How can you engage LGBTQ+ individuals in community outreach?

"Armchair Allies" is a wonderful term for a problem we all see in this space. Thanks for sharing it Michael. I will borrow it.

For your LGBTQ+ audience to be fully present, you need to make your standing clear: there will be full company support to their community and you will stand behind them, enable them to thrive to their fullest potential, and allow them to share their voices and their stories. There is still significant resistance to LGBTQ+ individuals in the workplace - so the first thing we can do is tell them "it is safe to be who you are around here", and "we have your back". There is no other community that needs more encouragement and endorsement in today's corporate world than the LGBTQ+ one.

Engaging LGBTQ+ individuals in community outreach in religious South Asian cultures like Pakistan can be challenging due to the stigma and discrimination they face. LGBTQ+ community is deprived of many inalienable basic human rights and dignities. The discrimination they face is nothing short of catastrophic. The first thing to do in my opinion is to desensitize the general public. Even mentioning LGBTQ+ or any issues like feminism or sex education or rape etc is considered not only taboo but blasphemous. People are not ready to talk about these things. Such issues are simply hushed and brushed under the carpet. We have to be able to talk about these issues without "shame". Only then we can build a foundation for community outreach.

When working to understand your LGBTQ+ audience, remember that education is key! Try hard to not rely entirely on a member or members of the LGBTQ+ community to teach you everything you need to know. Plenty of folks have produced amazing educational material on LGBTQ+ topics. Follow your intellectual curiosity, seek these materials out, ask for trusted recommendations. It is all of our jobs to recognize that we have incomplete bodies of knowledge and that what we do posses is likely fraught with assumptions and biases. Education and re-eduation is our work to do! And we cannot stop there for awareness is essential but insufficient. We need to put that knowledge into (inclusive) action!

Consistency is key! Establishing trust and trust-based rapport is not a one and done achievement, especially these days when surface-level commitments are easy to identify and are routinely called out, privately and publicly, as performative. Showing up consistently, showing up vocally, and standing up for (not just standing behind or alongside) the community when they are in—and most importantly, when they are not in—the decision making "rooms" is key. That's sponsorship and real allyship, versus words of commitment with little to no meaningful action backing them up.

While supporting LGBTQIA individuals in their own community is vital, the true impact lies in dismantling barriers and championing their cause in influential spaces where decisions are made. Imagine LGBTQIA support echoed in boardrooms, bars, around dinner tables, and in private discussions and religious spaces. This goes beyond vocal support; it's about actively opening doors to spaces traditionally closed off to marginalized voices. By empowering LGBTQIA individuals as decision-makers, we ensure their experiences and insights shape institutions and communities that have historically marginalized them. The strength of their voices should resonate not only in familiar territories but also in spaces where systemic change can take root.

One thing I've found helpful to get started as a leader is that the assessment needs to be done on two levels. Both via an anonymize survey ass well as individual conversations. We are often not capable due to the size of organizations to talk to everyone individually, but finding a balance between the two works well.

We no longer have need for "armchair allies", those who would claim to support us but do little to create or enhance inclusion opportunities inside our workplaces or beyond. Advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community - a community that is under severe and constant attack inside our workplaces and out - requires visible action and real commitment. It needs those with privilege to use that power and influence to make room for those without it. Standing behind us and standing alongside us is no longer enough. We need allies to stand in front of us. To take some risks. To fight the fight for us. That's how measurable and lasting change will come to be.

While this may be the 'sixth and final step' in some situations, in other cases it will need to be one of the first. Because there will likely be some people within the LGBTIQ+ community who are reluctant to engage at all unless and until you've demonstrated that you're on their side. And this doesn't just involve advocating on comparatively 'easy' or popular issues like marriage equality, but also on other topics where there might be more push-back from anti-LGBTIQ+ groups, like standing up for the rights of trans and gender diverse kids and their right to access gender-affirming health care.

In our diverse world, no one encompasses every marginalized identity—race, gender, LGBTQIA+, indigenous heritage, disability, religion or more. Despite our differences, everyone has the potential to be an ally, provided they have the emotional capacity. However, let's remember two critical aspects: firstly, an ally's badge is not self-assigned; it's earned through active engagement with the community; and secondly, being an ally isn't a static state; it's a continual journey of improvement. Advocacy demands ongoing self-reflection and genuine engagement. It's a humbling process, acknowledging that our allyship must evolve. The key is a commitment to learning and accepting that allyship is not a destination, but a compassionate journey.