When Mel Lucas successfully defended their PhD in 2022, it marked the close of an important academic chapter.
It also marked the end of a significant personal journey, in which the biology researcher came out as non-binary and stepped toward a life living fully as themself.
“It’s hard to look back and feel I was anything other than I am now,” Lucas said.
Their early struggles with gender dysphoria and later worries about how they’d be accepted by colleagues as they pursued postdoctoral studies were real.
But with support from student wellness and the inclusive, diverse workspace they found working as a postdoctoral associate in professor David Coltman’s lab, Lucas is more at ease than ever before.
‘Next level’ support from Western 2SLGBTQIA+ colleagues
Mel Lucas (Christopher Kindratsky/Western Communications)
“I definitely struggled to understand I was non-binary for a long time,” Lucas said. “I’m not sure if it was because I didn’t have peers who identified as non-binary or because I didn’t have the vocabulary for the ways I saw myself, but it took a lot of my mental energy. In the background, I was always trying to figure things out.”
Lucas found support through the psychological and medical care program at Western’s student health services, redesigned in 2016 to better serve gender-diverse students.
The changes came under the leadership of Western’s occupational health physician Dr. Sonya Malone, then medical director of Western’s Student Health Services.
With the input of representatives from Pride Western and Spectrum, Western’s 2SLGBTQIA+ campus advocacy group, Malone and the health services team developed a comprehensive program offering both medical and psychological care, along with support for gender-affirming treatment and transitions.
Lucas said the care they received as a graduate student, from their supervisor to their medical and mental health-care providers “was very affirming and compassionate.”
And now, working as a postdoctoral associate in the Coltman lab, examining the genetic basis of pine tree resilience to bark beetles, Lucas has found further support working amongst other 2SLGBTQIA+ colleagues.
Lucas sums up the comfort of finding community within their field by drawing on a comment made by a non-binary master’s student they helped in the lab.
“They told me it was nice to see ‘another one of ‘them’ in STEM,’ Lucas said. “I feel that. It’s so validating to work with someone else who’s gone through similar experiences.”
It also brings a sense of empathy that’s helped Lucas navigate the use—and misuse—of their pronouns, which, alone, can feel onerous.
“I had this naive idea starting out with a new group of people who didn’t know me before I came out, that it would be easy to introduce myself a certain way and then it wouldn’t be a struggle. But it can be,” Lucas said.
“Queer members in my lab have a better knowledge of the kinds of support I need,” they added, noting a student in the lab takes the initiative to ensure Lucas’ pronouns (they, them) are respected.
“If someone uses the wrong pronouns for me, he’ll find the closest opportunity in the conversation to refer to me in the third person. I appreciate how he does this without me having to ask and in a non-confrontational way that doesn’t put me in an awkward spot. That’s the type of ‘next level’ support I have.”
Through a cis-gendered lens, people can often assume how a person identifies ‘shouldn’t matter’ in the workplace. But “in practice, it does,” Lucas said, from pronouns to gender neutral washrooms to daily interactions.
“It’s common to talk about your personal life at work. Just being able to have casual conversations and not have to self-censor is very nice.”
When asked how all Western staff and faculty can be supportive allies, Lucas said, “It’s funny to remember I’m part of a group that needs allyship, because I feel like every other aspect of my identify is one that should be in allyship with other groups experiencing oppression.
“But for me, it comes down to not doubting people when they give you their pronouns and explain their identity to you – trusting and respecting their word.”
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Western is committed to creating a campus community where everyone feels respected, valued and included. Pride Month in June and the London Pride Festival in July offer a time to honour the diversity, resilience and contributions of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities. Western Alumni presents Pride Perspectives: An Alumni Conversation June 25 and the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion hosts Out at the Beach July 11. To learn more about these events and resources on campus for 2SLGBTQIA+ students, staff and faculty, visit Pride at Western.
