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Owen Hurcum, who identifies as genderqueer, made history last week by becoming the first non-binary mayor to be elected in Wales: a decision that was by fellow councillors on Bangor City Council. At the age of twenty-two, Hurcum also became the youngest mayor to ever hold office in Wales, but has an abundance of experience after serving as a councillor and as a Deputy Mayor in Bangor for five years.
Hurcum first moved to Bangor when they were eighteen, as a student. In an interview with North Wales Live last year, they described how they "instantly fell in love with the city", and dedicated their time to improving Bangor. After five years, the council in a unanimous vote selected them to be Mayor of the city.
Hurcum, in response to the outpouring of support, tweeted an image of themself wearing a traditional mayor chain and hat. They detailed in the tweet how, when they first came out two years ago, they were "worried that they were to be ostracised by the community, or worse" but have instead been able to become Mayor of their "great city".
When joining the council, Hurcum was at first worried about what some councillors may think of their identity, and if it would hinder them from carrying out important work. Speaking to BBC Wales, Hurcum emphasised that, although Bangor may not at first seem like a "hub of metropolitan tolerance", the council has been "fantastic" to them, and has allowed them to "embrace their identity" while continuing their council work in the local area.
“Every single councillor has been extremely supportive. The previous mayor has also phoned me up after he saw some hate I was getting online, and he said he was there if I needed him," continued Hurcum, as they raised the important issue of gender identity-directed abuse that many of the LGBTQ+ community encounter on a daily basis.
Although the public feedback in response to the news has been mostly positive, some social media users have used the historic news as an opportunity to voice their abuse at the newly elected mayor. They describe the abuse that they have received as "difficult" and "disheartening", but they also went on to say that they viewed some of the hatred as appearing somewhat humorous.
"They may say I have low testosterone or I am effeminate or I look like a woman," they explained, adding: "I am like, 'oh my God, you are trying to insult me by calling me feminine, even though I am explicitly telling you that I have feminine traits, that I want to celebrate because I am non-binary?'"
Hurcum acknowledged that the hate comments "would instantly be worth it" if "I know I have made another person feel comfortable within their own skin.”
It would not be the first time that the young mayor has taken a stand against targeted online abuse, including from a former Welsh Assembly member Helen Syndd who, according to Hurcum, had been retweeting "transphobic accounts that have previously tweeted abuse directly at me" on her account. Hurcum had been running as a Plaid Cymru candidate for the Welsh Parliament Elections, but decided to stand down and withdraw their membership from Plaid Cymru in early March of this year. Hurcum stated that the party "continued to platform those who promote transphobia." Plaid Cymru, in response to this, suspended Syndd’s party membership.
Now, Bangor Mayor Hurcum has promised to put all of their efforts into making improvements in the city. “I know representation is not just putting on the chain and I’ll be judged by what we do as a team for Bangor during my year in office," Hurcum stated in a triumphant tweet on the 11th of May.
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