News Archive

In May, UWA was ranked – yet again – in the Top 10 employers for LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex) inclusion by the Australian Workplace Equality Index. The award marks the fifth year in a row UWA has been included in the annual list.

UWA’s ALLY Network, a program based on an existing American model and introduced into the Australian tertiary sector by UWA, has been an integral part of our success in LGBTI inclusion. This week, UWA Forward sat down with members of the network to find out more.

“The ALLY Network is a network of supportive people around campus who understand what the issues are [around LGBTI inclusion], so that there’s a safe place for people to go without being judged,” said Fiona Maley, an Ally in the School of Population Health.

“It’s a friendship network,” noted Laurton McGurk, an Ally in the Office of Research Enterprise. “It’s people telling stories and listening to other peoples’ stories and offering a shoulder and an ear.”

“So that rainbow that you see on people’s doors, that’s a sign there’ll be somebody there who isn’t going to be judgemental,” said Fiona. “They’ve made a public commitment to be supportive. It’s a sign that they’re an open minded person that somebody can talk to without having to worry about transphobia or homophobia or whatever.”

There have been over 250 allies at UWA over the ten year period since the program’s launch. Malcolm Fialho, Senior Diversity Officer, said he couldn’t be more pleased with the support the program’s received from the UWA Executive.

“Our Executive Sponsor is [Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor] Dawn Freshwater,” said Malcolm. “Dawn is a highly visible Executive champion, pushing LGBTI inclusion, and without her – even with an army of supporters – our success would have been limited.”

Although there will always be more work to be done, the Allies talked about the sea change in attitudes they’d seen in just the last ten years.

“I’m old enough to remember when you didn’t talk about your personal life,” said Laurton. “You played the pronoun game. I dated a lot of ‘theys’!” she laughed.

“The cultural change has been significant,” said Fiona. “I’ve been ready to say something when I’ve heard homophobic comments and I haven’t had the chance because someone else has stepped in! It’s an amazing feeling to have people defend you instead of having to defend yourself.”

The Allies are always looking for other opportunities to bring people together. If you’re interested in learning more or becoming an Ally yourself, get in touch with Malcolm Fialho on ext. 2252 or via [email protected] .