You can create and cultivate an LGBTIQA+ affirming and inclusive environment in the following ways:
😎 Ensure a safe space, physical venue or service site for the LGBTIQA+ people
Based on your risk assessment, explicitly indicate your LGBTQIA-inclusive and affirming services on your official platforms, online and offline, or share them through trusted networks.
Create and display indicators of queer affirmation in your office spaces or shelters. This can include Gender Bear posters, queer-affirming publications, and gender-neutral bathrooms. Examples of LGBTQIA-affirming content can be found at [include links]
🧚♂️Integrating gender-neutral and affirming language in your services
What is the difference between gender-neutral and gender-affirming language?
Gender-neutral language does not refer to or signify any particular gender.
Gender-affirming language supports or validates a person’s gender.,
*Both gender-neutral and gender-affirming languages are essential in building a non-discriminatory GBV response system for LGBTQIA+ and gender-diverse people.
Adopting gender-neutral language:
Use inclusive, neutral language when addressing a person to which gender is not relevant or unknown. Example: Instead of saying “he/she”, use “they”. Instead of referring to “women and men”, use “people”.
Be mindful and tactful of how you address body parts. In the context of GBV and assault, specific language on body parts could be triggering to the client. Example: where possible, use the term ‘genital’ instead of vagina and penis; use the term ‘chest’ instead of breast.
Adopting gender-affirming language:
Make it a habit to include your own pronouns when you introduce yourself, be it in person, live chat, or through the phone. You could include your pronouns in personal communications, such as the undersigned of your email, the introduction of your hotline, and relevant descriptions on your social media.
If you are unsure about your client’s pronouns, do not assume based on their names, or appearance; always ask how they would like to be addressed, and their pronouns.
Example: Hello, my name is Pear and my pronouns are she/her. What is your name and pronouns? What would be the best way to address you?
*Do not refer to clients by their name and gender in their legal documents and assume their pronouns. Only ask for their name as per legal documents if absolutely necessary.
Ensuring language Inclusivity:
Provide information across different languages, including sign language and languages used by refugees/migrants.
If your client is a refugee who needs translation services, please check if the person is comfortable speaking to someone from their country of origin. Note that refugees may come from a hostile context to LGBTQ people, and may be hesitant in talking to someone from their country of origin.
In all cases, if an interpreter or translator is involved, speak to them beforehand to emphasize the importance of confidentiality.
Ensure GBV-related resources and information are accessible to persons with disability by enabling different formats of information:
Provide all information in text-to-voice friendly formats
Embed audio options for written information or forms
Provide the option to adjust font sizes
Provide video and written options
Language sensitivity:
LGBTIQ and gender-diverse people may use terms that are used in pejorative context to refer to themselves or each other due to various reasons - they may not be familiar with other language or terms, or they may use the terms in a reclamatory context to take back power. For example, pondan, bapok, among others.
However, this doesn’t mean service providers should or can use these terms. Service providers must reflect on their power, positionality, and more importantly, the prejudice that they may reinforce and maintain when they use such language. In such a context, service providers should use
advocacy language - lesbian, bisexual, gay, transgender, intersex
respectful “colloquial” terms - Mak nyah, pengkid, People Like Us (PLU)
🪞Self-reflection on practices, including internalized prejudices or bias
Reflection and evaluation are integral to the delivery of high-quality, LGBTQIA+ affirming GBV services and in upholding a survivor-centric approach. Service providers should reflect on their practices and evaluate their service delivery periodically.
Reflective practices enable people to recognize their own assumptions, thought patterns, attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors that influence their actions. It is essential to prevent internalized prejudices or biases from impeding service providers in offering the best care to LGBTQIA+ and gender-diverse survivors. Service providers have a responsibility to maintain impartiality and support survivors, regardless of their personal perspectives. Through self-reflection, providers can better comprehend their biases, thereby avoiding actions that contradict the core principles of non-discrimination, respect, confidentiality, and safety.
It is particularly important to take a step back and practice this exercise when feeling discomfort around a client’s SOGIESC, disability, nationality, or other identities. If it is difficult to remain neutral, service providers should consider referring the client to a more well-equipped person, and work to address their biases.
Reflect on your personal biases and internalized stereotypes: Refrain from expressing discomfort in reaction to client's disclosure of their experiences. While challenging, acknowledge your discomfort and work through them with support from others. Unlearning biases and internalized stereotypes will take time and confronting. However, it is important. It is also important to be transparent about your discomfort with your colleagues and refer the client to others to avoid harmful impacts on all parties, especially in deterring the client’s seeking services.
Maintain neutrality and practice non-judgement: Avoid asking intrusive questions, especially if they are irrelevant to the case at hand. For example, asking a trans woman client if they are a sex worker or her HIV/AIDS status with no prior disclosure.
Guiding Questions to Aid in Self-Reflection,
It is important for every service provider to reflect on their personal cultural identities and the larger cultural factors influencing their actions and worldviews. In the following identity wheel, the inner circle indicates different kinds of cultural identities one might hold, while larger cultural factors are indicated in the outer wheel.
Source: Center for Innovation and Resources, Implicit Bias Workbook, 2013.
The following are some guiding questions for self-reflection.
How has this part of my identity or culture shaped who I am at this moment?
How has my understanding or experience of this identity or culture changed over time?
What have been key experiences that have shaped this part of my identity or culture?
How do I currently feel about this part of my identity or culture?
What is the level of cultural privilege associated with this part of my identity? How has this impacted my experiences growing up?
What have I been taught to think about myself and others based on this part of my identity or culture?
How might certain biases I hold have been shaped by any of the above?
The identity wheel and list of guiding questions are not meant to be exhaustive; rather, they should be read as a starting-point for service providers to explore their identities and the corresponding expertise or biases they may bring to their work with vulnerable clients.
