In response to a doubling of homophobic hate crime, Outvertising creates Advocacy & Activism workstream

In response to a doubling of LGBTQ+ hate crime between 2017 and 2021, Outvertising has launched a new Advocacy & Activism to pressure brands to actively and more effectively use their influence to combat LGBTQ+ prejudice. 

Core to the workstream’s remit is a focus on transphobia, with a new YouGov report showing that half of Britons say prejudice against transgender Britons is a major or significant problem in Britain today. 

Spearheading these efforts are Co-Directors Marty Davies (they/them) and Ant Jackson (she/her). In the shadow of big-budget Pride sponsorships, Marty and Ant aim to unite inclusive organisations, people, and brands to help turn purpose-led efforts into real, impactful action. 

As a first step they are inviting like-minded queer talent and allies to join Outvertising and help the organisation progress towards its goal of making UK advertising and marketing completely LGBTQ+ inclusive.

““Every person within the industry has a choice: to continue creating short-term solutions that look great as a case study film, or work together to create long-term strategies that solve some of the world’s real problems. If making a pride-coloured logo was effective, why is it that homophobic and trans-hate continues to rise? When a queer Female Creative Director in our own industy has received death threats what will it take for us to say enough is enough? It’s time we all started to think smarter.””

— Ant

““As queer people who understand the power of advertising and brands, we are in an enviable position to harness the power of brands to defend and progress LGBTQIA+ liberation. I believe brands advocating for LGBTQIA+ people need not be cynical, in fact it can and should play a critical role in the usualising of queer lives.””

— Marty

1. Hate crime, England and Wales, 2020 to 2021, Home Office, 2021 

2. Where does the British public stand on transgender rights in 2022?, YouGov, (2022)

Ant Jackson Joins Outvertising

Ant Jackson (she/her) - Senior Creative Group Head and ED&I Lead at independent creative agency, Space - joins our board as Co-Director of Outvertising’s new workstream, Advocacy and Activism.

Known for writing Lidl’s tagline, ‘Big On Quality, Lidl On Price’, Ant has created award-winning work for some of the world’s leading brands. She also consults for organisations with social purpose at their core, and teamed up with Janette Hall (former Head of Strategy at WeAreFearless, now Creative Campaigner at Greenpeace) to help launch and position inclusive research organisations, Queer Voices Heard and The Diversity Standards Collective.

Ant has co-led several ED&I industry groups, where she’s been involved in projects and initiatives that aim to improve inclusivity and belonging for marginalised people. These include Outvertising’s Queer Female Representation Open Letter, WPP Unite and One Club For Creativity’s Behind The Stonewall Riots project to improve Queer Black representation, and most recently Pride Crits, a collaboration with Young Creative Council, Outvertising and Toaster to help LGBTQIA+ creatives entering the industry. Ant is also an Outvertising mentor, and a proud neurodiverse member of the LGBTQIA+ community.

“We live in an unequal world, where corporations, brands and agencies (including you and I) have capitalised at the expense of marginalised people for way too long. And it’s no longer hidden behind smoke and mirrors. Now that we recognise our own privilege and fragility, every person within the industry has a choice: to continue creating short-term solutions that look great as a case study film, but wash over the bigger picture issues (and in many cases make them worse), or work together to create long-term strategies that can help solve some of the world’s real problems.

I firmly believe that brands and agencies have both a responsibility and a key influential role in repairing and shaping our world for the better. But a creative comms-led approach alone will not give us the right solutions. If making a pride-coloured logo was effective, why is it that homophobic and trans-hate continues to rise? It’s time we all started to think smarter.

We have a lot of power to make positive change. But to do that, we need to be brave enough to actually zag when everyone else zigs. I’m looking forward to working with my Co-Director Marty, the people of Outvertising, campaigning organisations, and as many allies as possible to advocate and plan for a more inclusive way forward. Are you in?
”

— Ant Jackson

Introducing our new purpose

This Pride Month, we’re launching a new, more-focused purpose for Outvertising. To do this, we’ve teamed up with director Daisy Gaston to create a film celebrating adland’s queer community and challenging every brand and agency to join our fight for LGBTQ+ inclusion.

So why do we exist? We have a simple but ambitious goal to make UK advertising and marketing completely LGBTQ+ inclusive. From the work we produce to the experience of queer people in the workplace, we’re resolute in driving change that improves the lives of our community. As an industry dedicated to the art and science of communication we’re in a unique position to lead the charge.

This matters now more than ever. Recent progress is at stake and every day we are witnessing growing hostility in the UK media towards LGBTQ+ people — in particular our trans siblings. A 2021 report from Trans Actual found 93% of UK trans people believe that media transphobia had translated into real world discrimination when out in public and 81% reported it has impacted their experience with colleagues.*

Our new film features a joyous selection of the people that make up Outvertising – LGBTQ+ advertising professionals and allies from agencies, brands and consultancies actively working for better representation and truly inclusive workplaces. In the words of our Joint-CEO Lucy McKillop, “by purposefully putting people at the heart of our film, we’re taking a confident step forward. This is a representation of all that Outvertising is and does - huge props go to our volunteers for making such an authentic and joyful piece.”

The film also follows the release of the All in Plan’s new LGBTQ+ action** to welcome the use of pronouns in the workplace, with research showing LGBTQ+ employees are more than twice as likely to have a mental health condition (28% vs 12% industry average*** and experience higher levels of stress (45% of LGBTQ+ report higher stress levels vs 30% of heterosexuals).

Watch the film below, and please share far and wide.

* Trans Lives Survey 2021, Trans Actual

** All In Action Plan, June 2022

*** All In Action Plan, April 2022