Intersectionality on the International Day of LGBTQIA+ People in STEM

Pride in STEM is a UK charity supporting LGBTQIA+ people in Science, Technology, Maths and Engineering (STEM). The charity is one of the leading supporters of International Day of LGBTQ+ People in STEM, which is celebrated annually on 18 November. 

This year we explore the importance of intersectionality in understanding the barriers facing LGBTQIA+ people in STEM. STEM thrives on diversity. Diversity of ideas, experiences, and lifestyles - all of which incentivise and invigorate innovation. Yet there is underrepresentation in the STEM workforce of diverse gender, socioeconomic status, ethnicity and disability. 

Historically, LGBTQ+ people have faced significant challenges in employment, from overt discrimination and harassment to unequal pay and job insecurity. Despite recent laws like the UK Equality Act (2010) prohibiting such exclusion in the workplace, LGBTQIA+ people in the UK continue to report bullying and harassment at work. 

A recent study from UK-based research institutions (the Institute of Physics, Royal Astronomical Society and Royal Society of Chemistry) quantifying the challenges experienced in STEM careers found statistics indicative of a work environment hostile to LGBTQIA+ people:

• 40% of LGBTQ+ people who work in STEM are not out to their colleagues
• 28% of LGBTQ+ people considered leaving their jobs because of a hostile workplace or discrimination towards them
• 50% of transgender and gender non-conforming people have been harassed in their own departments

LGBTQ+ people in STEM are more likely to experience professional devaluation, exclusion, harassment than cisgender heterosexual colleagues. This is even more prevalent for LGBTQ+ people of colour, women, and gender minorities. The compounding factors of intersectionality speak to the need to strengthen all aspects of the STEM workforce.

Sayantan Datta, a scholar-activist from India working on LGBTQ+ inclusion in science, highlights in their research that trans collectives radicalised community building and development by interrupting the dominant institutional cultures. 

Sayantan has created a policy brief advising on the infrastructural and curricular measures required to build a more trans-inclusive higher education space in science. They emphasise that it is the duty of institutions to implement steps to make the space safer and inclusive.

 “We need more representation of marginalised identities in the science ecosystem to challenge and change discriminatory policies. My presence [...] sends a powerful message: we, as queer and trans individuals, are here, and are here to stay.” – Sayantan Datta

Author biog

Amy Buck (she/her) graduated  with a degree in Biology and French from the University of St Andrews, working initially on the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine before moving into science communications. Her most recent work on “Sex Bomb” campaign raising awareness of antibiotic resistant STIs won an UKHSA Antibiotic Guardian Award. She is currently pursuing an MSc in Global Health Policy at the University of Edinburgh.