For many LGBT+ people living in the Caribbean, homophobia is a very familiar reality. A 2018 report by Humans Right Watch focusing on seven Eastern Caribbean countries showed how discriminatory legislation in these societies negatively impacted LGBT+ populations while making them victims of discrimination, violence, and abuse.
However, young people in the region are seeking ways to combat homophobia and push for diversity and inclusion in their society.
Zi Donnya Piggott is a 2021 recipient of the David Martin Small Business Fellowship presented by The IGLTA Foundation, an organization committed to supporting global LGBTQ+ tourism through education, research, and leadership development. She is a tech entrepreneur, designer, and human rights advocate from Barbados, and she is seeking new avenues to promote change in the Caribbean and Africa. The recipient of Queen Elizabeth’s Young Leaders Award is on a mission to use tourism as a tool to push for LGBT+ inclusion and change in legislation with her startup, Pink Coconuts. The organization seeks to connect travelers to LGBT+ affirming and friendly businesses in developing countries and show how anti-discriminatory laws can affect the economic growth and prosperity of a nation.
“I have been an advocate for a long time, and early on, I recognized that on the one hand, there was this travel market that spends a lot of money and on the other hand, there is an entire region dependent on tourism, but yet LGBT+ rights were struggling.” Zi shared in an interview with The Rustin Times. “I knew there was a solution using LGBT+ tourism as a catalyst for change in these countries, and so we started the Pink Coconuts Project. Our focus when we started was inclusive tourism in the Caribbean, and we did that for two years. I thought to myself that I am pushing for inclusion, but nobody is taking up the mantle to bringing people here (Caribbean), and I decided I was going to do it.”
For Zi, her goal is to create employment and business opportunities for LGBT+ people living in these countries and work with the government to create a more inclusive society. However, she is going a step further and wants to extend her work to Africa.
“At the crux of the issues concerning LGBT+ people is economics and lack of exposure. We need to begin to expose our people to LGBT+ people from all over the world and different cultures. Travel is one of the ways that this can happen. Travel has the power to change lives and perspectives.” Zi added.
For The IGLTA Foundation, the work Pink Coconuts is doing is vital to the future of LGBT+ tourism. It is also a way to educate their members on some of the issues LGBT+ people face in these regions and ways they can support and be a part of the work there.
“The Caribbean is a challenging place. Even though there are some exceptions, it can be challenging to be LGBT.” John Tanzella, President and CEO of IGLTA, said, “Many travelers in the community want to visit, and they don’t know if they will feel welcome and be safe. So people like Zi are great assets for our community and us. We want to make sure that she is visible and that people utilize her company there. She knows a lot of islands in the Caribbean, and she knows where to send people based on what they are looking for within the LGBT+ community.”
Zi is optimistic about the future of LGBT+ tourism across the African diaspora and on the continent. She also is thankful for the opportunity that comes with being the recipient of the IGLTA Foundation’s small business fellowship.
“I am coming from an advocacy space, and it is more non-profit. I need to be more business savvy because Pink Coconuts has to work as a business for the social strategy to be effective. I have found a lot of ‘Pink Coconuts’ at the IGLTA convention from Jamaica to South Africa, and the focus now is finding a way to take LGBT+ travelers there while positively affecting the local community.” Zi added.
