The Tasmanian Government has recognised asexual, aromantic and agender people by officially adding “A” to the acronym LGBTIQA+.
Tasmania is the first state to make the move which has been hailed by advocates as a step forward for inclusion and equity.
Advocates for Tasmania’s asexual, aromantic and agender community made the case for inclusion to the State’s Whole-of-Government LGBTIQ+ Reference Group (which will now be the LGBTIQA+ Reference Group).
The decision to officially include asexual, aromantic and agender people was made by a meeting of the secretaries of all state government departments.
Samuel Watchman, who advocated for the reform and identifies as a-spec (a member of the asexual, aromantic and agender community), said,
“The asexual, aromantic and agender communities remain some of the most highly misunderstood, mistreated and misrepresented LGBTIQA+ communities due to the lack of awareness for asexual, aromantic and agender identifying peoples’ experiences.”
“However, with the government recognising our existence by expanding the acronym, our identities and experiences have been, and will forever be, validated, inspiring future change that will improve the acceptance, treatment and perception of asexual, aromantic and agender identifying people in Tasmania, across Australia and around the world.”
Ash McCullough, who advocated for the reform and identifies as a-spec welcomed the decision.
“I’m proud to live in a state that is once again leading the way in sending the message: you can have authentic relationships with yourself and others, however that looks for you.”
“This is a step forward not just for people who identify as asexual, aromantic or agender, but for the entire Tasmanian community.”
Equality Tasmania spokesperson, Lucy Mercer-Mapstone also voiced support for the change.
“Equality Tasmania congratulates advocates like Sam and Ash, as well as the state government, for ensuring official references to our community are as inclusive as possible.”
“Asexual, aromantic and agender Tasmanians have been invisible for too long and now have their place alongside other members of the state’s LGBTIQA+ community.”
“Despite being the last state to decriminalise homosexuality, Tasmania has led on LGBTIQA+ human rights in recent years and this is yet another example of that leadership.”
“The job ahead of us now is to build on the government’s decision by ensuring the needs of asexual, aromantic and agender people are recognised and met in government and non-government policy and service delivery.”
Minister for Community Services and Development, Nic Street, said the Tasmanian Government were committed to ensuring no discrimination occurred.
“The Tasmanian Government’s vision is for an inclusive community where all Tasmanians are treated with dignity, respect and without discrimination.”
“In line with this vision, we are ensuring that no one feels excluded or left behind.”
“The inclusion of ‘A’ to the LGBTIQ+ acronym ensures that asexual, aromantic and agender communities have greater visibility, representation and support that they deserve.”
Source: Media Release
You can support our work by subscribing to our Patreon
or contributing to our GoFundMe campaign.
