No matter what industry you belong to, what your background is, or what path you have chosen, there is one thing that is certain – in life, everything is about people. People make our societies tick, they make life worth living, and it is the diversity and uniqueness of each person that colors our planet so beautifully. At PQE Group, we value everyone who works with us as we grow stronger and more expansive. Our vision is to cultivate a multicultural work environment with no discrimination, where transparency and respect come first. One of the ways we do this is through our avid allyship toward the LGBTQ+ community.
Supporting the LGBTQ+ community beyond the scope of Pride Month is crucial to building sustainable societal progress. Acceptance of a person’s sexuality and gender identity requires acknowledgment that they are natural and real, which is necessary 365 days out of the year, not solely for June. Transgender, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming people are a normal part of human history, stretching across continents and time. In the United States, somewhere between 10 and 15 million adults identify in these categories.
Since “being woke” has become a trend and a competition, the dangers of performative activism have skyrocketed, leading to many people and businesses painting themselves in a falsely positive light that is opposite of what their true actions and intentions entail. As the leader of an organization that strives to be the change we wish to see in the world, our efforts are everything but performative. We also maintain them all year – and are hoping you will too!
Here are some great ways to show support for the LGBTQ+ community:
Promote equality and acceptance for all individuals, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. A great way to promote acceptance is to support or volunteer at organizations that advocate for equality and educate yourself and others about different lifestyles. By learning about various cultures firsthand, we begin to deconstruct our inherent biases while understanding and empathizing with other people’s experiences.
Support and empower the LGBTQ+ community, which has historically faced discrimination and marginalization, through inclusive language.
Allyship through words and actions takes learning and practice. Speaking with inclusive language, such as asking others their preferred pronouns and rejecting offensive terminology, helps eliminate discrimination and obstacles that cause inequity, ostracization, and violence. By doing this, we can also diminish our predispositions for negative language and use a more secular and inclusive vocabulary.
Listen to and amplify the voices of those that are typically unjustly silenced.
Representation matters, and so does the amplification of stories and people often underrepresented and robbed of deserved spotlight and opportunity. Suppose the next generation of LGBTQ+ youth has limited media or supported public representation. In that case, some young people may think that you must act, dress, or look a certain way to be considered a part of the community. On the contrary, there is never one way to “be,” we are perfect as we are, and the planet is full of diverse people of all shapes, sizes, colors, genders, and sexualities. It is crucial to make it known that there is no barrier to cross to be valid in your identity, and it’s something adequate representation can help solve.
Our PQE Group team strongly believes our success is tied to the well-being of the community and the environment to which we belong, and we aim to enhance the lives of each person in and beyond our doors. Individuals and companies integrating allyship into their daily lives help create change and send a positive message of support to the LGBTQ+ community. Together, we can cultivate an inclusive world where everyone is celebrated for exactly who they are.
