Can you count on being counted in the census?
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There is no doubt that the census contributes rich and valuable information about Australians. It is unfortunate, however, that it does not count the richness and value of Australians who are gender diverse and/or in diverse relationships.
The ABS campaign to support the roll out of the census are using the tag line is “every stat tells a story!”. But there are so many important stories that are not being told.
The census is, in its construct, heteronormative—specifically, it assumes that the whole of the population conducts their lives according to heterosexual norms.
If you are a partnered non-binary person with two children, you are invisible. If you are a single, bisexual man, you are substantially invisible. If you are same-sex parents, you get to toss a coin to see who is to be Mother/Father for census night.
Some things can be derived (for example two people of the same gender indicating they are married or in a de facto relationship) but the derivation of status does not allow for individuals to accurately portray their identity. There is no census question about sexuality or gender identity.
If nothing else, 2020 showed us more than ever why national population data on LGBTIQA+ people is vital. In times of need, such as dealing with the aftermath of the bushfires and continuing to manage the COVID-19 pandemic, we found ourselves on the back foot and without the much-needed data required to help us understand and respond appropriately to our communities’ health and wellbeing requirements.
This is exacerbated when, each time a government report is released—for example, the Productivity Commission’s Mental Health Inquiry report, or the interim report from the National Suicide Prevention Adviser—there is a void of LGBTIQA+ visibility and the disadvantages borne of poor data is reinforced.
These reports and the census show that the government does not see the need to record or understand how many LGBTIQA+ people there are in Australia. Why not? The needs of LGBTIQA+ people should be as important as any other citizen.
We need health services that understand the context of our lives. We need mental health services that understand and can respond to the experiences of minority stress, stigmatisation, conversion therapy, social isolation and assault.
We need schools and other government services to understand that we are here, in our communities, and using services, supports and programs.
Just as importantly, businesses, government and educational institutions need to understand the LGBTIQA+ community. Hot tip for urban and social planners—LGBTIQA+ people live in suburbia too! (Well, I don’t, but many do!).
We need people in planning services to understand the whole of the community, to provide inclusive and safe spaces and to address the specific needs of the diverse community they serve. Schools need to understand their students’ families, the various ways they identify, and their nature and composition.
Simply, and perhaps most importantly, including questions in the census that adequately capture gender and sexual diversity is an important act of recognition of LGBTIQ people and their lives. Those who do not identify as male or female or heterosexual often feel invisible to the wider community. The term “Other” is not inclusive and compounds feelings of invisibility.
So, let’s think about this. Should single people be assumed by default to be heterosexual? Should a couple be assumed to have embraced financial interdependence? Don’t get me started on that issue.
LGBTIQA+ must be acknowledged as of equal value in society. To ensure that this happens, we have to count, in every census. Otherwise, the data that really matters is the data we are missing.
