Durham LGBT+ Association

ALT LGBT+ ASSOCIATION Welfare wednesdays 17-03-2021 - welcome to week 10! - signposting: switchboard lgbt+ - signposting: more lgbt+ charities - Pet of the week! - this week's drop-in

ALT WELCOME TO WEEK 10! Welcome back to Welfare Wednesdays! We've (almost) made it to the end of term! It's been a difficult term for many of us, and as welfare officers we'd like to extend our love and empathy towards everyone who's been struggling recently, to any extent. We'll be less available over the Easter break and potentially also the exam period, but we plan to resume drop-ins next term. We hope you have a restful break. Stay safe and look after yourselves! - Peter & Amy

ALT SIGNPOSTING Switchboard LGBT+ Switchboard are a national LGBT+ helpline who provide information, support and referrals for LGBT+ people. They can be contacted via phone, online chat or email and are open from 10am-10pm every day. You can find out more at https://switchboard.lgbt/ or call the helpline at 0300 330 0630. In an out-of-hours emergency, you can also contact Crisis Messenger at any time by texting "Switchboard" to 85258. This will connect you to someone who is aware you may need support regarding your LGBT+ identity, but the Crisis volunteer you speak to is not guaranteed to identify as LGBT+ themselves. These links are available at durhamlgbta.co.uk/welfare

ALT SIGNPOSTING LGBT Foundation LGBT Foundation are another LGBT+ charity based in the UK who provide support and resources for LGBT+ people. They are open from 9am-9pm from Monday-Friday and 10am-6pm on weekends. You can find out more at https://lgbt.foundation/ or call their helpline at 0345 3 30 30 30. Stonewall Stonewall are an LGBT+ charity providing information and resources for LGBT+ people. They have an information service which is open from 9:30am-4:30pm Monday-Friday. You can find out more at stonewall.org.uk. These links are available at durhamlgbta.co.uk/welfare

ALT According to the 2020 BBC Creative Diversity report, “often those from lower socio-economic backgrounds are depicted negatively, fuelled by stereotypes and seen as the object of ridicule”. One example of this is Little Britain. Maybe the most well known character, Vicky Pollard is a teen single mother, who plays on the “chav” stereotype, which is commonly thought to be an acronym for “council housed and violent”.

ALT In addition to this, Vicky is shown to have difficulty in articulating herself (with catch phrases such as “yeah but no but yeah but…”), is consistently shown to be breaking the law and also being a neglectful mother. Little Britain uses Vicky Pollard to project these negative stereotypes onto the working class. These harmful stereotypes can be seen in other TV series, like Shameless, and in reality TV shows, such as the Jeremy Kyle show and The Only Way is Essex. In both of these last two examples, negative stereotypes surrounding the working class are not only showcased but often scripted and twisted, to create a “grotesque caricature of the working class”(Owen Jones).

ALT In 1970, the first pride march took place in NYC, organised by the Gay Liberation Front, who formed as a result of the 1969 Stonewall riots. The GLF dreamt of social transformation… “an inclusive queer utopia that embraced the whole rainbow nation” (The Guardian), regardless of class, background, gender, sexual identity or religious belief. “It advocated unity and solidarity between all victims of injustice” (The Guardian).

ALT LGBT+ ASSOCIATION Welfare wednesdays 10-03-2021 - welcome to week 9! - lockdown wellbeing campaign - signposting - weekly challenge! - Pet of the week! - this week's drop-in

ALT WELCOME TO WEEK 9! Welcome back to Welfare Wednesdays! There's not long left now until term ends and we can take a bit of a break! This Monday was International Women's Day - a perfect time to check out our new LGBT+ women's community (now on instagram @dulgbtwomen) - one of the wonderful communities run by our identity reps. This week we're going to talk a bit about COVID-19 risks that are associated with the LGBT+ community and signpost one or two charities which we haven't mentioned as much over the last term! - Peter & Amy

ALT LOCKDOWN WELLBEING Are LGBT+ people at increased risk of COVID-19? There are a number of factors which may increase your risk of COVID-19. Many LGBT+ people will be at no additional risk due to their identities; however, according to LGBT Foundation, LGBT+ people are: * Less likely to access healthcare when needed * More likely to have HIV (which can be a risk factor if your CD4 count is less than 200) * More likely to be homeless or living in an uncertain housing situation * More likely to smoke * Less likely to keep physically active or eat well and these factors are all associated with an increased risk of COVID-19.

ALT SIGNPOSTING Galop Galop are an LGBT+ anti-violence charity who run the UK's national helpline for LGBT+ domestic abuse. They also deal with hate crime, sexual violence, trans advocacy and more, with resources, specialised helplines and referral services. Information on all of their services is available at http://www.galop.org.uk/ Gendered Intelligence Gendered Intelligence are a charity dedicated to supporting gender diversity and helping trans people. They specialise in educational services, youth work and public engagement. You can find out more about what they do here: http://genderedintelligence.co.uk/ These links are available at durhamlgbta.co.uk/welfare

ALT class outside the uk

ALT Over the last few weeks, we’ve covered several important aspects of classism, ranging from Durham-specific experiences of classism to accent discrimination and stereotypes. These aspects, while invaluable to conversations around not only class but also its intersection with other marginalised identities, have largely centred around UK culture. As this is the one of the last weeks of the classism segment of the CIA, we want to highlight the differences in class structures globally, as well emphasise the fact that this post is simply a tiny reflection of a much larger issue, of which we have only managed to scratch the surface.

ALT India India’s caste system divides Hindus into four categories, with Brahmins at the top and Shudras at the bottom – it not only works as a barrier to social mobility, but also embeds itself into other aspects of society. Caste affects elections, causes hate crimes, and even influences marriage (inter-caste marriages, though increasingly common, are historically taboo). Dalits, the most marginalised of groups in the hierarchical system, have been formerly given the name ‘achhoots’, meaning untouchables.

ALT Although the system dates back 3,000 years, it was reinforced by the British Raj (or British colonisers) in order to ‘efficiently’ govern the population. Sanjoy Chakravorty, discusses this in depth in his book, The Truth About Us. He argues that this structural hierarchy was actually largely defined by the British through the elevation of certain ancient scripts (especially the Manusmriti) to canonical status. In an opinion piece for The Guardian, he mentions that “pre-colonial written record in royal court …show little to no mention of caste”, and that it was colonial rule that turned it into “India’s defining social feature.”