Rainbow badges at work - upset

[whatishappening123]

I work in a sector with vulnerable young people. A few years ago, we made the decision as a company to wear as part of our uniform, a name tag with the rainbow on as part of pledging our support to LGBT+
We have all received new name badges and for the first time ever- an option has been provided to have a red coloured one instead of the rainbow if staff 'do not agree with LGBT+'
I have raised this with HR and union and been told that staff are now allowed to choose and that is their right.
I feel really upset by this - colleagues I have known for years are now deciding against the rainbow badge.
We work with the most vulnerable- who are often LGBT. Some of our service users have asked staff directly why they are not using them- and they have lied saying " They'd run out , or the pin on the rainbow ones are crap, some staff are hiding the red ones.
It's not a majority by any means - it's probably about 11 staff in a staff of 60.
I just feel really really upset by it, but I can't quite put my finger on why.
I also don't understand how people can be 'against' LGBT
It's a protected characteristic.

Because they come from homes where their parents don't believe it either. I taught in church schools for 20 years. It was rare to work with a teacher who believed. Plus we have to teach all religions so there will be lots of times when you are teaching things that you don't believe.

Well it's clear that this wasnt an appropriate thing to put on a name badge. Make the name badges neutral and you can wear a pin if you like. Much more sensible, no?

Firstly, the LGB is a separate entity from the T, as they represent a persons sex-based attraction. Secondly, you seem controlling. Wear the rainbow pin if you support that and leave others the heck alone.

This with bells on!

Imagine being forced to wear a badge with whatever political party you vote for and people will treat you badly according to that.

This is on a par with that.

Enforcing rainbow badges was the step backward.

Having a positive and inclusive working environment is not facilitated by rainbow badges.

You have one of those by not being a dickhead and imposing yourself or your politics on others

The core issue is imposition on others. People are fine with people living their own lives as they please. They aren't so enthused when others impose themselves on them.

Inclusivity relies on no one imposing on others.

Yeah, I'm not really sure how deep the understanding needs to be. I'm not a paid up member of the trans-bashing Mumsnet gang. I just don't see the need for the vitriol. Live and let live. :) xxx

All we're asking is that you respect factual accuracy.

And maybe, if it's not too much to ask, not resorting to personal insults when you're proved wrong.

Yes but as a teacher of comparative religion presumably you don’t have to express your own beliefs?

And 'live and let live' would be all very well if it also applied to women and girls who want their single sex spaces to remain that way.

Step backwards how? Step backwards in that people who don’t agree with LGBTQI+ are being named and shamed or step backwards in that everyone should be forced to show their allegiance? You know the rainbow doesn’t mean what it used to right? That these days for many of us it signifies the abuse of young people, women and gay people?

Personally, I don’t think there should be ANY politicised lanyards in the workplace, I take real offence to the same, do my opinions not count?

Manipulative posts like this, demonizing people who simply do not want to support the lgtbq group makes me think something very sinister is brewing. Just look at how the far left antifa group are behaving in America. The mass hysteria is based on lies, hate and incredibly dangerous. Just look at what's happened to Charlie Kirk for example.

OP, you know you are lying. There's no way HR said that red indicates 'being against lbgtq'. Posters like you are extremely irresponsible because you know there are unstable people out there who will believe your lies.

To me it doesn’t mean that they are anti LGBT, but just that they only have the two choices. Ie, they either wear the rainbow one, or they have to wear the red one? Because it’s compulsory to wear one whatever the colour? Similar to my place of work. We have to wear a lanyard, but we can wear a rainbow one or just a neutral one.

As far as religion goes I think its all fairy stories so I approach the teaching of any of them with " Christians believe, Hindus believe. "
As far as LGBTQ is concerned I would support any young people I was working with in the professional capacity required by my job. Would I think Jeffrey was really Jessica ? No jf course I wouldn't

I think this is really weird. You are in a job where you are vulnerable young people, your organisation would not be legally allowed to say refuse to work with a trans or homosexual young person (probably). However to make people display public support for something you know they may not support is just wrong.

Lots of people are against the teaming of LGB with the TQ+. For instance the LGB alliance. I think if LGB people are saying they feel pushed out of pride then it has become polarising as opposed to inclusive and a neutral option would be better.

I don’t think politics should be worn on a badge.

Ok...so in response to the "that definition doesn't address the 'trans' though" this is what the equality act says about the protected characteristic of gender reassignment:

The Equality Act 2010 says that you must not be discriminated against because of gender reassignment.
In the Equality Act, gender reassignment means proposing to undergo, undergoing or having undergone a process to reassign your sex.
To be protected from gender reassignment discrimination, you do not need to have undergone any medical treatment or surgery to change from your birth sex to your preferred gender.
You can be at any stage in the transition process, from proposing to reassign your sex, undergoing a process of reassignment, or having completed it. It does not matter whether or not you have applied for or obtained a Gender Recognition Certificate, which is the document that confirms the change of a person's legal sex.

So really, I'm still a little confused by the claim that LGBT isn't a (or two separate) protected characteristic.

Sorry if you identify as a 'paid up member of the trans-bashing Mumsnet gang'. No offence intended; just saying it like I see it. As a late 40s woman, I just don't understand the hatred for trans people as I was brought up to be tolerant. However, I do appreciate that many people are intolerant of many groups and I guess that is part of life sadly.

Warmest thoughts.

You're spot on here.

Does the part of the Act you quoted apply to LGB people?

How did you feel, doing that?

No one hates anyone because how they identify, They just dont think men can become women. I will keep repeating that until it sinks in. God help me.

Gender reassignment involves medical and/or legal 'transition'. The vast majority of trans identifying people don't undergo these processes.

HTH

Bloody hell, I've already quoted the separate LGB info from the equality act further up thread. Can't do right for doing wrong it seems!

It's not inclusive if people have to wear it though. It's excluding those who don't want to for whatever reason

My workplace enforced rainbow lanyards a few years back. I was really not very happy to wear a rainbow lanyard.

The way I see it is, I don’t care what you choose to do behind closed doors. It really is none of my business. You don’t owe me an explanation. So in that respect, I guess I’m a supporter.

Where I have a problem is that supporting is no longer good enough. Now you need to be an ally. You need to wear the rainbow on your chest and actively disagree with any dissenting view on it. Well, actually, no. No, I’m just not that enmashed in the LGBT world. Why am I not allowed to quietly support from the sidelines and take the plain name tag?

It’s enforcement to be part of a movement and become an activist for the movement. And that’s not fair to people who just want to go to work, do their job and go home. I don’t want to spend my day virtue signalling and actually whilst ai have no interest in who people love; I do take issue with aspects of the trans movement which I don’t support, namely encroachment on women’s spaces.

So I voted that you are being unreasonable and you should just let people go to work in peace.

I didn't feel anything . It was my job to impart information according to the agreed curriculum. Whatever is in the curriculum I delivered whether it was history or religion or literature. All the same