Gaining recognition from the LGBTQIA+ community
Written by the AUREA Team
Word count: 499
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Solidarity - unity of feeling or action, especially among individuals with a common interest;
or: mutual support within a group
One of our main goals as a community is to be seen and to be heard. As individuals we hope for the same from our peers, our families, from the media we consume, and from the world at large. This isn’t unusual or unheard of, almost everyone is fighting for something. For us within the aromantic community, we’re fighting for equal rights, an end to prejudice, and friendly recognition. Nobody is going to give us the things we want and deserve so we must take up the mantle of all the queer people before us, and reach out.
For all the strife and infighting that comes with any large community, especially a multinational one, the LGBTQIA+ community has made some fantastic progress over the years. We may still be looking at unfair treatments and outlawed acts, but those restrictions are lessening bit by bit. That progress has been made by people of all orientations coming together, and that is why the progress continues to be made.. At the end of the day, that is what makes the LGBTQIA+ community.
We’re all in this together
Every country, every region, and every city has made different progress in different areas. No two places are the exact same, so while it is easy to say that LGBTQIA+ identities aren’t accepted, it can be much harder to say how, especially when talking in a general sense. What applies in one culture may not apply in another, not to mention, this is even before we start splitting it down by such things as social and political progress. The general reception for aromantics tends to be that we are first and foremost unknown; beyond that we are discounted, and often treated as a cause for concern. This is nothing new, of course, rather how the world generally reacts to orientations and genders that are not straight or cis. The LGBTQIA+ community is unfortunately familiar with this reaction, and that is exactly why we need their allyship.
If we want aromantics to become known, if we want to reach all those people who will resonate with the aromantic label, we need a platform.
What is the well known LGBTQIA+ group in your area? These are the people who could help you, whether it is to promote an aro group, or spreading the word about ASAW. There are a couple of ways you can go about this.
Get in contact
Keep it simple and to the point. Whether you do this through email, social media, or a good old fashion phone call, you want to be prioritising information. Tell them what you’re asking and how they can help. At worst they’ll say they can’t help, at best you’ll be given access to a whole range of established resources. It’s worth the risk.
Our online community, where the majority of our work gets done, is fairly removed from other LGBTQ+ people. It is unlikely that people outside the aromantic community know what is going on inside of it. By delivering information to LGBTQIA+ groups we can multiply our audience and invite allies to the table.
Volunteer
We began this article with the definition of solidarity. These large LGBTQ+ organisations are often busy and overworked, while the smaller LGBTQ+ organisations can have the exact same problems, on top of a smaller resource pool. It is safe to say a lot of the queer community has only heard the definition of aromantic, with the their knowledge being that we exist. As important as it is that we have our own separate community, it is vital that aromantics be seen and heard by the LGBTQ+ community, not to mention included.
Solidarity is all about showing up and giving support. While many of us aren’t in a place right now to be aromantic in public, to give our limited time, or simply don’t have the means to volunteer, this is what will make a difference. It is a difficult and scary thing to join a queer group for a number of reasons. It is an act of trust, and solidarity is built on trust.
What you can offer
Volunteering can look like anything from going to group meetings, to sharing your skill sets. Here at AUREA we have a general, permanent call for translators out. Anyone of any language can volunteer their time to translate parts of this website and their assistance allows for this website to have further reach.
Making connections and becoming known are powerful resources as they give you access to other people’s connections, prominence, and resources. If you give, there’s a good chance that when you need it, those people you’ve helped before will give back.
What they can offer
The Trevor Project, an American crisis intervention and suicide prevention service, integrated asexual resources into their training and services back in 2015. There’s no lip service in this act. A great deal of our community is asexual and in America. If they need someone to talk they can contact the Trevor Project and be absolutely sure they will be given help. Imagine knowing, for certain, that a well known LGBTQ+ organisation is there for you, and that you wouldn’t have to explain what aromanticism is to them first. That knowledge alone could do wonders for the aromantic community at large, just to have some recognition.
To give our community its much needed growth and support we’re going to have to put in the work. We’ve already seen so much growth from the aro community, and in the years to come we’ll see more and more projects crop up that are aro-centric and aro-inclusive. This is a guarantee, something aromantics will see into fruition. Just as we are gaining recognition, so too will the rest of the LGBTQIA+ community continue making their own strides. As we chart our course let’s keep solidarity in mind, let’s make those strides together.