Why I Am an Ally for the LGBTQ+ Community

By Thomas Prüm, Partner at BCLP

Thomas Prüm has been a finance partner at BCLP in Germany since 2012 and the lead ally in their Frankfurt office since 2018.

For BCLP as a firm, as well as for me personally, it is important that we orientate our actions towards a set of values. These values include treating each other with respect.

The word “respect” itself has many meanings and interpretations. One such interpretation involves the act of “looking” at another person (the Latin roots of the word “respect” include the term “looking”) showing respect, and understanding and accepting who they are and the experiences that they have had. Part of this perception, which is for us a foundation of cooperation in our firm, includes the respect we have for our colleagues and often extends to understanding what fears they have, what injustice they may have suffered and what hostility they may have been exposed to.

For me, sexual orientation or gender identity plays no role whatsoever in the assessment of a person. What does matter to me is the fact that many members of the LGBTQ* community have experienced judgement, difficulty, challenge or discrimination as a result of their sexual orientation or identity. Unfortunately, there are still too often occasions here in Germany where members of the LGBTQ* community are threatened with or even victims of physical violence, discrimination or abuse.

And it is this exact point that drives me as an ally. It is not enough to say passively that sexual orientation or gender identity simply doesn't matter to me. I feel an obligation to say more. I, we, have to actively say: we want to live in a society; in a firm; in a community, in which sexual orientation and gender identity are not criteria for negative judgements or treatment, and that anyone who is guilty of such judgements or treatment is wrong. Creating a supportive and inclusive culture requires that we talk loudly and openly about our vision, our solidarity and that we lead with clear and visible statements. Such statements in the workplace can be made during discussions with our teams, discussions with the firm’s leadership, and of course in discussions with our clients.

One of the more beautiful facets of genuine and honest respect for another person is that it includes gratitude for that other person. It has been a pleasure to learn from the LGBTQ* Community which I have always found to be colourful, diverse and open. Many have experienced exclusion of some sort and are therefore allies to all who experience exclusion, and often champions and teachers of inclusion and equality in society. Working with (and learning from) many in the LGBTQ+ community has therefore always been a great privilege to me – a benefit I am and continue to be grateful for, and something I am able to bring to my firm and the wider communities I am living in.