LGBTQIA+ event series educates and fosters community

Although much progress has been made in recent years when it comes to equal rights for LGBTQIA+ people, many members of the community still face a lack of understanding and exclusion. This can have a significant impact on their mental well-being, says Virginia Grande. At the same time, the prevailing knowledge gap can make it a difficult topic to discuss.

“While the positive aspects of being LGBTQIA+ should continue to be highlighted at events like Pride and by people who feel safe being open about their identity, it’s important to also highlight the downsides. Then LGBTQIA+ people won’t feel as isolated or bereft of the emotional support they can get on non-LGBTQIA+-related issues,” says Ivy Weber, a doctoral student in the Division of Scientific Computing and one of the initiators of the event series.

Umbrella term for queer expressions and identities

The collective term LGBTQIA+ stands for people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or pansexual, transgender, people with queer expressions and identities, people with intersex variations, and those who are asexual or have other identities and orientations. Although the concept has gained increased visibility in society and academia, awareness about what these identities entail is often lacking.

Ivy Weber has experienced this herself. When she came out as transgender at her department, she was met with understanding from her colleagues. But it was also clear that there was a lack of background information about queer identities.

Virginia Grande has had a similar experience: “When I told my colleagues I was non-binary and asked my colleagues to use the pronouns hen in Swedish and they/them in English when referring to me, people would say, ‘Great, I want to support you, but I don’t understand what this is.’ That’s when it occurred to me that it would be more effective if we had a seminar where people could feel freer to ask questions and get good answers from experts on these topics, provided in a safe environment.”

A safe space to share experiences

The events are meant to be more interactive and community-based than strictly academic. Virginia Grande says the goal is to be a safe platform for various voices and perspectives, so that LGBTQIA+ staff and students feel less isolated and like their problems are no longer overlooked by society.

Together with Ana Tanevska, also a post-doc, they are planning next semester’s activities. The last seminar of the autumn will be held on 27 November and will be about the organisational and social work environment for LGBTQIA+ people.

“We’d like to involve more students and staff at the Disciplinary Domain of Science and Technology and include their perspectives, regardless of whether they’re LGBTQIA+. We feel it’s especially important that people in leading positions at the faculty participate in our events and encourage others in their departments and groups to participate; that’s the best way to ensure that people of all identities have a voice in this important conversation,” concludes Ana Tanevska.