My Gender, My Pride

Inclusivity, diversity and equal opportunities

At MAES Civil-Law Notaries, we strive to offer our clients and staff a pleasant, professional, and safe environment. We are loyal and supportive. We stand by each other. We are good to each other. We are convinced that our organization benefits when people from diverse backgrounds work for us. We actively recruit, retain, and promote a diverse group of employees within our firm because we believe in quality, regardless of race, gender, nationality, religion, or sexual orientation. We strive for an environment characterized by diversity, inclusivity, and equal opportunities. And we embody this commitment.

Gay marriage

This isn't self-evident, however. It was only two decades ago that the Netherlands opened civil marriage to same-sex couples, making it possible for the first time in world history for members of the LGBTQ+ community to officially marry. On April 1, 2001, the first four same-sex couples were married by the mayor of Amsterdam. Two years later, Belgium followed suit, and fourteen years later, marriage equality was also a reality in the United States. In 2026, the silver jubilee will undoubtedly be celebrated with the rest of the world, and attention will be drawn to the struggles in those countries where true feelings are still suppressed.

My Gender, My Pride

Everyone should feel free to be themselves, without externally imposed standards. Unfortunately, the reality is different, and emancipation is often far from complete. Even in the Netherlands, people are still discriminated against, threatened, or molested every day because of who they are or who they love.

In recent decades, the struggle has primarily focused on "being allowed to love who you want." That focus is now broadening to include "being allowed to be how you feel." LGBTI has been expanded to LGBTQAPC. Because everyone should have the right to deviate from the norm and the sex we were assigned at birth. Gender identity will therefore be central to Pride Amsterdam, from July 30 to August 7, 2022, with the theme " My Gender, My Pride ."

Everything in a row

And do you want to know exactly what LGBTQAPC stands for? We've summarized it for you.

• Lesbian : A woman who is emotionally/physically attracted to women
• Homosexual : A man who is emotionally/physically attracted to men
• Bisexual : A man or woman who is emotionally and physically attracted to both men and women
• Transgender : Umbrella term for people who do not identify with their assigned sex at birth
• Intersex condition : an umbrella term for congenital conditions in which the sex differs from what medical professionals consider the norm for male and female bodies. There are many different intersex conditions.
• Queer : People who prefer not to categorize their sexual orientation. Someone who is queer, for example, prefers not to identify as lesbian, straight, bisexual, or pansexual.
• Asexual : People who are not sexually attracted to others or are aromantic (not romantically attracted to anyone)
• Pansexual : People who are attracted to all gender identities and biological sexes. They are not attracted to gender, but to the character or personality of another person.
• Cisgender : People whose birth sex matches their experienced gender identity

We support

Do you have questions about personal and family law? Would you like to know how to best structure your relationships from a property law perspective or how to make your loved ones your heirs? Please contact us. We're happy to help.