance until she dies. The tale is an obvious parallel to the plot of the film, showing the strain on Paige’s psyche through metaphor, as she dances through the nightmare scape of Lermontov’s sets. In turn this sequence transgresses the nature of ballet, through the intrusion of filmic language throughout. The changing camera angles creates a more intimate connection between the viewer than would be possible through a stage show. The Red Shoes themselves become a stronger image because of how much of the screen they dominate in close ups, their seductive red hue contrasting against the drab dark backing.

This is particularly prominent when they are put on; though the shot only lasts a second, they consume the screen as Paige leaps into them, the lacing tying itself around her leg like a pair of demonic tendrils. The dance sequence deliberately clashes with the otherwise realistic period piece mood, entering a surreal landscape wherein the stage seems to disappear, the sets changing seamlessly, stretching endlessly into a void of darkness. An image stuck in my mind is that of Paige dancing with a man dressed in derelict newspaper imprinted costume, only for the man to disappear in a jump cut to turn back into a newspaper puppet; cementing this scene as a magical space which defies the laws of the stage, drifting instead into the dreamscape of cinema. It is unfortunate then that this sequence is undercut by the actual relationship between Paige and Craster, which feels underdeveloped, hardly sharing scenes before they off and elope from the company. Admittedly the surprise may be the point, highlighting Lermontov’s shock and hypocritical refusal to tolerate emotions such as love interfering with his art. Yet I could not help but feel the lovers had little in common besides being young and pretty. The biggest link may just be that they are both artists, dedicated to their craft to a fault. Craster makes it clear from his introduction that he considers ballet a lesser art form, whereas Paige and Lermontov worship, inevitably causing tension. Yet while Paige stops dancing in order to marry Craster, his career blooms, going on to work on a successful opera. While it is clear he does not object to her dancing, only interfering in her return to perform the Red Shoes, because of the spiteful ultimatum the

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Lermontov gave the couple. However, he still acts as a roadblock to her desires for grandeur as a dancer, his career being allowed to thrive while hers dies to play the supporting wife. In turn Lermontov can represent the caprice that producers can have over their talent, demanding they ignore their humanity in order to work with him. Yet it is also clear he is not beyond human emotions, being driven by jealousy following Paige’s rejection of him; in one scene smashing the glass of a mirror out of rage, leaving his hand bleeding and torn. This act of anger shows the destructive nature of his rage, harming himself but also foreshadowing the harm it will do to others, when it drives Paige to commit suicide by leaping in front of a train. The performance following her suicide is an absurd show. We see the ballet performed again but this time without its lead dancer, instead a spotlight follows where she would be, highlighting the hole her death left in the company. It is an eerie spectacle, as we witness Paige’s untimely death haunting the show in her absence. One gets the feeling that this is the death of the Ballet Lermontov as well; the impresario’s avarice and obsession having killed his star and left his company broken. In turn Paige’s dying request for Craster to “take off the Red Shoes”, echoes the ending of the faerie tale, but also symbolizes her dying freedom from the role that caused such emotional strain. It is a tragic ending which offers no real solution nor life beyond it’s hyperreal shots, closing with cautionary death and sorrow as any good fairy tale should.

the arcaDEm Here are a few bits and pieces for your enjoyment. Or procrastination.

A REALLY HARD MAZE

We recommend you use a pencil for this one.

word of the edition Canker /’kaŋkə/ (Noun)

“to corrupt or become corrupted”

copy this below

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Rabelais | Edition Two

RABELAIS Edition Two

EDITORS IN CHIEF

Sean Carroll Christopher Graham

CHIEF OF STAFF

Tynique Dimcevska

CONTRIBUTORS

John Dewar Abood Shehada Remmy Hooper Hannah Proasheck AJ Max Taylor Claire Kearns Hannah Lyons Abe Kortekaas Taffy Davenport Cathy Langley Astrid Lenne Emma Noack Axele McKellar Astrid Lenne Haylo Roberts Coco Axford Justine Sless Depasheni Thirumoothy Jan Trisha Sanchez Andrew Drake Will Chesterfield

ARTWORK

Xion Kelly Phoebe Moloney Claudia Morando-Stokoe

ILLUSTRATIONS

A A

Alexandra Leighton

COVER ART

“Delicious” by Chris Graham

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STUDENT WELLBEING

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