Historically Significant Gay Nude Beach Fails In Heritage Bid

An application to list a historically gay beach on New South Wales’ heritage list has been rejected, leaving locals feeling angry and disappointed.

Just south of Byron Bay, Kings Beach has been a significant cultural space for local queer communities for at least fifty years, but some documents can trace gay activity on the beach back to the 1930s.

It became especially important during the AIDS crisis in the 1980s, with memorials held there, and the ashes of those who passed scattered on its shores.

The married couple who lodged the application, Rohan Anderson and Jonathan Lee, met at Kings Beach more than ten years ago. They haven’t been provided a reason for the rejection.

A Heritage NSW spokesman told the Sydney Morning Herald that the NSW Heritage Council, determined the beach did “not meet the threshold” for a listing.

Heritage NSW has acknowledged LGBTQIA+ significant sites previously, adding the Imperial Hotel to its list earlier in the year for the role its played in gay Australian history.

Anderson says NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) has repeatedly ignored the queer history of Kings Beach, and had omitted its strong ties to the gay community in the site’s management plan.

“To be left out of the history of the place, is outrageous, really,” he told CityHub.

“They just don’t want us there. They see us as a problem, other than as a community to celebrate.”

Locals say Kings is one of the “best gay beaches in the world”

Locals were hoping that state recognition of its cultural significance  would help preserve the beach as a significant gay refuge, after encroaching government influence began to threaten its sanctity.

Earlier this year, NPWS began to enforce non-optional clothing at the beach, erecting signs along the beach, and sending officers to patrol its shores.

An alert added to the NPWS website in 2024 acknowledges the importance of the space for the LGBTQIA+ community, but “due to the increased visitation and the shared nature of this beloved destination, Kings beach is not a clothing-optional area.”

The alert was taken off of the website after locals wrote to Heritage Minister Penny Sharpe.

In a statement to CityHub, NSW NPWS said that it recognised the “long connection that the LGBTIQA+ community has had with Kings Beach” and that it “does not wish this to diminish this in the future.”

Anderson said that Kings Beach was one of the “best gay beaches in the world” and attracted visitors from all over the world.

“This is so much more than a nude beach. This is where we go to meet our people and our community. It’s not like there’s gay bars in the Northern Rivers,” he said.

“It’s not like we’re just a bunch of deviants that go down there. We’re so much more than that. We’re a beautiful, creative queer community.”

However, locals aren’t letting the rejection deter them, with people frequenting the beach “more than ever”.

Organisers plan to continue lobbying for government recognition.

“You can’t just tell us that we don’t exist, with the stroke of a pen,” Anderson said. “Queer people have always had to fight for their right to exist.”