Bolstering Community: A 2SLGBTQ+ Pride Month Conversation

At about 1 million strong, an estimated four per cent of Canada’s population belong to the 2SLGBTQ+ community. While Canada has made significant progress towards the acceptance and inclusion of the 2SLGBTQ+ community, the effort must be continued in building an equitable and prosperous future.

In 2019, sexual orientation-targeted hate crimes spiked by 41 per cent compared to the year prior in Canada. More members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community report poor mental health compared to heterosexual Canadians. The average personal income of 2SLGBTQ+ folks was about $15,000 less than non-2SLGBTQ+ Canadians in 2019.

With youth aged 15-24 making up 30 per cent of the overall 2SLGBTQ+ population in Canada, representation in media, business and education can contribute to positive growth within in the community and increase the overall wellbeing of people among it.

Inspiring connected communities

Jarom Moriyama-Bondar, husband and father of a five-year-old, works full-time in group benefits and retirement consulting and is a passionate member of the 2SLGBTQ+ community. Beyond his work and family life, Jarom also co-founded Pride in Business in 2011.

Having grown up in Calgary along with the other two co-founders of Pride in Business, Jarom found it challenging to come out and experienced little representation within the business community.

“It was hard to come out at the time and be yourself, let alone see yourself as a successful professional or entrepreneur,” Jarom says of growing up in Calgary. “There was really no place to meet professionals or see what other queer people were doing in the business world.”

After attending university in Montreal where he gained the confidence to come out, Jarom returned to Calgary and re-connected with some old friends. The group decided they wanted to give back to the 2SLGBTQ+ community and provide a space for queer professionals, businesses and entrepreneurs.

“Pride in Business connects the 2SLGBTQ+ community and our allies within the business community in Calgary. We have a networking aspect in everything that we do to create connections within our community and to enhance visibility, support and commerce within our queer community. Our goal is to help queer professionals realize they can do anything and see themselves within any industry.”

Overall, it is the connection that motivates Jarom to continue this work. “I love when I can connect the right people to each other and make some amazing connections for the people within our community,” he says. “We have a true commitment to support people within our community. I love to see 2SLGBTQ+ entrepreneurs take the risk they never thought they’d dream of and I think that is a million times better when we’re truly supporting each other.”

Uplifting one another

To help with operational costs and to further uplift and enhance the 2SLGBTQ+ community, Pride in Business is working to roll out a membership plan in the coming years. Jarom is also excited about new sponsors becoming involved with the organization. When Pride in Business was founded, TD Bank offered support as their first major sponsor. “They have been amazing in their support for us,” he says. “They took a huge risk and saw value in what we were doing right from the beginning.”

At TD Bank, Alex Gysen is the 2SLGBTQ+ Business Development Manager for the Prairies region and he serves as a liaison between the company and the 2SLGBTQ+ community. Gysen has been working in banks for about 10 years and started at TD about a year and a half ago to take on this role.

“We’re the only financial institution that has this integrated business development model where a member of the community—such as myself—works specifically to foster year-round support from TD Bank to the queer community,” says Alex. “Being able to connect with members of the community and providing elevated advice and things that can help change and improve peoples’ lives – it’s so exciting to be able to do that for people.”

Members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community often have unique personal financial needs that TD can advise on including family planning, retirement, gender affirming care and beyond. Internally, the bank also offers expanded healthcare benefits for their staff who are members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community. Alex noted that TD was the first bank to offer all benefits to same-sex couples in 1994. In 2008, they became the first bank to cover gender-affirmation surgery for employees and their families and developed transition plans for employees. About seven years ago, all-gender restrooms in new and renovated branches became standard and, in 2019, TD enhanced gender affirmations benefits coverage for employees in Canada.

On top of sponsoring Pride in Business, Alex was also proud to talk about TD’s sponsorship of the Stonewall Recovery Centre. “It’s an addictions recovery centre specifically for members of the 2SLGBTQ+ community,” he says. “It’s one of the first of its kind in Canada and it will be based in Calgary and Southern Alberta.”

Boosting inclusion and allyship

As younger generations begin to enter the workforce, a focus on inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility (IDEA) is becoming increasingly important. For employers to stay competitive, IDEA programs are necessary as 83 per cent of Gen Z job applicants state that a company’s commitment to diversity and inclusion is important to them when choosing an employer. Unfortunately, 2SLGBTQ+ folks still face challenges and discrimination in Canada, so for businesses and individuals alike, it is important to continue to work building up the 2SLGBTQ+ community.

At Pride in Business, Jarom believes that creating partnerships that bring 2SLGBTQ+ businesses and individuals into the mainstream are important to empower the community and to reduce discrimination. “We’re very aware that, as a community, there is only so much progress that we can make on our own without other communities getting involved,” he says. “We’re keen to work with different partnerships so we can progress together.”

While Alex celebrates the progress that has been made for 2SLGBTQ+ inclusion, he also believes it is important to understand the areas we can collectively improve in. “There has been an increase in hateful rhetoric and actions against the community,” he says. “Having symbols and displays of support for the community is huge because, for members of the community, it’s a signal that they’re going into a space that accepts them for who they are.”

As business leaders, it is important to offer allyship and inclusion to the 2SLGBTQ+ community, although it can be challenging to understand where to start. Alex recommends supporting 2SLGBTQ+ employees with updated benefits packages, HR policies and employee resource groups; Jarom notes the importance of speaking up to stop discrimination and negative behaviour in its tracks.

Although Pride Month is only 30 days, Alex drives home the importance of supporting the 2SLGBTQ+ community and creating representation year-round. “I think that representation is so important because it helps members of the community see a future for themselves. It’s huge because we can see ourselves in an organization and in certain roles which helps us be a little bit more confident in our futures.”

“It’s not like we stop being queer once pride ends,” he adds. “We are who we are 365 days a year.”

To learn more about Pride in Business, visit their website.

To learn more about TD’s 2SLGBTQ+ efforts, click here.