Bee Hughes

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UCU NEC elections: 
Vote Bee Hughes for Representative of LGBT+ Members

A Trans Voice for LGBT+ Members 

Image of Bee Hughes

I hold the post of Lecturer in Media, Culture & Communication at Liverpool John Moores University. I’ve worked as a lecturer since 2012, holding several casualised contracts before gaining permanency in 2020. 

As a nonbinary person, I aim to lead by example in making all spaces I am in as inclusive and open as possible – as a lecturer, within the union, or when ‘off the clock’. I believe strongly in making positive interventions on a daily basis – as well as undertaking large-scale campaigning – and things as mundane as including pronouns in your email signature (mine are they/them) and Zoom name are practices which normalise and improve trans visibility and inclusion. 

I am currently Chair of LJMU UCU, Chair of UCU Left, and LGBT+ Officer for North West Region, and I am a founding organiser with the UCU Solidarity Movement. At LJMU UCU, I am in the process of re-invigorating our LGBT+ equalities work with our newly appointed LGBT+ Officer. I am a member of the LJMU Together LGBT+ network, newly in the role of the network’s Community Liaison Officer, and will be part of the team organising our LGBT+ History Month events. My research explores trans and nonbinary experiences and I advocate for trans inclusion through this work and in my capacity as one of the academic consultants to the UK Government Period Poverty Taskforce.

Outside work I volunteer with the GIANTS programme (Gendered Intelligence Activists Network of Trans Spokespeople) for the trans-led charity Gendered Intelligence. This is an activist-led project aimed at raising awareness about trans people and increasing positive trans representations.

As UK HE LGBT+ NEC member, I will work with the NEC Equalities Reps and Equalities Committees to:

  • identify key concerns and issues facing LGBT+ members in HE, FE, Adult & Community Education and Offender Learning;
  • seek ways of supporting LGBT+ members who are not able to be ‘out’ in the workplace;
  • strengthen UCU’s work on trans and nonbinary inclusion within the union and our workplaces;
  • create space(s) for LGBT+ members to share experiences within and across sectors;
  • identify and develop resources and events that support LGBT+ members’ needs and development;
  • identify and develop resources and events to support the education of allies and the wider UCU community on LGBT+ representation and what they can do to support the LGBT+ community;
  • develop guidance for the review of policies which directly impact LGBT+ members, for example, parental leave policies, gender affirmation policies;
  • ensure that I take an intersectional approach in recognition that our identities are multifaceted, and work collaboratively with all NEC equalities reps and officers;
  • work with Regional LGBT+ Officers to promote a joined-up approach between national, regional, and local campaigns;
  • work with NEC to advance international solidarity with LGBT+ people in countries where there is discrimination and severe oppression.
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