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August 2024
Growing up in a regional town can be isolating at the best of times but even more so as a young queer person trying to understand who you are.
This was the experience of data scientist, Lou McArthur. She was questioning her gender but had little exposure to queer culture to help her understand what she was feeling, let alone the support to navigate a confusing time.
It was only after moving to Melbourne for university that Lou began to understand herself better and move towards living life as her true self.
“If you’ve lived 18 years not as your full self you’re locked into a repressed state of being. You have a lot of unravelling to do around how you feel about yourself,” she explains.
Her first step was to identify as non-binary. Lou was astonished at how readily this was accepted in the university environment. This allowed Lou to explore all aspects of her personality, free from the constraints of gender norms and she found herself moving more and more towards her feminine side. COVID lockdowns provided the opportunity for her to focus more on herself, understand the feelings she was having and find the confidence to identify as a trans woman.
“From the outside it probably seemed like a dramatic and fast journey but it came off the back of a lifetime of not feeling myself. I never felt like I fit into the gender I was assigned or what people expected of me.”
“As the layers fell off it was scary and I went through a period of denial. But it felt so right inside and I became comfortable with who I am.”
Presenting at a conference in full make-up to over 400 academics was a watershed moment for Lou.
“This is how I’m going to present myself without fear of any judgement. This is who I am!” Lou recalls thinking.
With university coming to a close, Lou began to look for work. It was important to her to find full-time employment so she could have the financial freedom to continue her journey unhindered.
Her job search brought fear and uncertainty about whether she’d find the same accepting environment as at university.
“I remember felling terrified. What if I’m not accepted? What if I’m harassed?”
She had researched companies that had won diversity awards, including EnergyAustralia but she still felt nervous starting as a graduate with us. Luckily, she was pleasantly surprised. People immediately used her correct pronouns and she was impressed with the visibility of Prism and the availability of training and events to help celebrate LGBTQA+ people at EA.
“I was completely bewildered. I couldn’t believe that a company could be such an accepting place. It felt like a new family that I was accepted into,” she recalls.
Lou is sharing her story as part of EA’s Wear It Purple Day celebrations. It’s important to her to share her story in the hope that it helps people who may be experiencing the uncertainty she felt, or who know someone who needs their support.
“The biggest hurdle for most people in understanding the LGBTQIA+ community is education. A lot of issues that arise come from a lack of awareness. Once individuals see that LGBTQIA+ folks are just human like everyone else, their views start to change."
“If I can contribute to creating a safe environment – that’s all I can hope for – being a role model for younger people and showing that they are accepted, they are welcome and can be their authentic self without fear.”
