In the summer of 2023, the Faculty Association and Staff Association teamed up to distribute more than 5,000 pride flag stickers to employees, with the hope that thousands of pride stickers displayed all over our four campuses would help send the message that all members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community belong at Waterloo.
Now, the associations are excited to announce that departments can order both the Intersex-Inclusive Progress Pride Flag sticker and a new Two-Spirit Pride Flag sticker through the W Print online ordering system. Thank you to the Queer-Trans Alliance at UWaterloo (QTA) for providing input on flag selection. Stickers are available in batches of 20, 60, or 100.
Intersex-Inclusive Progress Pride flag
In 2017, the Philadelphia Office of LGBT Affairs commissioned an updated pride flag with black and brown stripes to represent communities of colour often overlooked in the mainstream LGBTQ+ movement. The Progress Pride Flag soon added white, pink, and light blue stripes to represent the trans community. In 2021, a purple circle on a yellow background was added to represent the intersex community, giving us the current version.
Two-Spirit Pride flag
The UBC Equity & Inclusion Office offers this explanation of the flag design: “The two feathers at the center represent masculine and feminine identities, and the circle to which the feathers are attached represent the unification of masculinity and femininity into a separate, unique gender. Its placement in front of the rainbow flag signifies explicit inclusion of two-spirit experiences in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.”
Supporting 2SLGBTQIA+ colleagues and students
If you choose to display a sticker and are approached by a student or colleague looking for support:
- Listen and acknowledge what they’re experiencing.
- Ask if and how you can help.
- If they want, refer them to on- or off-campus resources, either for specific supports or to connect with the 2SLBGTQIA+ community.
If stickers in your area have been removed or damaged and you feel it may be hate-motivated, you can report these incidents to gethelp@uwaterloo.ca.
To equip yourself to support students and colleagues in a range of situations, consider taking training or reviewing resources on:
- Gender & Sexuality Equity Road Map
- 2SLGTBQIA+ Fundamentals
- Gender identity and sexual orientation
- Unlearning the Binary (June 27)
- Supporting a student in distress
- Mental Health Literacy and responding to people in distress
- Active Bystander Intervention and Responding to Disclosures: register for upcoming workshops or view workshop materials
You can also contact the Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Office (SVPRO) or Office of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism about custom training for your department.