Attitude visits Alice Springs, the queer heartbeat of Australia’s Red Centre

(Image: Tourism NT/Helen Orr)

In the heart of Australia‘s vast outback, where the red earth stretches endlessly under an azure sky, lies an unexpected oasis of queer culture and celebration. Alice Springs, often overlooked by travellers rushing to Uluru, reveals itself as the vibrant, rainbow-hued heart of the Red Centre.

Indeed, this remote town in Australia’s Northern Territory boasts one of the highest proportions of lesbian couples in Australia, with a 2016 census showing that female same-sex couples represent about one in 100 of all co-habiting couples.

Its queer-friendly reputation dates back to the early 1980s, when a women’s peace camp at nearby Pine Gap drew hundreds of feminist activists, many of whom stayed, drawn by the beauty of the landscape and opportunities to work with Indigenous communities.

READ MORE OF THIS POST AT Attitude