5 LGBTQ creators on LinkedIn you need to follow
5 LGBTQ creators on LinkedIn you need to follow! From left to right: Paff Evara, Tate Smith, Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, Max Siegel and Chris King (PinkNews)
With 130 million active monthly users and 57 million company profiles, LinkedIn is much more than a place to find a new job – it’s also a place to find likeminded professionals and LGBTQ creators sharing valuable resources.
LinkedIn is the perfect platform to build out your professional network and gain insights and perspectives on issues related to your industry and beyond. Much like other social media platforms, there are thousands of LGBTQ creators on LinkedIn from diverse backgrounds and industries sharing how their personal experiences impact their professional lives.
For the LGBTQ+ community and our allies, LinkedIn is a great platform to learn more about the experiences and issues that all parts of the community encounter at work. We’ve highlighted five creators on LinkedIn that are dedicated to vocalising and empowering the LGBTQ+ experience. From technology to law and activism, these creators highlight how embracing diversity and inclusion can lead to a better working environment.
So, once you’ve used our tips to get your LinkedIn profile to shine, give these creators a follow!
Chris King (they/she) – CEO of Lightning Travel Recruitment
After witnessing a lack of diversity within the travel industry, Chris King founded Lightning Travel Recruitment in 2019. Since then, they’ve used LinkedIn as a platform to share their experiences as a neurodiverse non-binary business leader. After being recognised as one of LinkedIn’s Top 10 LGBTQ+ voices for 2022, they’ve ramped up their activity by commenting and engaging with as much LGBTQ+ content as possible.
King’s authentic point of view shines a spotlight on the benefits businesses gain from embracing diversity and inclusion. She’s never shy to normalise topics that are taboo and is redefining what ‘professional’ means in 2023.
For King, representation matters: “It is so important to see yourself reflected at senior levels within business and to have openly queer role models.
“Queer visibility in this context helps to demonstrate what we are capable of and everything we have to offer.”
Tate Smith (he/him) – Legal secretary & trans advocate
Tate Smith is an experienced legal secretary and uses LinkedIn to raise awareness of the issues the LGBTQ+ community deal with. Tate’s role in the legal industry allows for his content to be shared across the legal ecosystem and seen by influential people. Tate uses his presence and network to amplify grassroots activism and community spaces.
Smith’s posts about his experiences as a trans man educate people on terminology, allyship and the benefits of inclusive policies and covering gender-affirming healthcare. “By being out on LinkedIn I’m proving that trans people like me can thrive in a corporate environment,” he says.
Tate believes that the platform is a place where all individuals, whatever their career level or industry, can post about their achievements, including the LGBTQ+ community.
“Queer people deserve to have an active voice beyond bars and across social media. LinkedIn has the power to shed light on personal experiences outside of the workplace and show that we are more than just our job titles.”
See Tate’s posts and give him a follow!
Phyll Opoku-Gyimah (she/her) – Executive Director of the Kaleidoscope Trust
Known as Lady Phyll, partly due to her decision to reject an MBE to protest Britain’s role in drafting anti-LGBTQ penal codes across its empire, Phyll Opoku-Gyimah is an LGBTQ+ rights activist and anti-racism campaigner. She uses her platform to elevate young Black activist voices and raise issues that may not be on everyone’s radar, like the threat to the human rights of LGBTQ+ people in countries like Ghana.
Lady Phyll posts about the work being done at the Kaleidoscope Trust and UK Black Pride, the latter of which she co-founded in 2005. Occasionally she will post longer-form thought pieces, which she believes LinkedIn is perfect for. “I think LinkedIn allows and encourages more considered sharing of facts and opinions in a way that’s just not possible on platforms like Twitter, Facebook or Instagram,” she says.
For Lady Phyll, believes that there is a special importance in LGBTQ+ people being visible on LinkedIn: “It wasn’t so long ago that being visible as an LGBTI+ person at work was seen as a liability.
“If LGBTI+ people can be seen as being authentic, successful professionals, and can raise the issues that affect our community, I think that sends a really strong message.”
Max Siegel (they/he) – Transgender & neurodiversity inclusion consultant
Max Siegel has taken his experience consulting internationally renowned companies on transgender and neurodiversity inclusion to LinkedIn, and has become one of the most active LGBTQ+ creators on the platform. Like the others on this list, they’ve used the LinkedIn to share their experiences and how they can translate to cultural acceptance and celebration.
Sieglel’s posts are about using their experiences to tell stories and engage a wider audience with LGBTQ+ inclusion with a side of playfulness. They have a weekly ‘Twiglet Friday’, which highlights his dog and invites others to post pictures of their four-legged friends.
Max believes that businesses have the best opportunity to create impactful equity for the LGBTQ+ community. LinkedIn can break that concept down and focus on the ‘why’ before the ‘what.’ He says: “For me the lived experience element is the key, our community (especially trans folks) are often spoke for and talked over, when really it is our direct experiences which need to be heard.
“Most people are in the middle, they don’t have strong feelings about LGBTQ+ inclusion unless they are part of the community, so we need to help people understand our experiences in order to create allies.”
Paff Evara (they/them) – Co-founder of Take Up Space
Originally from a small village in Papua New Guinea, Paff Evara is a storyteller, speaker, activist and web3 founder. As a co-founder of Take Up Space, they’ve grown the web3 community into a decentralised media company. Evara began posting on TikTok, documenting their journey of coming out as gay at the age of 27, and then as gender non-conforming at 28. Like the other creators on LinkedIn on this list, they found their voice and realised that their story can be a vehicle for change.
Evara combines storytelling and actionable steps in their LinkedIn content, which easily helps people to become better advocates for LGBTQ+ inclusion at work. They think that by sharing in an authentic way, barriers can be breakdown and empathy is easily created.
Given that we spend a third of our lives at work, Evara believes that LinkedIn is the perfect platform to talk about the microaggressions and discrimination the LGBTQ+ community often face at work. “Through LinkedIn, I share a combination of personal stories and actionable advice to build empathy and educate folks outside of the LGBTQIA+ community,” they say.
“From a queer professional perspective, it’s SO important for us to see other queer folks thriving, successful and taking up more space in our careers.”
Follow along with Paff’s journey here!
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