#MakingHistory: Reflections on LGBTQ+ History Month

Change doesn’t happen in a vacuum. When it comes to the evolution of LGBTQ+ civil rights and protections, the work and legacy of Marsha P. Johnson, Harvey Milk, Simon Nkoli, Bayard Rustin, Larry Kramer, Ifti Nasim, Bette Bourne, and countless others cannot be overstated. This year, the team at LGBT Great have been reflecting on the importance of remembering LGBTQ+ history for its people, its highs and its lows. 

  Shreyas Dutta (he/they)  

"LGBTQ+ history has long been subsumed by Western ideals of gender- and sexually diverse people, which are further constrained by concepts fundamental to Eurocentric linguistic practices. Such prescriptions tend to overlook the gender- and sexually diverse people who have existed joyfully for centuries in the Global South and the native Indian populace. In many ways, identities that the LGBTQ+ acronym fails to encapsulate due to their deep connections with spirituality and native cultures.  

This LGBTQ+ History Month, I remember all my Hijra ancestors who were criminalised and prosecuted because of their gender identity under colonialism. Some Hijras are born male but dress in feminine ways; others are born intersex. Many Hijras also go through a castration ceremony as an offering to the Hindu Goddess Bahuchara Mata. 
Remnants of targeted legislation and post-colonial anxieties have led to their continued ostracisation in modern-day India. I want to mark this month in solidarity with my Hijra siblings and remind the world that gender has never been binary." 

Shreyas Dutta is Insights and Content Analyst at LGBT Great 

  Georgie Williams (they/them)  

"In my opinion, LGBTQ+ history month becomes more relevant and essential with every passing year. Understanding our shared history means understanding the struggles our gender-and-sexuality-diverse forebears faced - and therein lies many of the solutions to our current struggles. It is important for our people – LGBTQ+, gender and sexuality diverse, queer – to know that we are not here spontaneously and without heritage. Regarding my own heritage, a moment that stands out to me in LGBTQ+ history is the passing of South Africa’s first post-Apartheid constitution in 1994, making South Africa first country in the world to include sexuality protections in its constitution.

As a white half-South African, I believe this momentous event- led by the brilliant Nelson Mandela- illustrates the intersections of human rights movements and how no social struggle exists within a vacuum. Furthermore, as a trans, nonbinary person, I know the rights and freedoms I have are the fruits of work done by those who came before me. Everything I am allowed to be is an immense, unpayable debt owed to my gender-diverse predecessors – the transsexuals, transvestites, crossdressers, gender renegades and rule-breaking pioneers of LGBTQ+ freedom.”

Georgie Williams is Insights and Content Analyst at LGBT Great 

  Clara O'Connor (she/her)  

"In short, LGBTQ+ History Month is a time for both reflection and aspiration within the community, a time to look backwards and forwards. As a 26-year-old Irish queer woman born just four years after decriminalisation, yet still too young to vote in the same-sex marriage referendum in 2015, the month acts as a time to reflect on the rapid progress made in my country throughout my relatively short lifetime.

Whilst I am immensely proud of Ireland’s journey so far, especially when one considers the cultural context of the not-so-distant past, our work is far from over and many issues still loom over the LGBTQ+ community, which are slow to be reported on or addressed. I fear that by focusing too heavily on the progress made nearly a decade ago, our journey to full equality will become stagnant. A lack of education and reporting on LGBTQ+ issues has led to a cognitive dissonance amongst many of the Irish population who believe that since the law has changed to grant certain rights to LGBTQ+ people, we have become a fully inclusive society, which is, unfortunately, far from the truth. 

The reality is a lack of development in inclusive healthcare and a spike in LGBTQ-targeted hate crimes. These are but a few of the issues the LGBTQ+ community is facing. 
This month, therefore, is a time to critically reflect on the failings of both our past and present so we can forge a more positive path forward to reaching full equality through education and awareness. It is a hugely important annual checkpoint to understand the reality that we are still in the very early chapters of our history, and there is still a long road ahead to creating the fully inclusive society many believe we have already achieved.”

Clara O'Connor is Operations and Project Coordinator at LGBT Great 

  Callum Read (he/him)  

"During LGBTQ+ History Month, I like to reflect both on the progress we have made in LGBTQ+ rights, what it took to get where we are, and to take some time to appreciate how much further we have still to go. In my lifetime, the UK has grown from a nation where “promoting homosexuality” was prohibited under Section 28, and my teachers were not permitted to discuss LGBTQ+ issues, to a country where same-sex marriage is legal and enjoys widespread support. As a bisexual man, I am indebted to the activists and allies who came before me; they did the hard work of fighting for the rights that I now hold -   to love and exist as my authentic self. 

But there is always more work to be done. Many members of the LGBTQ+ community still face discrimination both in the UK and around the world, Transgender people face broad inequalities including legal and medical discrimination, LGBTQ+ related hate crimes in the UK have increased by 186% since 2018, and there are groups looking to split the community apart. 

This time of year, in particular, I would ask that we all think about the ways we can stand up for marginalised voices, fight to maintain our rights and help push our countries forward into a more inclusive future. A better world is possible, but we have to be the ones to build it.”

Callum Read is Marketing and Events Manager at LGBT Great 

  Lauren Cahill (she/her)   

"When thinking about LGBTQ+ History Month, I am reminded of everything that previous generations of LGBTQ+ people have done and been through and what that means for the next generations to come. When I think about my children growing up and entering the world and the workplace – I want them to be able to be themselves fully and authentically. I don't know whether they identify as being part of the LGBTQ+ community yet, but as a mum, you want to make sure they are safe, comfortable, and confident in whatever they do and whoever they are.

The fact that this is possible is in large part due to the trailblazing work of LGBTQ+ activists who fought for change and, by extension, for the freedoms I want my children to be able to have.”

Lauren Cahill is Head of Operations at LGBT Great 

   Alex Gabbutt (he/him)   

"To my mind, LGBTQ+ History Month represents a two-fold call to action for LGBTQ+ people and allies alike -- to get informed and to get involved.

This year, my personal goal for the month is a little different than in previous years. As many will appreciate, much of LGBTQ+ history is a story of survival, of overcoming oppression and carving out (peacefully and sometimes violently) a place in the world for community, self-expression, and the freedom to love and be whoever you are. However, LGBTQ+ history is also expressed in a constellation of vibrant, joyous, and inspirational moments, which are all too often overlooked. This is what I want to focus on in 2024 – the triumphs, the successes, and the joys of my LGBTQ+ forebears, especially when those triumphs emerge from very real struggles. 

Take, for example, the history and impact of Switchboard, the UK’s largest and longest-running LGBTQ+ support service. This is a service provided to those in the community who may be in their darkest moments. For those interested, I would recommend you listen to The Log Books, a queer history podcast detailing the logbook entries made by the volunteers who staffed the phones at Switchboard. The stories told reflect the daily realities of LGBTQ+ people in the UK from 1974 and are full of tears but also of laughs. They are a standing reminder of our collective history as a community, of collective triumphs and struggles. It is imperative we work to ensure that these stories endure”

The services of Switchboard can be accessed via phone (0800 0119 100), chat, and email. 

Click here to learn more about becoming a Switchboard volunteer.  

Alex Gabbutt is Executive Director and Head of Advisory at LGBT Great

   Clare Scott (she/her)   

"We cannot underestimate the importance of remembering the work of those that have come before us, particularly when it comes to the evolution of laws and rights for the LGBTQ+ community. Everyone deserves to have the same protections and an equal place in society, irrespective of LGBTQ+ identity, race, ethnicity, creed, or background, especially those who have historically been underrepresented and marginalised. We should all work together to keep the dialogue around history alive, to get involved and to ensure that the work of those that have come before us is not forgotten”

Clare Scott is COO and Head of Careers at LGBT Great 

  Matt Cameron (he/him)   

"For me, LGBTQ+ History Month is about recognising the great many people who have gone before us who have enabled the world we live in today. 

History is a gift. Whether this be the development of the LGBTQ+ civil rights movement, the shattered glass ceilings, or the battles that have been fought and won. LGBTQ+ History Month is about sharing a united sense of accomplishment and looking forward with unwavering strength and determination to the future. But it hasn’t always felt this way for me. 

I was born in 1987 in a town called Blackpool in northwest England. I had no sense of LGBTQ+ history in the first eighteen years of my life. The truth was that living without any sense of past or present in this regard and with no visibility of other LGBTQ+ people around me, I found myself in a deep and lonely place. 

As I entered my teens in 2000, I lived in a continuous mindset of fear and concern for myself and my future. I existed in a world where I didn’t fit in, and people like me didn’t seem real. I existed in a mindset where my everyday life was about hiding in the shadows, hoping no one would notice! I was surviving in a mentality of fear and uncertainty. In everything I did, this impacted me, my being and how I felt in myself. Over time, this pain grew stronger and more acute. 

I hit rock bottom around 2006, aged 16 when I entered into a period of extreme darkness and despair. I felt surrounded by a world which didn’t reflect me. There was no LGBTQ+ visibility in school, no role models, and no sense of me reflected in those around me. My home and family life was just more of the same and sometimes worse. Nothing and no one in my life resonated with who I was. I came to believe that there was just no way that I would ever fit into the world that was engulfing me. Every day, this hit me hard, and the blows kept coming. The feeling of shame was real. 

Things didn’t start to change for me until around 2006, aged 18 when I began to notice a few other LGBTQ+ people. I met an older gay person through a part-time job (for £2.50 per hour!) pot washing in a local hotel. I found refuge in a discreet gay club in a Blackpool. I saw a gay character on a British soap. I heard about the Equality Act in the UK. I started to think that there must be more to LGBTQ+ history than what I knew at that moment! 

So, I started to push myself to find answers to all the questions flying around in my head. I started to get curious about my identity and the history of the community I belonged to and who I was as a person. I desperately wanted to know more. In fact, I embarked on a total rampage of finding out everything I could about all that had gone before. I read books, watched films and snook out to the internet cafe late at night when there was no way anyone could see what I was looking up! Learning about the history of Pride, civil liberties, and same-sex relationships helped to inform me.  

It was around this time that I suddenly discovered that a universe did exist for me and that there was some hope. In other words, this was when history first started to provide me a gift. The more I got to know, the more I felt comfortable in myself. 

My discovery of what had gone before was growing and manifesting itself in a way which saw me spend a lot of time trying to step outside my comfort zone. Away from the chains of school and home life. I avoided everything that was familiar in my world and started branching out. I was starting to look to the future for the exciting and the unknown, which appealed to me more and more! This shining light of finding out about the past and its potential ignited a fire and excitement in me to take control of my life. I wanted so desperately to do well for myself and relinquish any dependency on others. I wanted autonomy, and I wanted freedom. It was time to make my own history. 

I went on to be the first in my family to flee the nest and go to University. My pursuit of knowledge through history led to me gaining a degree in history with a specialist study on homosexuality through the ages. Same-sex relationships were mainstream and widely accepted before the emergence of the Catholic church. Religion has a lot to answer for, is all I will say! In short, my pursuit of the past helped me to focus on the present and helped me to find the strength to look into my future. 

So, as we mark this History Month, I reflect deeply on how history has enabled me, and it can enable you too. I believe that as much as it is about the past, paradoxically for me, it is about the shaping of the future! History is a gift, and we must keep on ‘gifting it’ so that we don’t slip back into the past and to ensure that we don’t make the same mistakes in the future"
 

Matt Cameron is CEO and Head of Membership at LGBT Great