How many times have you seen a form that says something like “Gender: Male, Female, Other” or “Mother and Father”?
On an individual level, questions and data that exclude LGBTIQA+ South Australians serve to invalidate our experiences and perpetuate feelings of invisibility for our communities. On a systems level, this systemically erases LGBTIQA+ identities and means we’re left behind when policies, laws and services are planned.
LGBTQIA+ inclusive data collection on forms and in statistics is vital to:
- encouraging LGBTIQA+ people to feel safe and included
- demonstrating to LGBTIQA+ people that the service is a safe and supportive place for them
- identifying barriers and gaps in service provision for LGBTIQA+ communities
- developing strategies and approaches to create LGBTIQA+ appropriate services
- changing practice to include LGBTIQA+ communities.
Below we’ve provided guidance on how to respectfully and sensitively ask for information about a person’s sex, gender identity, sexual orientation and intersex status. This is based on both the: