Abstract

While existing literature on LGBTQ diversity and inclusion in higher education has identified the key challenges facing LGBTQ students, it has largely failed to engage with the Asian context. This chapter attempts to address this lacuna by examining the challenges posed by cultural and historical factors that may exacerbate negative and potentially hostile attitudes towards LGBTQ identities and expressions. We develop a framework to categorize the different types of Asian universities in terms of their institutional approaches toward LGBTQ inclusion. This framework allows educators and administrators to more effectively strategize their advocacy for LGBTQ inclusion and implement culturally appropriate programs that best support LGBTQ students. Instances of successful engendering an institutional shift toward LGBTQ students will be shared.

Highlights

  • In January 2016, Indonesia’s Technology, Research and Higher Education Minister Muhammad Nasir called for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) students to be banned from university campuses in the country.1 He was responding to reports that an informal group known as the Support Group and Resource Center on Sexuality Studies (SGRC) at the University of Indonesia (UI) had been allowed to provide counselling for LGBTQ students and advocate for the LGBTQ1“LGBT Not Welcome at University: Minister,” The Jakarta Post, January 25, 2016, https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/01/25/lgbt-not-welcomeuniversity-minister.html.K

  • In Japan, a male graduate student from the law faculty at Hitotsubashi University committed suicide after his sexual orientation was made public against his will in August 2015.2 A year after his death, two students from the same university started a student group to foster a safe space for LGBTQ students on campus; the group was officially recognized by the university in May 2017.3

  • While we focus largely on LGBTQ students, the institutional approach of a university affects the experiences of LGBTQ staff and faculty in terms of whether they may face violence or discrimination or come out as LGBTQ on campus; a case involving the suicide of a librarian working at the Myanmar Imperial University illustrates the real impact that a hostile university environment can have on LGBTQ staff as well

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Summary

Introduction

In January 2016, Indonesia’s Technology, Research and Higher Education Minister Muhammad Nasir called for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) students to be banned from university campuses in the country. He was responding to reports that an informal group known as the Support Group and Resource Center on Sexuality Studies (SGRC) at the University of Indonesia (UI) had been allowed to provide counselling for LGBTQ students and advocate for the LGBTQ. In Japan, a male graduate student from the law faculty at Hitotsubashi University committed suicide after his sexual orientation was made public against his will in August 2015.2 A year after his death, two students from the same university started a student group to foster a safe space for LGBTQ students on campus; the group was officially recognized by the university in May 2017.3 These two examples from Indonesia and Japan demonstrate firstly, the serious challenges that continue to face LGBTQ university students across Asia and secondly, the different institutional approaches toward LGBTQ diversity and inclusion in the region that largely ranges from hostility to ambivalence. We use various case studies to develop a theoretical framework for understanding how universities in Asia, especially in countries with restrictive laws and unaccepting cultural attitudes, can become more affirming institutions for LGBTQ students as a result of factors such as student activism and globalization We develop this framework to categorize the different types of Asian universities in terms of their institutional approaches toward LGBTQ inclusion. 8 “Gay Myanmar Man Posts Facebook Bullying Note Before Taking Life,” New Straits Times, June 25, 2019, https://www.nst.com.my/world/2019/06/499097/gaymyanmar-man-posts-facebook-bullying-note-taking-life

Challenges Facing LGBTQ Students in Asia
Invisibility and the Silence of Sex
Understanding Different Needs of LGB and TNB Students
Appropriate Language and Terminology in Context
Diverse Cultural Conceptions of Gender and Sexuality
LGBTQ Inclusion in Asia
The Affirming University
The Ambivalent University
The Hostile University
Ambivalent university
Hostile university
Housing and amenities
Openly LGBTQ staff or faculty
Engendering Affirmation Toward LGBTQ Students in Asian Universities
Globalization of Higher Education
Student Activism
Classroom Experience
Visibility of LGBTQ Faculty and Allies
Research and Career Resources for LGBTQ Students
Conclusion and Future Directions
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