Pinkalicious girls get exclusive party space

Pinkalicious will be legally able to ban men from its women-only parties after getting a VCAT exemption.
Promoters applied to VCAT in May for an exemption from the state’s equal opportunity laws to allow them to turn biological men away from the event.
Pinkalicious spokeswoman Julie Mackenzie called it a -œhistoric day for Melbourne’s lesbian community in allowing women to freely come together in a female-only event.
-œPinkalicious will be the first exclusively female-only event … targeted at the gay-female community, she said.
-œThere are currently three venues in Melbourne that are exclusively gay male. In applying for the VCAT exemption, Pinkalicious was responding to a significant community need for female-only events.
MacKenzie said lesbians now had a place they could feel comfortable and wouldn’t be subjected to judgement about their sexuality or receive unwanted male attention.
Pinkalicious will be following the lead of The Peel, Sircuit Bar and The Laird Hotel with a policy allowing them to exclude potential patrons of the opposite sex.
It is understood to be the first time an official exemption for a women-only venue has been sought in the state.
Mackenzie said she was thrilled at the exemption which received no objections during the application process.
She also confirmed transgender women would be welcome at the event.
-œWhile targeted at the lesbian community, anyone who is female-identifying is welcome at Pinkalicious … it is an event for women of all shapes, sizes, orientations and tastes, Mackenzie said.
She said the reason Pinkalicious sought the exemption was to ensure all patrons felt comfortable.
-œWe are offering a supportive and open environment for lesbians of any age and for those who have just come out and may lack the confidence to connect with other gay women, Mackenzie said.
Although the decision to stop people entering The Peel Hotel based on gender and sexuality was met with controversy, Mackenzie said there seemed few people opposed to the Pinkalicious ban.
-œWhen we started the night we wanted to do things properly and say we’re legally allowed to do it, she told Southern Star.
-œIt’s not about excluding gay men it’s just about controlling the environment.
Regular Pinkalicous parties will now officially be female-only, however Mackenzie said once or twice a year the event would hold a Pink Handbag night where gay male friends can attend.

info: The next Pinkalicious party will be held on August 15. Celebration drinks are on July 12 at the Red Hummingbird in Russell St from 3pm where further details of the August event will be announced.