In the spirit of community, togetherness and a better future, Aleph Melbourne hosted a dinner for 20 people at Miznon in Hardware Lane on Saturday July 26. Coming together for a regular social event, and to support the restaurant following the recent attack, our dinner guests found themselves at a surprise 30th anniversary of the group. To mark the occasion each guest was treated to a handmade memento inscribed with the words “Thank you for being part of our journey” and containing a replica of a flyer promoting the group in its early days.
Aleph Melbourne was founded in January 1995 as a social and support group for gay and bisexual men, at a time where homosexuality was often shunned in the community. Three decades later we’re still going strong as Melbourne’s largest Jewish LGBTIQA+ social, support and advocacy group, now supported by the mainstream community and its leadership.
The team at Aleph Melbourne, under the leadership of co-convenors Colin Krycer OAM and Michael Barnett OAM, have in recent years brought the Jewish community together at the annual Midsumma Pride March, with a sense of hope, optimism, unity and love, in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic and antisemitic hostilities.
Aleph Melbourne helps hold families together, provides a safe and welcoming space, advocates for a more inclusive and representative society, celebrates queer Jewish culture, and builds bridges.
A huge thanks goes to our members, those who founded the group, those who have stayed with us for longer or shorter, and those who have recently joined in.
We want the community to know that an inclusive Jewish community is a stronger Jewish community, and that it must unconditionally protect, nurture, love and celebrate it’s LGBTIQA+ children.
