1. KERRY DIEKMANN & SARA BENDORAITIS AMERICAN UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR DIVERSITY & INCLUSION Making an Inclusive Environment for LGBT People

2. Program Outline Understanding LGBT Identity  Definitions & vocabulary Understanding Climate  Homophobia, heterosexism, barriers, & coming out Supporting the LGBT Community  Ally behaviors & supportive policies/programs

4. Understanding LGBT Identity Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Other identities?

5. Heterosexism leads to: Assuming everyone is heterosexual Seeing heterosexuality as natural Systematic invisibility Policy/regulation inequities Homophobia leads to: Name calling and jokes Humiliation and exclusion Violence and harassment Hatred and intolerance Understanding Climate

6.  I am the person who never knows which bathroom I should use if I want to avoid getting the management called on me.  I am the mother who is not allowed to even visit the children I bore, nursed, and raised. The court says I am an unfit mother because I now live with another woman.  I am the domestic-violence survivor who found the support system grow suddenly cold and distant when they found out my abusive partner is also a woman.  I am the domestic-violence survivor who has no support system to turn to because I am male.  I am the father who has never hugged his son because I grew up afraid to show affection to other men.  I am the girl kicked out of her home because I confided in my mother that I am a lesbian.  I am the prostitute working the streets because nobody will hire a transsexual woman.

7.  I am the sister who holds her gay brother tight through the painful, tear-filled nights.  We are the parents who buried our daughter long before her time.  I am the foster child who wakes up with nightmares of being taken away from the two fathers who are the only loving family I have ever had. I wish they could adopt me.  I am the woman who died when the EMT’s stopped treating me as soon as they realized I was transsexual.  I’m a man who never feels totally at home, I fear judgment from my African American community because I love other men, and I face racism within the gay male community because I’m Black.  I am a man whose gay friends don’t believe I’m bisexual, and neither do my straight friends. I am not comfortable or accepted for who I am in either community.

8. 90% Trans folks who experience discrimination in the workplace Understanding Climate Barriers  Harassment, homophobia, and nuanced signals in the workplace  Policy vs. practice  Lack of support for LGBT people of color  Lack of support for transgender employees 62% report hearing jokes lesbian & gay jokes 43% report hearing bisexual jokes 40% report hearing transgender jokes

9. Understanding Climate: Coming Out Process of understanding, accepting, and valuing one’s LGBT identity Risks  Not everyone is accepting  Relationships could change  Potential harassment Benefits  Building self-esteem  Reducing stress of hiding your identity  Helping to dispel myths & stereotypes 53% Hide who they are in the workplace 53% Hide who they are in the workplace

10. Supporting the LGBT Community: Best Practices for Organizations Demonstrate institutional commitment  Make policies clear and inclusive  Integrate LGBT issues and concerns in workplace education & leadership training  Respond appropriately to anti-LGBT incidents/bias Improve recruitment & retention efforts  LGBT Employee Resource Group  Offer access to comprehensive counseling & healthcare (employee assistance programs)  Measure and collect LGBT info on climate surveys  Include LGBT info in recruitment materials

11. Supporting the LGBT Community On a personal level  Be visible  Don’t assume heterosexuality or gender identity  Use inclusive language  Challenge stereotypes and confront homophobic/heterosexist comments  Respect how people choose to name and identify themselves  Integrate LGBT content in your work  Familiarize yourself with resources/policies

12. Remember… LGBT terminology is not absolute. LGBT experiences vary and depend on context and intersections with other identities. There is no one way to “come out” and it is a life- long process. When in doubt, ASK! Be genuine instead of avoiding the topic or messing it up.

13. Resources Out and Equal: www.outandequal.org The National LGBTQ Task Force: www.thetaskforce.org Human Rights Campaign: www.hrc.org National Center for Transgender Equality: www.transequality.org Lambda Legal: www.lambda.org PFLAG: www.pflag.org GLSEN: www.glsen.org

14. Questions & Answers What questions do you have?

15. Contact Us Sara Bendoraitis: sara.bendoraitis@american.edu Kerry Diekmann: diekmann@american.edu