In this guest blog, Routes2Success Programme Coordinator, Nisha Bhatia, interviews Saba Ali, an independent advisor on Gender Equity and Hate Crime. Saba recently joined the R2S role-model and mentoring team to help support our work with ethnic minority children and young people in London. This blog was originally written to honour LGBTQ+ History Month in February.
Can you introduce yourself and explain how your work relates to young LGBTQ+ people?
I’m a lived-experience trauma and discrimination adviser, and speaker working with many governing bodies to facilitate change, including the Crown Prosecution Service’s scrutiny panels for London Hate Crime and Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG); the Metropolitan Police Service’s LGBT+ Independent Advisory Group and their Trans and Non-Binary Forum.
I am also the co-chair for their Learning and Development Community Reference Group. Outside of these roles, I’m a trustee for Building Bridges for Peace who promote peace and conflict transformation, and a Community Ambassador for The Vavengers working to end Female Genital Mutilation and other forms of VAWG.
My work is about speaking up for marginalised communities, especially young people so that there is trust and confidence between governing bodies and that young people understand the services and processes available to them.
It’s also important that they know their rights and give themselves permission to speak up and know that there is support out there and they don’t need to suffer in silence. There is a lot of misinformation and fake news out there so it is important they have mentors and elders that can advise them and or speak on their behalf.
From your experience, how might those from ethnic minority households, especially children of migrants, experience being queer/queerness differently than their counterparts?
Content warning: mention of sexual violence.
If they are growing up in a culturally conservative household or where faith is practised, being queer/LGBTQ+ may be stigmatised, frowned upon or forbidden. This can mean a young person questions their identity and may be confused, which can affect their mental health and this can be a very lonely place.
At the extreme it can also lead to conversion therapy, often referred to as conversion torture for young people, forced marriage, corrective rape and in some cases honour killing because it will disgrace the family’s reputation or ‘izzat’.
Could you speak more about how intersectionality is often overlooked when we talk about the LGBTQ+ community?
One of the things I’ve noticed from my work with various institutions and organisations is that everything is seen through a heteronormative and Western lens so doesn’t take into account the diversity and richness of the many multicultural communities, especially in London. Cultural nuances are often overlooked because they are not understood or recognised. Perpetrator behaviour – for example, a parent not allowing their child to speak to someone of authority, therefore controlling the narrative, or a male figure using physical force – is thought acceptable. This is often associated with some forms of cultural practice and young people especially are left out of the picture because parents or carers will control conversations.
Within this, when you look at other forms of intersectionality, we ignore other aggravating factors. So we might look at someone as LGBTQ+ but ignore their disability, class, faith, age etc. and don’t break down the layers of their identity.
How are hate and gender-based crimes often an extension of that, especially as Black, Brown, Queer and Trans people often face the highest level of hate crimes?
Leading from the question above, when a young person might report a homophobic or transphobic hate crime that might be all that gets recorded on the police report. But, what if the victim is also a Muslim Trans woman? – then you need to take into account whether the crime was Islamophobic and misogynistic because these aggravating factors can change the level of charge and sentence.
We also live in a society where the current level of racism, sexism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, and homophobia are on the rise – you just need to read the Casey Review into police conduct or look at social media and the venom and vitriol that it targeted against these communities.
The Home Office hate crime statistics support this and unfortunately, in my personal opinion, I believe some political leaders and the media are also stoking culture wars and this only scares the general public who may already have conservative and right-leaning views.
What are some resources that support members of the LGBTQ+ community? What are ways for non-queer people to show their support and allyship?
I really like Gay’s The Word‘s resources section for the community, because they break recommendations down into sections, and include a cross-section of information such as on Coming Out, Charities, Organisations, Medical and Legal support etc.
For Trans students, Trans in the City recently set up a Trans and non-binary student ambassador scheme which is brilliant and I highly recommend it!
You recently applied to be a role model at Routes2Success. What kind of role model are you looking to be for young queer people today? What kind of message are you looking to spread?
The most important thing for me is for young people to know there is nothing wrong with them, there are many, many young people out there just like them and they are awesome – they are loved.
I use my voice to let young people know what their rights are, where they can get support, what they can do to get support. Also it’s not just about using my voice, it’s about listening – to let them know they have someone who will listen without judgement, discrimination and within a safe space.
Author: Saba Ali, ARE guest writer and Routes2Success role-model
If you would like to find additional support or information on issues raised by this blog, you may wish to visit the specialist organisations listed below.
Additional resources and links
This charity supports LGBTIQ people of African heritage and the wider BAME community. It was established in 2014 following some Africa countries’ anti-gay laws, persecutions and environment that seek to criminalise LGBTIQ people.
This is a public health community organisation and registered charity dedicated to promoting health, wellbeing and equality for LGBTQ+ communities of colour.
In 2020, in response to the worldwide pandemic, this was set up to fund therapy sessions for Black LGBTQIA+ people, recognising the unique challenges Black LGBTQIA+ people face and the huge mental health toll this can have. The fund initially asked for £1,000 but they were able to raise over £70,000 to fund a number of therapy sessions.
This organisation amplifies the voices of Black queer women in the UK.
This group was created as a safe haven for Black LGBTQIA+ people and allies interested in working remotely. The group posts job opportunities and resources to support Black people currently looking for employment remotely.
This is a newly formed Black-led organisation that aim to support Black trans people in London
Axelle Nasah, a Stonewall Young Campaigner, has set up a new community organisation for Black trans people in the UK. The organisation will support Black trans people in areas such as mental health.
This is an organisation committed to creating spaces of joy and community for queer Black young people. Their work has included the first-of-its-kind research looking into the lives and experiences of Black LGBT youth in the UK within education, healthcare and the home.
Out & Proud African LGBTI (OPAL)
A charity supporting LGBTI+ asylum seekers and refugees in the UK, France, and the Netherlands.
This is a platform, library, arts organisation, and digital archive that amplifies African, Caribbean and Afro-Latinx, and queer stories.
Co-founded by Lady Phyll, UK Black Pride is the world’s largest pride celebration for LGBTQI+ people of African, Asian, Caribbean, Latin American and Middle Eastern-descent, taking place annually in London and hosting community events throughout the year.
