By Storrm Lennie

RDC event to discuss “What It means to be an LGTBQ+ Ally”

Mar 22, 2019 | 10:11 AM

Red Deer College is hosting a public conversation Tuesday on what it means to be an LGBTQ+ Ally.

Members of the community are invited to hear from and chat with a variety of individuals from the community who identify as allies for the LGBTQ+ community.  

The intent is to raise awareness on inclusion, safety, respect and diversity. It also aims to show allies that they can use their voice to positively influence their peers to create a safer and more inclusive society for everyone, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.

“I hope that it creates a platform for a safe, public discussion to happen about what people can do to demonstrate that they are an ally in their day to day lives. There is hopes of influence and fears of influence and how can they show support, what can they do to promote inclusion and a more equitable society for everyone,” explains Darnel Forro, event coordinator and Social Work Instructor at RDC.

“For instance, if you happen to be in a place of work, what can you do to promote that sense of inclusion for your coworkers, who identify as LGTBQ, so that they feel respected and included? I hope that it makes people more mindful on what it is we can do to promote a sense of inclusion in our day-to-day lives.”

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Each panel member was nominated by the RDC Social Work program, the Social Work Student Society, RDC Pride on Campus, Trans and Non-Binary Aid Society, Central Alberta Pride Society, and Haven.

Forro hopes that the event will encourage people to be more accepting of all- inclusive groups, and believes that hearing it from an ally may help more people understand.

“As an openly gay man, I have been advocating for LGTBQ+ causes for many years and I realized that to a certain extent my voice gets invalidated,” he explains. “There are sectors in society that are unwilling to hear it from an insider’s perspective because they identify as part of the inclusive community. So over the years I have found that if I have a straight friend who articulates their stance as an ally and that they are for inclusion and diversity, it seems like people who may be closed-minded in listening to the message I convey, are more open to hearing it from a person they can better connect with — a person who identifies as straight but also identifies as an ally.”

Forro says that in today’s society, it is very important for LGTBQ+ allies to be heard and he hopes this event will give them the platform to talk about inclusion and share their thoughts.

The month of March is also Social Work Month in Canada, and Tuesday’s event aims to commemorate it as well.

“Social work is one of the very few professions that explicitly states its support for various marginalized societies, including the LGBTQ+ community. So we are looking for more voices to be heard at this event as social work is one of the only professions that explicitly stands on its advocacy for marginalized groups and populations and we feel this event demonstrates that,” noted Forro.

“The hope that I have is that we can raise awareness for the greater community to understand that there is more work that needs to be done and that every individual can be an ally for a marginalized community. The message to really reflect on is what is our role as allies for inclusive groups.”

The event is open to the public and gets underway at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 26 at the Margaret Parsons Theatre at RDC.