Equity?

Equity embodies values, policies, and practices that ensure that all people — and, in particular, those who have been historically underrepresented based on race/ethnicity, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, socioeconomic status, geography, citizenship status, or religion—are represented in the development of policy; support; the nurturing of accessible opportunities; and the fair distribution of resources.

Authentically represented.

If you’re working in the equity space and the authentic voices of those listed above are not being heard, then you’re doing more harm than good. If you’re an ally, your job is to empower those authentic voices, not to be a stand in for those voices. It’s complex because the voices are diverse: for example, my voice is an authentic voice on some LGBTQI issues because I am a transgender woman, but I am not Māori or disabled so should support and empower those who are but be silent in those spaces.

This is important to me because being excluded from a place build for inclusion hurts. Being replaced as an LGBTQI voice by a middle-aged, middle class, straight white, cisgender male is an appalling miscarriage of everything that is even peripherally reasonable even when that man is a thoroughly nice, well-intentioned fellow.

Hasn’t this entitled demographic accumulated quite enough privilege already?

Enough though.

We had to fight, often physically, for homosexual law reform, for the right to openly love who we choose to love without becoming criminalised? We had to fight for civil unions and, subsequently, for marriage equality. My community is still not protected under the Human Rights Act, and we had to fight even more to have the right to change our birth certificates to truly represent who we are and at minimal cost. We have yet to win the battle to outlaw the appalling conversion therapy – but we will.

It’s been over 40 years fighting in the equity space for me and I’m tired. All that time plus 11 more years fighting for workers’ rights. I’m tired, and we seem to be going backwards, again, especially when the authentic voices of my community are silenced because straight, white men – who know nothing – think that, of course, they do, and that they know everything that needs to be known about everything and that, of course, they always know what’s best.

So looking forward to the final curtain.