2024 Pride Month: Promoting LGBTQIA+ Inclusivity in Tech

To celebrate Pride Month, we must first be conscious of the history, societal implications, and impact that inclusivity and diversity have in the workplace. While many companies mark this month by displaying the iconic Pride flag, much work remains to be done to achieve true societal progress.

At Octahedroid, we wanted to contribute by creating content and educating ourselves with the basic questions behind LGBTQIA+ Pride Month celebrations, the statistics of LGBTQIA+ representation and inclusion in tech, and showcasing artworks with LGBTQIA+ topics in tech. We also hosted a virtual talk for the entire company with Tania Aldama, activist, educator, and expert on inclusivity and dissidences.

In this article, we’ll talk about each of these efforts.

LGBTQIA+ Pride Month FAQs 2024

One of the most common questions around this time revolves around understanding why there are month-long celebrations, when did it start, how its iconic flag came to be, and how can other people participate in it.

We decided to elaborate an infographic image detailing these and other questions. Here are some of the Pride Month questions and answers.

Understanding Pride Month

Pride Month, celebrated throughout June, uplifts LGBTQIA+ voices, celebrates LGBTQIA+ culture, and supports LGBTQIA+ rights with parades, drag performances, live theater, and memorials for those lost to HIV/AIDS.

Symbolism

The rainbow flag, created by Gilbert Baker in 1978, symbolizes the LGBTQIA+ community. Each color represents a value: red for life, orange for healing, yellow for sunshine, green for nature, blue for harmony, and purple for spirit. Over the years, many variations have emerged to honor the diversity and intersectional identities within the community.

Historical Roots

Pride parades began one year after the Stonewall Uprising on June 28, 1969, when police raided the Stonewall Inn, a safe haven for LGBTQIA+ individuals.

Celebration Activities

Pride Month celebrations include parades, marches, parties, concerts, shows, workshops, symposiums, and rallies. Additionally, people can donate to organizations supporting LGBTQIA+ rights, consume LGBTQIA+ media, or deepen their knowledge of LGBTQIA+ history and culture.

LGBTQIA+ Representation in STEM in 2024

Just as we did back in 2023, this year we looked into the representation in the technology industry with statistics taken from Womentech Network.

Unfortunately, despite significant strides toward equality, many LGBTQIA+ individuals continue to face bias, discrimination, and underrepresentation, particularly in technology.

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC) reports that 46% of LGBTQIA+ employees aren’t open about their identities, as they fear discrimination. Specifically, in the technology industry, only 2-3% of the workforce identifies as LGBTQIA+. This underrepresentation means there are few role models for LGBTQIA+ professionals, making it harder for them to thrive in the industry.

This shows how afraid people are to be themselves at work. This often has heavy repercussions in their mental health as the emotional toll is huge.

This same report also found that 31% of LGBTQIA+ employees feel unhappy or depressed at work. Among other reasons, over 50% of them endure out of place jokes and harmful comments about their sexuality, which in turn creates a toxic environment that stifles job satisfaction and productivity.

Interestingly enough, although 89% of employers have diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) initiatives, 62% of employees feel these programs are insufficient. This is a startling proof that companies need to do more than just implement DE&I programs: they need to integrate them into the company culture and get everyone in the company involved.

Additionally, LGBTQIA+ workers in the US earn 10% less than their non-LGBTQIA+ counterparts, according to HRC. This wage gap underscores financial inequality and the urgent need for fair pay to ensure LGBTQIA+ employees are justly compensated for their work.

LGBTQIA+ Diversity and Dissidences

As part of our ongoing efforts to educate ourselves and prioritize representation within our internal culture, we hosted a virtual conference for our entire team, featuring Tay Almada—activist, educator, and translator.

Tay enlightened us on various diversities and dissidences, helping us grasp different concepts around the LGBTQIA+ community and the critical need to continue discussing these topics. Tay explained the basics of gender, sexuality, sexual preferences, and identity, enabling us to address the different individuals and their experiences within the LGBTQIA+ community.

Moreover, Tay urged us to continue these conversations, as violence and discrimination are still prevalent for individuals in the LGBTQIA+ community, especially in Mexico, which ranks second worldwide in violence and murders against LGBTQIA+ individuals.

By doing so, we aim to curb the psychological and physical violence that individuals face daily simply for being themselves.

We gained invaluable insights and are grateful for the opportunity to use this knowledge to address these issues and understand their profound impact on people's lives.

As we mentioned, there is still much to be done to eradicate discrimination and violence in the workplace and beyond. We are committed to continuing these conversations and creating valuable content to educate people on this matter, not only for the LGBTQIA+ community but for any minorities and societal groups that face these acts due to their individuality.

Learn more about our initiative to highlight the work of women in tech and their stories in our article What Does It Mean To Be A Woman In STEM: 6 Lessons From The Women In Octahedroid.