It is difficult to be an ally for a community that you may not understand, or may feel uncomfortable with. I hope that this blog has helped those of you who felt hesitant about lending your support. Being an ally is a very positive experience, according to Rostosky, Black, Riggle & Rosenkrantz (2015). They interviewed over 200 cisgender and heterosexual people who identified as allies and found that they reported their experience as being good. Benefits that the participants said they gained from being allies were (a) "increased knowledge and awareness", (b) "upholding values of justice", (c) "beneficial individual relationships", (d) "community belonging", (e) "educating others", (f) "being a role model", (g) "using social privilege", and (h) "speaking out and taking a stand" (pgs. 333-335). These benefits are commonly associated with positive mental health overall. Another study by Perrin, Bhattacharyya, Snipes, Calton and Heesacker (2014) investigated how LGBTQ+ allies are made, and they found that people were more likely to support the LGBTQ+ community if they were already part of a stigmatized group, because their experiences of being stigmatized on another dimension (such as being a person of color, or being a woman) made them feel empathy for LGBTQ+ individuals. If you want to find a way to emotionally connect with LGBTQ+ individuals, it may therefore be helpful to imagine an experience where you have been treated poorly for a part of yourself you cannot change. This will lack the nuances that make the negative experiences LGBTQ+ individuals have unique, but it is a start. The LGBTQ+ community needs allies who will stand with them, and every one makes a difference. For more information on how to get started, check out the "Resources" page.
Below is a video where LGBTQ+ people discuss what makes a good ally.
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