Home | Kawe Mahara Queer Archives Aotearoa (formerly LAGANZ)

Kawe Mahara Queer Archives Aotearoa
formerly Lesbian and Gay Archives of New Zealand: Te Pūranga Takatāpui o Aotearoa (LAGANZ)

The Archives are owned by a charitable Trust and housed in the Alexander Turnbull Library of the National Library of New Zealand, Wellington.

We collect, preserve and make available for research the records and personal papers of queer and takatapui people and organisations in Aotearoa New Zealand. Our collections are focused on people who identify with diverse sexual orientations, gender identities, gender expressions and innate variations of sex characteristics.

Collections

What We Collect
Jack Goodwin Collection - Books, serials, pamphlets.
Manuscript Collection

Digital Archive Project

Volunteer

Activities range from working bees on collections, outreach activities, helping at events, and supporting our digitisation and metadata initiatives. Some of these you can do at home.

Volunteer Drop-in Sessions Online

Every Thursday, 7pm-7.30pm via Zoom.

Join us for a chat, to get quick feedback or demos on your current activity, or to find out which activities are a good fit with your skills and interests.
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87514323134?jst=2 (no password, we use a waiting room).

Visit the Archives

Collections are held at the National Library building, cnr Molesworth and Aitken Sts, Wellington.
Contact the Curators for an appointment or research enquiry.
Guide to Using the Catalogue

Resources on this Website

Audio from the Homosexual Law Reform Debate - Searchable database of audio recordings.
Serials List - Newsletters, community newspapers and journals held in the collections.
List of MS Papers - Records of groups and individuals in the collections.
Homosexual Law Reform Retrospective.

Links

GiveOUT Day raised $4,800 for Kawe Mahara

Thank you for your support!

Sign up for KAMP - Knowledge And Memory Pack for Queer History Month Aotearoa — Pūmahara Ia Te Wā

Kawe Mahara is developing a digital resource with practical tools and suggested activities to celebrate your way in July.

LAGANZ Name Change to Kawe Mahara

We recently consulted about changing the name of LAGANZ and we received 371 survey submissions and emails - thank you! 80% were in favour of a name change.

Kawe Mahara means we will carry the memories of all our queer communities from the past, present and into the future. We have chosen this name to be radically inclusive and to uphold our commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Read about the Board's new decisions arising from the Name Change to Kawe Mahara Queer Archives Aotearoa.

Latest Newsletter

Read the latest Kawe Mahara Friends and Volunteers Update - 6 May 2025.

Events

Working Bees with Digitised Index Cards via Zoom
Feb: Sun 22 (2pm-3pm));
Mar: Sun 1 Mar (2pm-3pm)2026.
Saturday Working Bees with Collections
Mar-May: Dates TBA.

Kawe Mahara Trust

Kawe Mahara Trustees own the archives on behalf of the community.
The Trust's objects.
History of the archives: Out of the Ashes.

Friends of Kawe Mahara

Join the Friends of Kawe Mahara. Or consider making a donation.
Friends receive occasional newsletters and invitations to Kawe Mahara events.

Make a Bequest

Advice on leaving a financial gift in your will.

Books for Sale

Twenty Years On: Histories of Homosexual Law Reform (2009)
Outlines: Lesbian and gay histories in Aotearoa (2003) - Out of print, borrow from public and academic libraries.

Oral History

Kawe Mahara Queer Archives Aotearoa formerly Lesbian and Gay Archives of New Zealand: Te Pūranga Takatāpui o Aotearoa (LAGANZ)

Volunteer Drop-in Sessions Online

GiveOUT Day raised $4,800 for Kawe Mahara

Sign up for KAMP - Knowledge And Memory Pack for Queer History Month Aotearoa — Pūmahara Ia Te Wā

LAGANZ Name Change to Kawe Mahara

Latest Newsletter

Kawe Mahara Queer Archives Aotearoa
formerly Lesbian and Gay Archives of New Zealand: Te Pūranga Takatāpui o Aotearoa (LAGANZ)