Breaking Barriers: LGBTQIA+ & BIPOC Professionals in International Education

It comes as no surprise that the LGBTQIA+ community faces discrimination in various ways, such as in healthcare, housing, and work discrimination. A quick online search will highlight these inequities from state-to-state. That said, some LGBTQIA+ presence in media would have many believe that isn't the case -- the myth of "gay affluence" as some have called it. One easy way to debunk this myth is to refer to "gay wage gaps" and gender wage gaps. These however tend to exclude race, despite the LGBTQIA+ community being more racially and ethnically diverse than the whole population. While LGBTQIA+ individuals indeed have some representation in International Education, it generally excludes intersections of race, class and gender, which is not an accurate nor acceptable reflection of either the field of international education nor the LGBTQIA+ community as a whole.

Despite the current anti-racism rhetoric in higher education, there still seems to be a serious lack of action regarding visibility, inclusion and intersectionality within it, including in international education. Antiracism is seen by many as yet another "hot topic" rather than structural acts, especially by "white saviors". Another topic is the gender pay gap, which also commonly excludes intersectionality (i.e. racial/ethnic inequities, LGBTQIA+ barriers, etc.). For example, white and Asian women are paid less than white and Asian men respectively, while Black and brown individuals make less than all -- with Black and brown women (especially trans) generally at most risk physically, professionally and financially. Employment is systemically a socioeconomic, racial, health and LGBTQIA+ issue. Thus it's important to self-reflect as universities, companies, organizations, etc. (during Pride Month and beyond), realizing it is not nearly enough to merely include cis, gay white men to join the heteronormative "old boys' club" in our fields. While a snapshot of a gay cis white man may not "give away" identity, LGBTQIA+ BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) individuals are more visibly identifiable.

While many institutions and programs are putting in the hard work for social repair in a "post-COVID" world, the systemic challenges that BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ individuals face require systemic solutions in our own "human infrastructure" within international education -- from entry-level operations to leadership bubbles. It is not acceptable to "go back to normal". International education indeed promotes diversity and inclusion generally but does not fully practice it and excludes equity. Unfortunately, leadership overall nor its hiring processes tend to not reflect the diversity of the populations it manages nor the ones it serves, with LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC individuals generally excluded from or "tokenized" in governance.

International education has a higher turnover rate due to many factors, such as COVID-19 and substantial global immobility, work-related stresses including turbulent federal guidance and immigration, general economic hardships, etc. This all hits hardest for LGBTQIA+ BIPOC individuals. And while international education champions "global citizenship" as a necessity, this current version of "global citizenship" is a mere luxury to so many. The most "basic" requirements for entry into the field inadvertently exclude LGBTIA+ BIPOC, which systemically creates barriers for those communities as a result. For example, a common requirement for entry and mid-level roles in international education is to work, teach, live or study abroad. As most of us know, the cost can be steep with international travel, and it does not help that study abroad programming may inadvertently yet inherently create barriers to the most underserved populations. And even for those who successfully create experiences abroad, the question arises of "Why is there not more representation then?" in the field. As a queer Middle Eastern and North African individual, I have lived abroad and "achieved" these international experiences as an international son of immigrants. However, the "international experience" must be broad and inclusive, including to all domestic BIPOC communities.

It is vital to address the barriers that LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC face both here and abroad. While international students indeed diversify our education system, international education is not as included in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) conversations as it should be. And institutions indeed attempt to diversify their study abroad populations (albeit unsuccessfully) yet fail to diversify their own circles. We must diversify our circles in order to diversify our student populations and programs, and vice versa. Other barriers, such as socioeconomic, also prevent underserved and undocumented communities from experiences abroad. Some have argued to treat domestic travel as "international," but that is a temporary solution which does not ignite structural reforms in response to vast systemic and economic barriers.

Another common entry or mid-level requirement in the field is DSO/ARO knowledge and experience. Yet, we do not seem to effectively acknowledge the triggers and traumas regarding Homeland Security (i.e. ICE, CBP, TSA, etc.) that BIPOC and immigrant populations face -- both for international education professionals and travelling students. Of course international education circles update with the political climate and some have even attempted lobbying government -- but such rhetoric, while supportive, does not necessarily increase inclusion, access nor solidarity towards BIPOC and immigrant individuals. It is bad enough that DSO positions and study abroad experiences tend to favor citizens and permanent residents, so we must break this air of exclusivity by finding lasting roles in the field for those who are not. Teaching, working and living abroad (another common requirement in the field) are also barriers for LGBTQIA+ communities and many women, especially BIPOC individuals. Racial and gender discrimination in employment, academics and society overall can go unchallenged in "the West" let alone in many other parts of the world, and LGBTQIA+ communities are not protected worldwide generally.

In the United States, many trans and non-conforming individuals have been killed so far in 2021, with Black and brown trans women especially targeted -- and the global LGBTQIA+ community as a whole is extremely vulnerable and can face deadly consequences for merely existing. While domestically the Black Lives Matter movement has, to many, shed a light on systemic violence against Black communities, Black individuals are still incarcerated and murdered at exponential rates in the U.S. with Latinx and Indigenous communities not far behind; this includes two-spirit and LGBTQIA+ BIPOC individuals. Thus, during Pride Month and onward we must redefine "global citizenship" to be more inclusive towards LGBTQIA+ BIPOC communities and more proactive in protecting them.

In addition to this physical and emotional violence experienced, LGBTQIA+ BIPOC communities face structural economic violence; 25% are classified as "poor" and 40% of "homeless youth" are LGBTQIA+. This is no accident. Adding to the racial and LGBTQIA+ wage gaps, the current "gig economy" increases economic and racial inequities, especially towards BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities. Of course international education is heavily influenced by the gig economy, which inherently excludes low-income individuals who are LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC from sustainable careers and can increase harm due to part-time and seasonal work, poor benefits, low wages, etc. Simultaneously working in several roles can hinder growth, stability and especially access to healthcare services -- essential to LGBTQIA+ BIPOC communities with health disparities (i.e. addiction treatment, PrEP, hormone therapy, HIV treatment, diabetes, depression, etc.).

For those fortunate enough to globally recruit, there is still a striking lack of diversity. If you speak Spanish and are Latinx, you should be a fit for Latin America and worldwide. If you speak Arabic, you should be a fit for the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region and worldwide. And on and on. So why do white individuals, particularly men, still dominate when there is an eternal pool of diverse talent? Too many have avoided having BIPOC recruiters as "salespersons" abroad out of "fear" that racism will "cost" a client, and many LGBTQIA+ professionals aren't chosen either to recruit because they are believed to "look", "act", or "speak" too "feminine" or "not feminine" enough, etc. Many of our recruitment practices also require structural reforms in ways that are more inclusive and further away from counterproductive, subconscious colonial perspectives. In a "post-COVID" world, the creative and reactive methods we recently implemented ought to thrive and proactively include LGBTQIA+ BIPOC, especially towards those who are neurologically diverse or with different abilities.

The job-seeking process and workplace culture have tremendous effects on LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC success in higher education, including international education. There are many anecdotes in our own circles, and plentiful data, which show the emotional (and economic) toll of discrimination, stereotypes, microaggressions, and unconscious biases on these communities in the hiring process and/or during employment. As a queer MENA individual, I have had my fair share of these experiences. At one of the top universities in the U.S., I was asked "jokingly" during a final interview by an Executive Director if my time management skills were strong enough as "an Arab" -- this touches on the tardiness stereotype of Arabs which some international education professionals still recycle. And I cannot count the times I felt flabbergasted (but not surprised) that a straight white individual with less qualifications and little cultural humility was selected as the finalist. I am sure that experience is far more intense with Black and Indigenous professionals generally. Also, I have been sexually harassed in an office by coworkers; and the implications of that can be harsher for LGBTQIA+ BIPOC. Retaliation is also scarier for LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC individuals, for valid reason. Just because we are in international education, that should not permit the normalization of racist jokes; and just because someone is heterosexual, that does not give permission to touch LGBTQIA+ colleagues or be inappropriate. I must emphasize that while I indeed have run into many barriers as a first-gen, queer, MENA son of working-class immigrants, I have also benefited from episodic white-passing and cisgender privilege myself. I am also sure I have at least once used language here that needs work or I may have omitted a particular lived experience, etc.

To conclude, the current immersion of international education in DEI topics, such as anti-racism programming regarding Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and #BlackLivesMatter, is a great step in the right direction; and international education circles are starting to hear the call to diversify and include "others" to the table. But far more work is to be done, and Pride Month is an excellent opportunity to do so. The LGBTQIA+ BIPOC experience is indeed an international one, and multiculturalism itself maximizes "global citizenship". We need to move towards a wholly restructured "intercultural operation" and not just "intercultural communication". Thus, these communities cannot be pressured to feel the need to assimilate to the "status quo" nor forced to not be authentic when they are in international education circles (i.e. attend conferences, publish, hiring process, etc.). I do not represent everyone in my communities, and international education has a more inclusive attitude than many other fields. That said, we cannot overlook shortfalls regarding LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC professionals and prospects in international education. As cliché as it is, it is not enough for us to talk the talk; we need to walk the walk. How? Let us as a field make this Pride Month (and beyond) about breaking barriers and easing the path for LGBTQIA+ BIPOC individuals to both talk and walk. After all, LGBTQIA+ BIPOC individuals paved the way for overall societal progress; so is it not the right time for our field to return the favor via structural change?