Issue #24 Monday, 07 August 2023
Dear Subscriber,
Welcome to the latest issue of the LGBT Great News Digest, a short briefing on the 5 LGBTQ+ news stories you need to know about. Also, please see below for a few of our upcoming highlights for August and September.
iiBT | Drop-In Sessions (20/08 and 01/09) Join us to hear more about our LGBTQ+ DE&I benchmarking programme, the iiBT. In these short drop-in sessions, we will share findings from our 2022 submissions and walk you through the process and benefits of completing the iiBT. **The iiBT deadline for 2023 submissions is 30th September 2023.**
ROLE MODELLING | Project 1000 As part of our mission to empower 1 million people by 2030 and to make financial services the industry of choice for LGBTQ+ top talent, we are inviting nominations for the following role modelling schemes:
Not sure whether you have the right "qualifications"? You're not alone! Research shows that women and members of other under-represented groups tend not to apply for roles when they think they may not meet every qualification, when in fact, they often do. If you're an LGBTQ+ person or ally and have taken action to further LGBTQ+ inclusion, we'd love to receive an application.
Outside of our cyclical recognition schemes, did you know anyone can apply to be part of Project 1000 Role Models and Allies? Don't be shy - submit your application HERE!
Best wishes,
The LGBT Great Team |
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| 1. New report finds 84% LGBTQ+ workers out to at least one co-worker |
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On 1 August 2023, the Human Rights Campaign released a new report on the experiences of LGBTQ+ workers in the US. It found that 84% of LGBTQ+ workers are out to at least one person in their current job, a 30% increase from 2018. However, only half of LGBTQ+ workers reported being out to their HR department. _____ Our View: The report also discovered that 51% of the respondents had not disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity in at least one job due to privacy concerns and 40% due to the fear of being stigmatised or facing violence at work.
These findings paint a mixed picture. On the one hand, the 30% increase potentially speaks to the growing comfort of being out in the workplace. However, on the other hand, building trust around how that data is captured and used remains a barrier for organisations wishing to improve data disclosure, to overcome. |
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| 2. Nepal passes landmark ruling on same-sex marriage |
| On 28 June 2023, Nepal’s supreme court passed a historic ruling allowing same-sex couples to register for marriage. Nepal’s civil code describes marriage as a union between ‘a man and a woman’, which is now under amendment by the Cabinet and Parliament to include same-sex couples. _____ Our View: In the last two decades,Nepal has emerged as a trailblazer for LGBTQ+ equality by becoming the first South Asian country to decriminalise same-sex relations in 2007, followed by the legalised registration of gender-diverse folks as third gender or ‘anya’ (Nepalese) in 2008.
However, a study from the UCLA Williams Institute in 2014 found that 60% of LGBTQ+ respondents in Nepal reported experiencing at least one incident of discrimination or abuse at some point in their lives. This evidence suggests that legislation is not enough on its own to improve the lived experience of LGBTQ+ people.
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| 3. Putin signs law banning gender-affirming care and marriage rights |
| On 24 July 2023, Russian Prime Minister Vladmir Putin signed a bill into law which bans ‘medical interventions aimed at changing the sex of a person’, which includes gender-affirming surgery and hormone replacement therapy (HRT). The law also annuls all marriages where a trans person is involved, and bans child adoption for those couples. _____ Our View: Anti-LGBTQ+ legislations have been rapidly enacted under Putin in the past year. These have included the signing of an expanded law in November 2022 to more harshley punish citizens for spreading ‘LGBTQ+ propaganda.'
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| 4. Only 3% of queer Brits use ‘trans-exclusive ‘LGB’ |
| On 28 July 2023, YouGov released new data which surveyed 969 LGBTQ+ Britons and found that only 3% use trans-exclusive ‘LGB’ acronym. The acronym ‘LGBTQ+’ is used most widely with a 29% share, followed by ‘LGBT’ (21%) and ‘LGBTQ’ (13%). _____ Our View: Amidst growing anti-trans sentiment fuelled by commentary, in addition to record-high trans hate crimes, it is encouraging to see that the British LGBTQ+ community uses acronyms that are inclusive of the ‘T+’.
The role that inclusive language has to play should not be underestimated. These small acts of linguistic inclusion are symbols of affirmation for the trans community.
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| 5. Peruvian court paves the way for legal recognition for same-sex unions |
| On 21 July 2023, a Peruvian high court passed a landmark ruling ordering same-sex unions to be legally registered in public records. The ruling comes after a gay Peruvian citizen sued the marriage registration office for denying the registration of her overseas marriage. _____ Our view: Peru is one of the few countries in Latin America which does not recognise same-sex marriage. A 2021 Ipsos survey found that 68% people in Peru were in favour of same-sex marriage or other forms of legal recognition, however 61% people disapproved of having LGBTQ+ people in office.
This ruling indicates that the door to LGBTQ+ marriage equality is firmly open; we hope to see this become a legislative reality in the very short term.
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Applications for new Corporate Members are currently open. If you would like to find out more about the membership options with LGBT Great, get in touch today via this short form. |
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Disclaimer The information contained in this newsletter is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by LGBT Great and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability, or availability with respect to the newsletter or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained in the newsletter for any purpose. All the quotations in the news are presented as originally published. LGBT Great does not necessarily share the views of the quoted authors and is not responsible for the accuracy of the information or quality of the analysis provided by them. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk. |
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