Always was, always will be Aboriginal land.

 

The University of Sydney Library acknowledges that our buildings, collections, and practices exist on unceded Aboriginal lands. We recognise the diversity and knowledges of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff and students across all the lands the University stands on, and respect the ongoing connection Aboriginal people have to these lands, their cultural practices, knowledge systems and histories. We pay our respects to their Elders, past and present, who have handed down custodianship to each generation for more than 60,000 years. 

 

Money, J. (2021). Yilabara (Now). Filmed on Gadigal Country. Commissioned by the University of Sydney Library

First Nations Hub

LGBTQIA+ community

We're dedicated to providing a safe, inclusive, and welcoming environment for LGBTQIA+ people

LGBTQIA+ Liaison Officers

Our LGBTQIA+ Liaison Officers work to provide an inclusive environment by connecting LGBTQIA+ students and staff to community, events, resources and services offered by the Library and University. LGBTQIA+ Liaison Officers are found across campus in various departments and faculties. All Liaison Officers undergo training coordinated by the University’s Pride Network and Diversity and Inclusion team.

  • LGBTQIA+ Liaison Officers

    Our LGBTQIA+ Liaison Officers work to provide an inclusive environment by connecting LGBTQIA+ students and staff to community, events, resources and services offered by the Library and University. LGBTQIA+ Liaison Officers are found across campus in various departments and faculties. All Liaison Officers undergo training coordinated by the University’s Pride Network and Diversity and Inclusion team.

  • James Hannigan (he/him)

    James is a Site Services Assistant who has worked across the University and Library for over fifteen years, bringing a wealth of kowledge and experience to the Library’s LGBTQIA+ initiatives. 

    Caitlin Erbacher (she/her)

    Caitlin works in the Project Team, delivering events and initiatives aimed at making the Library a safe and welcoming space for LGBTQIA+ and First Nations clients. 

    LGBTQIA+ events and exhibitions

    Our staff participate in events on and off campus that support and celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community, including Mardi Gras, Wear it Purple Day, Pride Culture Club, and in-house exhibitions that highlight the Library’s queer collections. Keep an eye on our social media channels and follow us on Instagram and Twitter/X for the latest LGBTQIA+ events taking place.

     

    In 2022, the Library commissioned local artist Jeremy Smith to create a piece commemorating key moments in the LGBTQIA+ history of Sydney. This artwork—titled Queer Sydney: A History—now hangs proudly in the central stairwell of Fisher Library.

  • LGBTQIA+ events and exhibitions

    Our staff participate in events on and off campus that support and celebrate the LGBTQIA+ community, including Mardi Gras, Wear it Purple Day, Pride Culture Club, and in-house exhibitions that highlight the Library’s queer collections. Keep an eye on our social media channels and follow us on Instagram and Twitter/X for the latest LGBTQIA+ events taking place.

     

    In 2022, the Library commissioned local artist Jeremy Smith to create a piece commemorating key moments in the LGBTQIA+ history of Sydney. This artwork—titled Queer Sydney: A History—now hangs proudly in the central stairwell of Fisher Library.


  • A large-scale hand-drawn pen drawing, featuring bright colours and fine details, depicting key moments in the history of Sydney’s queer community. It moves visually through history in a clockwise motion, from Indigenous origins to present day, making seen a history that has been often unseen, celebrating and memorialising that history. A large-scale hand-drawn pen drawing, featuring bright colours and fine details, depicting key moments in the history of Sydney’s queer community. It moves visually through history in a clockwise motion, from Indigenous origins to present day, making seen a history that has been often unseen, celebrating and memorialising that history.

    Queer Sydney: A History by Jeremy Smith

    LGBTQIA+ resources

    LGBTQ+ Source database

    LGBTQ+ Source is the definitive database for LGBTQIA+ studies. It provides scholarly and popular LGBTQIA+ publications in full text, plus historically important primary sources, including monographs, magazines, newspapers and videos. It also includes a specialised LGBTQIA+ thesaurus containing thousands of terms.

    LGBTQIA+ resources

    The Library's collections contain a rich array of LGBTQIA+ treasures, including seminal works of analysis like Judith Butler’s Gender Trouble, classic literature by beloved authors such as James Baldwin and Virginia Woolf, and modern-day novels, memoirs, comics and essay collections.

    Spotify playlist

    To celebrate the diversity and creativity of the community, we have created an LGBTQIA+ themed Spotify playlist, featuring some classic party anthems.

    Peerpod

    Peerpod is a podcast created by current students employed by the Library as Peer Learning Advisors. In episode 18, they speak with staff from the Library’s LGBTQIA+ Ally Group and the University’s Pride Network about the importance of personal pronouns and how to be an ally.

    Pronouns and gendered language

    We recognise the range of pronouns associated with diverse genders and respect people’s right to inform the Library of the pronouns they use. Many Library staff display their pronouns on badges, email signatures and on web conferencing software.

     

    We have undertaken a review of gendered terms used on the Library website, and have developed guidelines for the appropriate use of pronouns in Library-created content. This initiative is a first among Australian academic libraries.

  • Pronouns and gendered language

    We recognise the range of pronouns associated with diverse genders and respect people’s right to inform the Library of the pronouns they use. Many Library staff display their pronouns on badges, email signatures and on web conferencing software.

     

    We have undertaken a review of gendered terms used on the Library website, and have developed guidelines for the appropriate use of pronouns in Library-created content. This initiative is a first among Australian academic libraries.

    Read our guidelines for gendered terms
  • ACON icon

    Welcome Here project

    The Library became a registered member of the Welcome Here Project in 2019. Run by community health organisation ACON, the Welcome Here Project highlights businesses and organisations throughout Australia that are visibly welcoming, inclusive safe spaces for LGBTQIA+ people. 

  • Welcome Here project

    The Library became a registered member of the Welcome Here Project in 2019. Run by community health organisation ACON, the Welcome Here Project highlights businesses and organisations throughout Australia that are visibly welcoming, inclusive safe spaces for LGBTQIA+ people. 

    ACON icon Learn more about the Welcome Here Project