A new series of factsheets exploring the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander LGBTQA+ people was released today by La Trobe University’s Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society.
The factsheets, led by Indigenous researchers and supported by an Indigenous Data Governance Group, were created in partnership with The Kids Research Institute Australia, and supported by a grant from VicHealth.
“There was so much erasure of queer mob within research and the conversations around our health,” said researcher Shakara Liddelow-Hunt, speaking about the project in a supporting video. “I think we are slowly shifting the way that research gets done to include intersectionality, not just as a footnote or a disclaimer, but in the data itself.”
“To get a range of members of community and to give them the time to meaningfully participate in this process, and have a sense of ownership and direction over how this research went… that takes a while,” said lead researcher Darcy Wallis.
The factsheets explore data from the Centre's major Private Lives and Writing Themselves In surveys of LGBTQA+ health and wellbeing, as well as data from The Kids Research Institute’s Trans Pathways study.
“Throughout the factsheets, we’ve tried to contextualise the findings, and make sure that the perspectives of us, as Aboriginal queer researchers, is at the forefront of how we interpret the data,” said Liddelow-Hunt.
Each factsheet explores a different subject, with factsheets on diversity, relationships and family, experiences of affirmation, trans and gender diverse experiences, mental health of both youth and adults, and experiences in education.
“No-one was doing research about us - it’s great that research is starting to come out, and it can inform policies - and I think one of the most important things is that we need to follow research with action,” said Indigenous Data Governance Group member Peter Waples-Crowe, in the project launch video. “We need to get actions happening for rainbow mob.”
The full suite of factsheets and accompanying videos are now available at
latrobe.edu.au/arcshs/work/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-lgbtqa-people
