{"id":31,"date":"2026-02-26T16:03:35","date_gmt":"2026-02-26T16:03:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/belongingatwestminster\/?p=31"},"modified":"2026-02-27T08:36:46","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T08:36:46","slug":"finding-belonging-from-fear-to-pride-at-westminster","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/belongingatwestminster\/finding-belonging-from-fear-to-pride-at-westminster\/","title":{"rendered":"Finding Belonging: From Fear to Pride at Westminster"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As February and LGBT+ History Month draw to a close, Maria Jula, co-chair of our Q+ Network, reflects on her experience of why finding a community where you truly belong matters so much. It continues our exploration of inclusion, connection, and shared identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I didn\u2019t come out in a moment of confidence.
I came out in fear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I was a student at the University of Westminster, I was still navigating who I was \u2014 not just academically, but personally. I had moved to the UK from Romania, a country where being LGBTQ+ is still heavily stigmatised and where same-sex relationships are not recognised in law. I also came from a religious background, which added another layer of internal conflict and anxiety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For some time, I kept that part of myself hidden.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Young
Torquay Pride with LGBTQ+ Empowerment Programme students 2025<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The moment that changed everything<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I still remember the day I decided to come out to my personal tutor. I was terrified. He had become a kind of father figure to me; I had no family in the UK, and I was deeply afraid that telling him the truth might change how he saw me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead, he responded with kindness I will never forget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He told me there was nothing wrong with me. That I was not broken. That I didn\u2019t need to be fixed. It might sound simple, but that moment changed my life. Being met with acceptance at such a vulnerable time gave me something I had never truly had before: confidence in who I was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following year, in 2015, I marched in my first Pride parade with HER, the social app for lesbians. It was the first time I felt visible rather than hidden, celebrated rather than tolerated. And in many ways, that confidence started at Westminster.<\/p>\n\n\n

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London Pride March, 2024<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

From student to colleague – and still feeling safe<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Fast forward to 2026. I\u2019ve now worked at the University of Westminster for over four years, and one thing has remained consistent: Westminster has always felt like a place where I can bring my full self.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve had the privilege of marching with Westminster in the London Pride Parade for the University\u2019s first and second appearances. Seeing colleagues stand together in support, visibly and proudly, was emotional in a way that\u2019s hard to describe unless you\u2019ve spent years feeling like you had to shrink yourself in some parts of your life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Westminster didn\u2019t just feel inclusive to me as a student \u2014 it continues to feel inclusive as a workplace. And sadly, that\u2019s not something I can say about every environment I\u2019ve worked in.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"A
Torquay Pride with LGBTQ+ Empowerment Programme students 2025<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Why this matters so much to me<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

That sense of belonging is exactly why I became Co-Chair of the Q+ Network three years ago. It\u2019s why I care deeply about initiatives like the LGBTQ+ Empowerment Programme. And it\u2019s why I continue to push for visibility, inclusion, and support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because I know how much it matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Especially for those who, like me, come from countries where their identity isn\u2019t even recognised by law. Where safety is uncertain. Where families might not understand. Where silence can feel like survival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I became a British citizen six years ago, I cried. Not just because of the passport \u2014 but because I knew that, here, I would legally be able to marry someone of the same sex. That I could build a family. That my identity was recognised rather than erased.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That freedom is something I never take for granted.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Two
At London Pride 2025 with a colleague<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Belonging isn\u2019t just a feeling \u2014 it\u2019s an action<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Belonging is created through everyday actions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n