In celebration of Global Pride Months at Wise, we are proud to introduce “Celebrating Queerwisers”, a series that highlights the incredible stories from our LGBTQ+ community across our global offices. Join us in embracing diversity and inclusion as we share their experiences, both professionally and personally.

This forced me to be very cautious at work when talking about my personal life. I dreaded facing casual questions like “What did you do this weekend?” for fear that I would give away too much information. What I came to realise later on is that being closeted at work didn’t protect my career – if anything, it hurt it. Others will have sensed my lack of true authenticity and this likely negatively impacted my work relationships. Today, being able to bring my whole self to work means Wise gets the most out of me and I get the most out of being a Wiser.

I think Pride can be seen as a multifaceted event where we are seeking community and outward visibility that we can feel safe in our homes, bodies, and on Earth. Some may equate it down to a month, week, or a party but it started as a Riot to be included as part of humanity at the same level as everyone else. Pride to me is about finding a home and safety net for others individuals that are just trying to survive.

To me, Pride is about being comfortable in my own skin. Like right now after my gender affirming surgery, I know I belong in here, and this is my home. It feels good knowing that I could take off my shirt for a swim anytime that I want. But really, Pride is about being proud of who you are and making space for others to be that as well.

The LGBTQ+ community has made amazing progress since I first came out over 25 years ago. Back then, very few LGBTQ+ people were out at work, most employers didn’t have DE&I initiatives and the LGBTQ+ community was generally viewed in a negative light. Since then, anti-discrimination laws have been passed in the UK and today, most employers actively support LGBTQ+ employees. 

The LGBTQ+ community is generally seen in a more positive light, and the vast majority of people have LGBTQ+ friends and/or family members. Back then, LGBTQ+ characters in mainstream media were generally the subject of ridicule, whereas today many LGBTQ+ stories are told through film and television. 

However, to me our proudest achievement is the equalisation of marriage. Back in 2005, my home country of Canada was only the fourth country in the world, and the first outside Europe, to equalise marriage. Since then more than 30 jurisdictions have done so, enabling millions of LGBTQ+ people to enjoy the freedoms and benefits of marriage. Marriage equality validates these relationships, not only in the eyes of the law, but in the eyes of the general public. 

Unfortunately, my marriage is not recognised everywhere in the world and more work is needed to spread marriage equality globally. As an LGBTQ+ parent, there are many countries to which we cannot travel as a family, for fear of what may happen in a country where our marriage, and the legal guardianship of our children, is simply disregarded. I can only hope that one day we will live in a world of equality without borders.

An achievement globally is that marriage is being accepted in places to allow for better safety for families, however, as long as our community is used as propaganda without change we will struggle with an uphill battle of understanding and camaraderie within the places we hold our lives.