Inger Wærstad (born 1951)

Translator's Note: This is a machine-assisted translation completed on May 30, 2025. While care has been taken to maintain accuracy, this translation has not yet undergone human review or validation.

Wærstad grew up in Telemark and now lives in Oslo. She previously lived in Tromsø, where she was also active in queer communities during the 1980s.

In our interview, Wærstad speaks about her upbringing and early adolescence in an environment where being queer was entirely unknown and never discussed. She later moved to Stavanger to study at the College of Social Work. After completing her education, she relocated to Tromsø for work, where she encountered an organized queer community for the first time. She later moved to Oslo, where she settled with her partner and had a son in 1985.

In an excerpt from the interview, she discusses the challenges of being a lesbian. She has also been involved in efforts to engage with the Islamic Council of Norway to clarify its stance on queer issues.

Wærstad has been deeply committed to women's rights and gender equality. She was involved in founding the Children's Helpline and the Crisis Center in Tromsø, and also contributed to the establishment of Norway’s mediation councils (conflict resolution boards).

The full interview is available in our reading room. Skeivt Arkiv met Inger Wærstad at her home in Oslo, September 2019.