Carmen Rupe

The fearless Kiwi queen

Colorful photo collage of Carmen Rupe
Transgender activist and drag performer Carmen Rupe paved the way toward equal rights in New Zealand.

A timeline of Carmen's extraordinary life:

  • 1936: Born Trevor Rupe in Taumarunui on North Island, New Zealand on 10th October
  • 1955: Conscripted into military service, she begins training as a nurse; performs as American cabaret star Eartha Kitt during a concert despite fears of fellow soldiers' reactions — for which she receives a standing ovation
  • 1957: Moves to Kings Cross in Sydney, Australia where she adopts the name Carmen, gets breast implants and becomes the first Maori drag performer
  • 1966: Arrested for being dressed as a woman during a routine traffic stop. The case makes legal history when the judge rules cross-dressing to be legal
  • 1968: Fed up with harassment in Sydney, Carmen moves to Wellington and opens a popular coffee lounge/brothel frequented by artists and politicians alike

“As soon as I heard about the drag shows opening there I said ‘bye bye men’s clothes’. I’ve never put anything on since. Never.”
~ Carmen on becoming a drag queen

  • 1975: She is summoned to appear before the Privileges Committee by Prime Minister Robert Muldoon for suggesting some MPs are gay or bisexual
  • 1977: Runs for the Wellington mayoralty, with the slogans get in behind and Carmen for mayor on a platform of gay marriage and legalised brothels
  • 1980: Returns to Sydney after being heavily fined for making a "blatantly homosexual advance" to an undercover constable
  • 1988: Publishes her autobiography, Having A Ball: My Life, outlining her escapades "from school boy to successful business woman"

They used to take us into the police station and give us a hiding and beat us up. I was locked up... about a dozen times. But it made me a stronger person today."
~ Carmen on being harassed by police

  • 2003: Inducted into the Variety Hall of Fame
  • 2008: Rides her mobility scooter topless at the head of the Decade of the Divas float at the Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
  • 2013: Passed away on 14th December from kidney failure
  • 2016: Four sets of traffic lights in Wellington's central business district are fitted with green pedestrial lights depicting Carmen for the 30th anniversary of the Homosexual Law Reform Act

“Carmen Rupe was an icon for Sydney's Transgender community and a tireless advocate for GLBT rights. She was a quiet achiever who spent decades as a volunteer with many organisations who provided support to some of our city's most vulnerable people.”
~ Sydney Mayor, Clover Moore

“I admired her strength in living her life on her terms and standing up against discrimination.”
~ Wellington Mayor, Celia Wade-Brown

“She was put on this earth with the sole mission to pave the way for so many and to make their journey easier and that is just what she has done.”
~ Former Grey District Councilor Jacquie Grant