This week is Diversity Week, an annual event aimed at raising the awareness and visibility of sexuality and gender diversity. One of the features we have in this issue, written by Kyra Gillies, is called ‘Think Pink: a 101 of Pinkwashing in New Zealand’ and delves into the corporate practice of putting forward an LGBT friendly image in order to tap into LGBT support and take the spotlight off other unethical practices they continue to pursue.
The LGBT community has faced an unbelievable amount of prejudice and discrimination throughout history, something which I, as a straight, white, male, will probably never truly understand the gravity of first hand. No matter how you look at it, and no matter how far we’ve come thus far, New Zealand has a lot to answer for on this issue. It’s easy to look comparatively at the LGBT situation in global leaders such as the US, China, or Russia and think we’re special in light of their failures to protect the LGBT community, but we have a long way to go yet to ensure equality.
In each of the six flats I have lived in throughout my time as a student, I encountered sexism, racism, homophobia, and transphobia on a regularly basis; things which I think are much more prevalent than people think. It’s a worrying feeling when you just become accustomed to hearing these derogatory comments and begin questioning whether to speak up to defend these minority groups. However, I would regularly tell them that their view was incredibly hurtful, prejudiced, and unbelievably offensive—the use of the word n****r for example; casually using the term ‘gay’ derogatorily; likening Caitlyn Jenner to Frankenstein’s monster; the list goes on—but the response would always be the same: they would say that they were not being serious or immediately jump on the defensive, rather than addressing it.
The situation is less ‘casual’, however, when you consider some of the statistics. According to a paper in the Journal of Adolescence Health, for example, approximately 40 percent of transgender students had had significant depressive symptoms and nearly half had self-harmed in the previous 12 months, while one in five have attempted suicide over the same period.
But the lack of statistics are equally as worrying. The Human Rights Commission has said that a “lack of official data collection, including any census questions on sexual orientation, [was] a serious impediment to advancing the rights of sexual and gender minorities.”
The problem doesn’t lie solely at the door of the people who spout offensive and derogatory phrases, but at society’s, as does the solution. The issue is much bigger and more important than your self-image among your friends group. Swim against the tide and stand up against bigotry and intolerance wherever you encounter it.
Joe Higham
Critic Co-Editor