Unapologetically proud – a Pride Month blog by Emily Weaver-Holding

In her blog, Emily Weaver-Holding, Senior Clinical Trials Coordinator, Trauma and Emergency Care at Manchester Royal Infirmary, celebrates Pride Month.

My name is Emily Weaver-Holding, I identify as a lesbian and my pronouns are she/her/hers. Whilst Pride Month celebrates LGBTQ+ people in June, companies and organisations should have a 365-day-a-year plan for LGBTQ+ inclusion – this includes the healthcare system. Having accessed healthcare as a Queer woman I recognise some of the barriers the LGBTQ+ community face, including assumptions of heteronormative relationships. Within my role within the Trust, I hope I can help to improve such experiences for others. I also hope that being an out and proud member of the LGBTQ+ community, that I can encourage other MFT staff to bring their whole authentic selves to work.

I have worked at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) within Research and Innovation (R&I), for over six years. I started my research career as a Clinical Trials Assistant, progressing to become a Senior Clinical Trials Coordinator overseeing the trauma and emergency care research portfolio across MFT. My role is to provide efficient administrative set-up of multi-centre Trust sponsored studies and I am responsible for overseeing several research projects from start to finish. I thoroughly enjoy working in research, as I get to see first-hand how new treatments can improve patients’ conditions and quality of life. Research is at the heart of everything the NHS does, and I am proud to work for a Trust which is leading the way in providing exceptional healthcare and is invested in improving health and wellbeing for the diverse population of Manchester.

Last year, I had the privilege of stepping into the R&I Equality Diversity and Inclusion Coordinator role and contributing to the Trust’s ‘Diversity Matters’ strategy objectives. R&I is dedicated to increasing and diversifying participation in research studies by identifying and removing barriers which might prevent potential participants engaging in research.

Pride Month is celebrated annually in June to mark the anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, which protested police raids on a popular New York gay bar called the Stonewall Inn, on 28 June 1969. The message behind the uprising was clear — protestors demanded the establishment of places where LGBTQ+ people could go and be open about their sexual orientation without fear of arrest. Despite encouraging progress, the LGBTQ+ community is still oppressed and discriminated against. Across the world, LGBTQ+ people are criminalised for who they are and who they love. In almost 70 countries across the globe, it is illegal to be LGBTQ. Today, we continue to mark the month as a celebration of LGBTQ+ rights and an opportunity to call for further rights globally.

The saying, ‘we have far more in common than which divides us’, is something I truly believe. I am passionate about celebrating the differences that make individuals unique and I strongly believe in giving every individual the chance to achieve their potential, free from prejudice and discrimination. I am proud to work in a Trust whose values and equality, diversity and inclusion strategy aim to nurture a representative and supported workforce.

I have been acting as the interim secretary of the LGBTQ+ Staff Network and I am now the new deputy chair. The Staff Network is foremost a social network which allows members to expand their social groups and provides networking opportunities with fellow LGBTQ+ colleagues and allies. It is a forum to discuss issues affecting the LGBTQ+ community as well as working with the Trust’s senior leadership team to ensure our LGBTQ+ staff thrive and are free from prejudice at work.

I have recently heard the saying ‘we cannot be what we cannot see’. Research (Pride Matters survey, conducted by Pride in London 2018) has shown that gay women are almost twice as unlikely to be out in the workplace as gay male colleagues. LGBTQ+ people perform better at work when we can be ourselves and feel valued for who we are.  

For me Pride is an opportunity to be colourful, covered in glitter and unapologetically proud of who I am.