Today we acknowledge the 22nd anniversary of the lifting of the ban on LGBT+ personnel in the UK Armed Forces. Transgender personnel had been allowed to serve openly from January 1999. Much has been accomplished in the last year, but we still have a long way to go before LGBT+ Veterans and families impacted by that […]
Archive | Legals
22nd Anniversary Of The Lifting Of The Ban On LGBT+ Personnel In The UK Armed Forces
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Pardons Scheme Will Extend to All consensual Gay Sex Convictions Under Newly Abolished Laws
An increased amount of people will be eligible for a pardon for historical criminal convictions thanks to the new scheme soon to be put into place. Home Secretary Priti Patel is due to announce a plan to “right the wrongs of the past” including the deletion of the wrongful convictions of same-sex activity. This means that those […]
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Elaine Chambers
My name is Elaine Chambers. Sadly, the career I intended to follow for my whole working life was dramatically cut short one sunny August in 1987 when everything changed forever. Five years prior I joined Queen Alexandra’s Royal Army Nursing Corps. It was a such an exciting prospect for me, I was destined to become a nurse in one […]
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The Senedd Commission: Supporting an inclusive Welsh parliament
Ross Davies, Diversity and Inclusion Manager It is a truth universally acknowledged that people perform better when they can be themselves. We all know that organisations perform better when people are comfortable and safe at work, where they do not have to hide any part of their identity. Providing an inclusive environment allows individuals to […]
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Switzerland votes to legalize same-sex marriage
Switzerland agreed to legalise civil marriage and the right to adopt children for same-sex couples by a nearly two-thirds majority in a referendum on Sunday, making it one of the last countries in Western Europe to legalise gay marriage. According to results provided by the Swiss federal chancellery, 64.1% of voters voted in favour of […]
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We Must Protect LGBTQ+ Refuges Now
LGBTQ+ asylum claimants have long faced challenges in the UK, from having to prove their sexuality or gender identify to Home Office officials, to facing sexual harassment and violence in detention centres. These claimants are amongst the most vulnerable in our society and we must shout as loudly as possible on their behalf. In 2019, […]
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20 Years on From Lift-Off
In January 2000, the ban on gay personnel serving in the armed forces was lifted. Twenty years on from the abolition of the ‘gay ban’, we speak to Sgt Craig Rudyk-Smith, who joined the Royal Air Force after the ban was lifted, and Flt Lt Tamsin Wakeham, who joined before and re-joined shortly afterwards. Both […]
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“Lest we forget where we came from”
It is incredible to think how far the British Armed Forces have evolved since 12 January 2000 when their law barring service by lesbian, gay and bi people was finally repealed. With the 20th anniversary comes celebration and pride in what has been achieved, pride that all three armed forces have been Stonewall Top 100 […]
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The Wrong Kind of 80s Revival
I’ve written in these pages previously about Section 28 of the Local Government Act 1988; a pernicious little sinew of discriminatory law that referred to homosexuality as a ‘pretended family relationship’. This year we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots and the 30th anniversary of the eponymous charity that was the focal point of efforts to repeal Section 28 in the UK. However, amidst celebration of milestones have been some […]
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What God Says I Am
Passion, Fashion and the Plight of LGBTQ Refugees Toby Hambly Lubega Adrac Musa, director of Lunko Haute Couture, speaks to me from a town south of Nairobi, but that’s not where he started life. He’s Ugandan, but was forced to leave the country when his sexuality was discovered. His voice is calm, delicate even, but his words carry unimaginable […]
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