Ro Allen

Australian LGBTIQ advocate

Ro Allen

Commissioner for LGBTIQ+ Communities, Department of Premier and Cabinet
In office
July 2015 (2015-07) – May 2021 (2021-05)
Succeeded by| Todd Fernando
Personal details
Nationality| Australian

Ro Allen is an Australian LGBTIQ advocate[1] and, since 2021, the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commissioner.[2] In 2015, Allen was the first person appointed to the position of Commissioner for LGBTIQ+ Communities (formerly the Victorian Gender and Sexuality Commissioner) in the state of Victoria.[3]

## Career

[edit]

Prior to their appointment as Victoria's gender and sexuality commissioner, Allen held executive positions with numerous organisations, including chairperson of the Victorian Adult, Community and Further Education Board, commissioner of the Victorian Skills Commission, commissioner of the Youth Affairs Council of Victoria, deputy chairperson of the Hume Regional Development Australia Committee, chairperson of Communities for Children in Shepparton, and chairperson of the National Working Party for GLBTI Social Reform in the early 2010s.[3] Allen was also the founding Chief Executive Officer of UnitingCare Australia's Cutting Edge community services agency in the Goulburn Valley.[4]

## Gender and Sexuality Commissioner

[edit]

Victoria was the first Australian state to establish an Equality portfolio and a commissioner for gender and sexuality within this department. The establishment of these positions are among a number of high-profile initiatives by the Andrews government to improve the visibility and inclusion of LGBTIQ+ Victorians.[5] The position of Gender and Sexuality Commissioner was renamed to the Commissioner for LGBTIQ+ Communities during Allen's tenure.

Following Allen's appointment in 2015, they held various events in regional Victorian communities to promote the inclusion and reduce the discrimination of LGBTIQ people in non-metropolitan areas.[6][7][8]

Allen is credited with helping coordinate the first Australian Football League-sanctioned Pride Game, which occurred in Round 21 of the 2016 AFL season.[9][10] They also hosted the first national retreat for trans and gender diverse Aboriginal people, held in November 2016.[11] The event was held in Brunswick and incorporated workshops, celebrations and networking opportunities.[12]

In 2017, Allen was a proponent of the "Yes" vote for the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey.[13] That same year, they promoted the introduction of T-screen, a joint initiative by Breast Screen Victoria and Transgender Victoria to make breast screenings for trans and gender diverse people more inclusive by educating medical staff on how to be more respectful during screenings.[14] Todd Fernando was appointed their successor as Commissioner for LGBTIQ+ Communities in September 2021.[15]

## Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commissioner

[edit]

Allen was appointed to the position of Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commissioner in May 2021, commencing in this role in June of the same year.[2]

## Personal life

[edit]

Allen identifies as gender diverse. Allen has said that they are comfortable when people address them using male pronouns, as they are "very relaxed" about how people gender them.[16] Allen officially changed their name from Rowena to their preferred more gender neutral Ro in 2018.[citation needed]

Allen is a member of the Uniting Church.[17] They came out at a Christian youth convention at the age of 20.[18] While they were publicly praised their mentor for being supportive and telling them they didn't need to choose between their faith and their sexuality, Allen has criticised an earlier experience at a friend's Pentecostal Church where ministers attempted conversion therapy. Allen has described such therapy as "unbelievably dangerous".[18]

Upon their appointment as Victoria's Gender and Sexuality Commissioner, Allen discussed past incidents of assault and occasions they have received hate mail, including an elderly woman hitting them with a handbag in a women's toilet after mistaking Allen for a man, a man assaulting them in the street, and receiving a card containing cut-out letters spelling "devil child" following the birth of their daughter.[18] Allen has said such experiences have made them stronger and more determined in their work to ensure others don't have to experience such bigotry.[18]

Allen resided in Violet Town with their partner Kaye Bradshaw and their daughter Alex Bradshaw-Allen, before they moved to Melbourne in 2016.[18] They have also lived in Shepparton and Glen Waverley.[16] Bradshaw and Allen took part in a public commitment ceremony at a rally calling for equal rights for gay people in Shepparton in 2014, prior to the legalisation of same-sex marriage in Australia in 2017.[19] In October 2017, Allen, Bradshaw and Bradshaw-Allen attended a marriage equality rally in Melbourne to promote the "Yes" campaign for the Australian Marriage Law Postal Survey, where Bradshaw-Allen, then aged 9, addressed the crowd to support her parents.[13]

## Politics

[edit]

Allen stood as the Australian Labor Party candidate in the electorate of Benalla at the 2010 Victorian election.[20] Allen said their motivation to stand as the ALP candidate for Benalla was due to the frustration of seeing basic infrastructure and community services for the electorate being overlooked in favour of more marginal seats.[20] After preferences, Allen was defeated by the National Party of Australia's candidate Bill Sykes who attracted 73.1% of the vote, with a 5.6% swing in his favour.[21]

## Honours

[edit]

Allen was added to the Victorian Honour Roll of Women in 2009.[3][22]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Gold, Kyriakos (4 March 2016). "Rowena Allen on Mardis Gras, mental health and misgendering". Special Broadcasting Service. Archived from the original on 26 November 2018.
2. ^ a b Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission (14 May 2021). "Ro Allen appointed Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commissioner". Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
3. ^ a b c Department of Premier and Cabinet (Victoria) (15 July 2015). "Rowena Allen is Victoria's first Gender and Sexuality Commissioner". Archived from the original on 26 November 2018.
4. ^ "Rowena Allen announced as Victoria's first gender and sexuality commissioner". ABC News (Australia). 15 July 2015. Archived from the original on 21 October 2016.
5. ^ Victorian Government (22 April 2021). "How we're working to achieve equality for LGBTIQ+ Victorians". Retrieved 19 October 2021.
6. ^ Charalambous, Stephanie (31 July 2017). "Love is the answer to intolerance: Ro Allen". Latrobe Valley Express. Archived from the original on 2 May 2018.
7. ^ Houlihan, Rachael (3 December 2017). "Ro Allen returning to Warrnambool to hear how equality initiatives have evolved". The Standard (Warrnambool). Archived from the original on 3 December 2017.
8. ^ Kearney, Mark (15 February 2018). "Roadshow returns, with LGBTI mental health, violence atop the agenda". Bendigo Advertiser. Archived from the original on 24 August 2018.
9. ^ Stark, Jill (2 August 2015). "St Kilda lobby AFL for gay pride game". The Age. Archived from the original on 3 November 2018.
10. ^ St Kilda Football Club (27 July 2016). "Stories of Pride: Rowena Allen". Archived from the original on 4 April 2018.
11. ^ Wade, Matthew (17 May 2016). "New retreat for trans and gender diverse Aboriginal people". Star Observer. Archived from the original on 15 May 2018.
12. ^ Marlow, Karina (28 November 2016). "First national retreat for gender diverse mob". National Indigenous Television. Archived from the original on 7 November 2020.
13. ^ a b "Rally for marriage equality". The Age. 27 October 2017. Archived from the original on 19 October 2021.
14. ^ Morgan, Michaela (1 December 2017). "Saving lives: the program making breast screens more inclusive of trans and gender diverse people". Special Broadcasting Service. Archived from the original on 19 March 2018.
15. ^ Department of Premier and Cabinet (Victoria) (23 September 2021). "New Commissioner For LGBTIQ+ Communities Appointed". Retrieved 19 October 2021.
16. ^ a b Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission (9 September 2015). "Rowena Allen, Victorian Commissioner for Gender and Sexuality". Archived from the original on 12 February 2019.
17. ^ Carleton, James (4 March 2018). Fabulous and Faithful (radio broadcast). God Forbid. ABC Radio National. Archived from the original on 11 March 2018.
18. ^ a b c d e Stark, Jill (29 August 2015). "Fighting for equality: meet Victoria's new sexuality and gender commissioner". The Age. Archived from the original on 14 October 2017.
19. ^ Lewis, John (17 November 2014). "Call for marriage reform at equal rights rally". Shepparton News. Archived from the original on 19 October 2021.
20. ^ a b "Ready to make a difference". Benalla Ensign. 10 November 2010. Archived from the original on 25 November 2018.
21. ^ "Victoria Votes 2010: Benalla results". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 26 October 2020.
22. ^ "Victorian Honour Roll of Women" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2020.