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Following several years of escalating persecution under the Nazi regime, more than six million Jewish people were murdered during the Holocaust.
Alongside Romany Gypsies and people with disabilities, members of the LGBT community were also targeted by the Nazis in their efforts to eradicate entire communities who they portrayed as a threat to the ‘German people’.
While Berlin in the 1920s and early 1930s was home to a flourishing LGBT community, since immortalised in Goodbye to Berlin and Cabaret, the Nazi rise to power was followed by a swift and brutal crackdown.
Between 1933 and 1945, an estimated 100,000 men were arrested in Nazi Germany as ‘homosexuals’, of whom 50,000 were sentenced, and between 5,000 and 15,000 were sent to concentration camps. Lesbians, bi women and trans people, whose experiences remain under-researched, were also targeted. It is unclear how many LGBT people perished in these camps.
Holocaust Memorial Day gives us a chance to pause and reflect on this chapter in Jewish history, LGBT history, and our shared human history.
Holocaust Memorial Day gives us a chance to pause and reflect
As homosexuality was only decriminalised in Germany decades after the Second World War, many LGBT survivors could not publicly give voice to their stories and experiences.
That’s why today, I am thinking about Gad Beck, a gay Jewish man who survived the Holocaust, and supported many others to do the same, by using his connections in Berlin’s underground gay community.
I’m also thinking about Annette Eick, a Jewish lesbian who narrowly avoided the fate met by her parents in Auschwitz by fleeing to England in 1938, where she later met her partner.
And most of all, today I am thinking about those victims and survivors, families and communities whose stories have all but been lost. That is why it’s so important we remember those stories that have survived, and which continue to come to light.
Today I am thinking about those victims and survivors, families and communities whose stories have all but been lost
Remembrance is a powerful, transformative act. In the concentration camps, prisoners arrested for being ‘homosexual’ were forced to wear a pink triangle on their sleeve as a badge of shame.
Now, the pink triangle has been inverted and reclaimed as a symbol of queer resistance and liberation, as was done most visibly by American HIV/AIDS activists in the 1980s.
The pink triangle symbolises the power of remembering the past, reflecting on the injustices that persist today, and the possibility of a future where people are not demonised for their difference.
As a gay Jew, it is a symbol I wear with pride.
More than 70 years on from the end of World War Two, today’s burial offers the chance for us to remember those who suffered under the Nazi regime, and to give them a small amount of the dignity they deserve. Today we remember them.
2020’s LGBT History Month theme is ‘Prose, Poetry and Plays’, the three pillars which frame what we understand as literature.
By delving into works created by LGBT writers, from the poet Sappho writing two and a half thousand years ago to the critically lauded ‘Burgerz’ by Travis Alabanza, we can broaden our understanding of LGBT history. For as long as there have been writers, there have been LGBT artists documenting their experiences. By learning about our history we can better comprehend where we are as a community today.
By learning about our history we can better comprehend where we are as a community today.
Literature created by LGBT writers acts as a gateway into understanding the landscape for LGBT people of the time, with so many authors forced to conceal queer characters between the lines. When their literature wasn’t written out of the canon altogether, their queerness so often was, rendering our comprehension of these texts limited.
This practice still happens today, with the lives of queer writers so often sanitised and diluted for students, as if LGBT lives are inappropriate for today’s youth, despite the LGBT experience being a large part of modern life.
Stonewall was founded in response to Section 28, an act that saw queer texts stolen from library shelves and with it LGBT role models lost for a generation.
However, the effects of Section 28 are still apparent in how we teach LGBT writers in our classrooms.
While the majority of his sonnets were aimed at an unnamed man, Shakespeare’s work is still encountered for the first time by young people without so much of an acknowledgement for who the majority of his sonnets were written for, suggesting to LGBT teenagers that their identity is something to mask, as if who they are is not appropriate for the classroom they inhabit.
By studying the plays of Oscar Wilde or the novels of Virginia Woolf without space afforded for their identity, we risk mimicking the oppressive society that forced writers to bury queer themes deep in the subtext.
In decades to come, we have an obligation to centre queer themes when examining the novels of Yrsa Daley-Ward and the poetry of Ocean Vuong, and when those works are taught, as I hope they will be, they will grant students an insight into the LGBT issues of our today.
Created by Schools Out, LGBT History Month is every February.
Stonewall works with primary schools, secondary schools and colleges to create LGBT inclusive settings. Read curriculum guides for primary and secondary schools.
6 February is Time to Talk Day, an initiative by Time to Change that encourages everyone to be more open about mental health.
Our Senior Campaigns Officer, Molly Maher, opens up about the mental health impact of experiencing biphobia, and the importance of community.
I think a lot of lesbian, gay, bi and queer people have that light bulb moment where you realise, you’re not straight. I had a few. When Emily and Naomi kissed on Skins, when I read an Agony Aunt column about having a crush on your best friend, when I met a proud, openly queer person for the first time – all these moments bought up feelings of excitement and dread.
I wanted to be myself, but I hoped and prayed that my feelings would go away, because I feared rejection.
Growing up I didn’t have the language to tell people I was bi. I knew I wasn’t only attracted to men but felt ashamed and had to hide it from my friends. At school, calling someone a lesbian was considered the worst insult, so I knew that if I came out, I’d risk losing people or being treated differently. That made me push down my feelings and hide parts of myself, even from myself.
I think that denying my experiences lead to anxiety and negatively affected my self-esteem. I couldn’t express, explore and embrace my full self.
Three in ten bi men (30 per cent) and almost one in ten bi women (8 per cent), say they cannot be open about their sexual orientation with any of their friends, compared to two per cent of gay men and one per cent of lesbians.
LGBT in Britain – Home and Communities (2018), p8
I recently facilitated a Bi Empowerment Programme, where we aim to empower attendees to celebrate what it means to them to be bi and build a collective sense of solidarity. It was incredible to spend time with other bi people and hear their stories. We talked about how biphobia had made us feel like we were not ‘queer enough,’ and how that had sparked or fed self-doubt, anxiety and depression.
It hurts when the community dismisses or attacks your identity as a bi person, pushes you to the fringes, stereotypes you or denies who you are as a ‘phase’ or a ‘lie.’ When I told gay and lesbian friends of mine that I was going to tell my parents I’m bi, they told me I should ‘check’ first by sleeping with a woman. When I look back at that, I’m disappointed that they would doubt me and put me down instead of raising me up the way I hoped they would. After all, I know myself better than anyone.
More than one in four bi women (27 per cent) and almost one in five bi men (18 per cent) have experienced discrimination or poor treatment from others in their local LGBT community because of their sexual orientation, compared to nine per cent of lesbians and four per cent of gay men.
LGBT in Britain – Home and Communities (2018), p13
I have experienced anxiety, depression and PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder); while my experiences of biphobia are only one thread running through my mental health challenges, they are inextricable from who I am and my wellness overall.
I’ve come on a journey of self-acceptance through therapy and by surrounding myself with LGBT and queer people who are supportive and affirming. If you can, reach out to friends, colleagues or family about your mental health or approach some of the amazing services out there, like Samaritans and LGBT+ Switchboard. You don’t have to be in crisis to reach out, and taking that step is courageous not weak. You deserve to be heard.
72 per cent of bi women and 56 per cent of bi men have experienced anxiety in the last year.
LGBT in Britain – Home and Communities (2018), p7
I hid my identity from myself and others for a long time. But after so many light bulb moments I hit a fork in the road: I could risk losing myself by staying in the closet, or risk losing others by coming out. I’m lucky that I had the option to come out safely, and in the end the people who matter to me most have become my greatest allies.
I see my route to mental wellness as a life-long journey of trying to show myself love and compassion, as well as listening and learning from the experiences of other people in our community. Challenging ourselves to show solidarity to other LGBT people, recognising when our views and attitudes reflect that we’re in a privileged position, and making an effort to include others can make our community safer and stronger.
Solidarity has helped me overcome the harmful myths of biphobia and take pride in being bi!
Do you want to help lesbian, gay, bi and trans people feel more included?
Donate to support our work.
Visit our Bi Hub.
The introduction of Section 28 in 1988 had a profound impact on the approach schools and colleges took to LGBT inclusion in the UK.
This law made it illegal for schools and colleges to ‘promote homosexuality’, and it remained in place until 2000 in Scotland and 2003 in the rest of the UK. Over three decades on, we are in a better place, but the fight for equality is far from over.
A minority of education staff, including members of Teachers Against Clause 28, did find ways to build LGBT inclusion and visibility into their teaching. This was easier in English Literature and Drama lessons, where books and plays with LGBT characters could be used in the curriculum.
Unfortunately, most children and young people were unable to benefit from this inclusive approach and as a consequence a whole generation of LGBT people suffered.
I am a member of that generation and, while I had some wonderful supportive school friends, I still felt isolated. There was no mention of LGBT people at school because my teachers weren’t allowed to mention them.
While I had some wonderful supportive school friends, I still felt isolated. There was no mention of LGBT people at school because my teachers weren’t allowed to mention them.
When I was bullied, teachers did not acknowledge that it was because I am an LGBT person.
My Relationships and Sex Education lessons did not provide information that was relevant to me, because my teachers couldn’t teach in an inclusive manner.
My sources of information about LGBT people were limited to TV programmes such as This Life and Queer as Folk (which I was far too young to be watching) and homophobic, biphobic and transphobic articles in the newspaper.
Consistently seeing and hearing anti-LGBT messages in the press, from my peers, and on the street had a huge impact on my self-esteem. The lack of positive representation not only made me feel alone at the time, it also limited my long-term aspirations.
When I was 15, I wanted to be a primary school teacher. However, because I was LGBT and didn’t wish to hide it, I dismissed teaching as an option – I assumed that nobody would give me a job in a school and that parents wouldn’t want me teaching their children.
When I was in my mid-20s, I did finally become a teacher. By this point, the Equality Act was in place and Section 28 had long since been repealed.
After spending nearly a decade working as a teacher, I now work in Stonewall’s Education and Youth team. Stonewall, along with other organisations, campaigned hard to bring about the repeal of Section 28.
Since then, we’ve seen a transformation in the way schools and colleges approach LGBT inclusion, with many actively seeking out ways to support their LGBT students and make the adjustments needed to help them feel welcome.
We’ve seen a transformation in the way schools and colleges approach LGBT inclusion, with many actively seeking out ways to support their LGBT students and make the adjustments needed to help them feel welcome.
And last year after years of campaigning, we celebrated a historic announcement on LGBT inclusion in English schools. From September 2020 all secondary schools in England will be required to teach pupils about sexual orientation and gender identity, and all primary schools will be required to teach about different families, which can include LGBT families.
Children and young people now have opportunities to see LGBT role models in schools, some of whom might be their own teachers.
However, Stonewall’s School Report (2017) shows that there’s still a way to go, and that we haven’t yet escaped the shadow of Section 28. Nearly half of LGBT students are bullied at school or college for being LGBT, and two in five LGBT students have never been taught about LGBT issues at school or college. More than two in five trans students said that staff at their school or college didn’t understand what ‘trans’ means.
Nearly half of LGBT students are bullied at school or college for being LGBT, and two in five LGBT students have never been taught about LGBT issues at school or college.
At Stonewall, we help schools and colleges to become more LGBT inclusive and work to improve the lives of LGBT children and young people, whether they’re just starting out or seeking to improve their approach in line with current best practice.
We offer resources and a range of training opportunities for education professionals, helping them to tackle anti-LGBT language and bullying, challenge gender stereotypes, and ensure their setting is trans inclusive. Through our School & College Role Models Programme, we enable secondary schools and colleges ensure that students hear about the lives of LGBT people.
Alongside our lesson packs for both mainstream and special schools and colleges, we’re especially proud to share our free LGBT History Month lesson packs for mainstream primary schools, secondary schools and colleges, and special schools and colleges.
LGBT History Month is now celebrated by thousands of schools, and some school and college LGBT groups even march at local Pride events.
All this means that nowadays lots of LGBT children and young people don’t have the negative experiences that I had at school.
But Stonewall, we won’t stop working until all LGBT children and young people experience acceptance without exception – at school, at college, and throughout their lives.
Donate to support our work.
Lesbian, gay, bi and trans (LGBT) people have always existed and always will exist. We are not going anywhere, and we’re certainly not a trend.
In the face of rising homophobia, biphobia and transphobia in the UK, it is essential that we remind ourselves, and each other, that life now is not how it always will be, or how it always has been. In fact, history is full of us – when we look back, we find many people we might now consider LGBT.
When LGBT histories and people have so often been silenced or erased, it’s even more important that, this LGBT History Month, we highlight some of the lesser known stories from our shared past.
Eleanor Rykener is one such case. In 1394, Eleanor was arrested in London for being a sex worker. She had previously worked as both an embroiderer and sex worker in Oxford and London – two roles that were reserved for women at the time.
However, after her arrest, officials discovered that Eleanor was in fact assigned male at birth. Not only this, but she stated that she had sex with both men and women: seemingly, Eleanor Rykener was what I’d describe as a queer trans woman in medieval England.
Hervard certainly acted in a way that challenged conventional gender in his culture.
Another example of medieval trans people comes from Icelandic culture. The Saga of King Heidrek the Wise includes the legendary tale of Hervard, who was named Hervor at birth but later changed his name to reflect his gender. As a child, he was encouraged to engage with feminised activities such as embroidery, but his skills with a sword and bow were much stronger.
When he was older, he asked his mother to help him wear traditional male dress and went travelling as a Viking. He later returned to taking on the role of a woman, but this is why it is so important for us to understand people within their cultural contexts: our view of what ‘trans’ means now is not universal, but Hervard certainly acted in a way that challenged conventional gender in his culture.
We should also remember that lots of these histories are based around Western ideas of gender, and what it means to be male, female, or something else entirely.
In one of our blogs for Black History Month, Leah Buckle highlighted the extent to which British colonialism imported homophobia, biphobia, transphobia and strict gender roles, destroying the (often more relaxed) way people had thought and acted around LGBT identities for centuries previously.
Finally, while there’s a common assumption that gender-neutral language is a recent invention, history shows us that the singular pronoun ‘they’ has been around for centuries.
It has been used by some of the most famous writers in the English language, with Geoffrey Chaucer being a famous early example. In The Canterbury Tales, from around 1395, Chaucer wrote ‘and whoever finds him out of such blame, they will come up.’ Shakespeare used the singular ‘they’, too. In The Comedy of Errors, in 1594, he wrote ‘There’s not a man I meet but doth salute as if I were their well-acquainted friend’.
The fact that we do now have words for what were previously unnamed identities is a beautiful thing.
Gender-neutral language and the people it describes aren’t new, even if words such as non-binary and genderqueer didn’t exist in the past.
The fact that we do now have words for what were previously unnamed identities is a beautiful thing, and is all thanks to activists determined to create a world in which trans people can live as their trues selves. A big part of this is having language that allows us to describe ourselves in a way that feels accurate and empowering.
It’s clear, then, that lesbian, gay, bi, and especially trans, identities are not a trend: our varied genders and sexualities have existed for as long as people have existed, in every culture, society, and country. And it’s encouraging to see that, even in the face of extreme homophobia, biphobia and transphobia, more and more of our histories are being uncovered and told.
It’s vital that we continue to share these stories and celebrate our community’s long, empowering history – not just this LGBT History Month, but always.
In the 2019 Netflix special Nanette, Hannah Gadsby asked: ‘Where are the quiet gays supposed to go?’
How about your local library? Libraries are typically thought of as stuffy institutions with irritable, cardigan-wearing librarians shushing anyone who speaks above a whisper. This might not be the ideal location for a Pride parade – but you’ll find that many of our own personal Prides are held in between the quiet stacks.
We as a community had to fight against discrimination and censorship to take our rightful place on the shelves.
For LGBT History Month 2020, I’m taking a look at how LGBT people have been silenced in the library, and how we as a community had to fight against discrimination and censorship to take our rightful place on the shelves.
First of all, why is it important that LGBT books are readily available?
Knowledge is a precious thing, and in LGBT studies we have suffered far more losses than we have gained. In Nazi Berlin, purges were carried out in gay bars as well as libraries and research institutes, most notably and devastatingly in the case of the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft. Created by Magnus Hirschfeld, who coined the term ‘transsexualism’, the Institut welcomed trans people as both researchers and clients, pioneered the first gender reassignment surgeries, and worked on vital research about the trans community.
Knowledge is a precious thing, and in LGBT studies we have suffered far more losses than we have gained.
In one of the biggest tragedies of the library world, the Institut and its collections were seized and publicly burned in 1933. Thousands of books, articles, and research notes that could have brought recognition and visibility to trans people across the world were destroyed, and to this day we are still struggling to rebuild that priceless collection of research.
Without having books and research papers on LGBT history and identities publicly available, we and future generations risk remaining uninspired, unempowered, and uneducated on LGBT topics. And while in 2020 a cis gay man or lesbian can find themselves in the library easily (though the situation could be vastly improved), a trans person or an LGBT person of colour will still have a much harder time finding their stories. Identities under the bi and ace umbrellas, meanwhile, are often routinely excluded in LGBT displays, due to a lack of understanding of LGBT identities from library staff.
How do we go about finding our stories?
The first book featuring an LGBT character I ever checked out of a library was Carol (or The Price of Salt) by Patricia Highsmith. I was living a relatively happy life, accepted by my friends and family as a newly-out lesbian, but I still felt crushingly lonely. Books had always been my greatest friends and I was determined to find new ones I could relate to. As always, when in doubt, I headed to the library. Carol and several other titles were sitting in an LGBT History Month display. I took half of them home that day and ended up with a passion for LGBT literature, a library science degree, and some LGBT friends who weren’t books.
I was lucky – my public library was well funded, and I lived in a time and place where a library could display books with LGBT characters without too much backlash. Our stories have never been easier to reach than they are now, but historically LGBT books have been censored, removed from, or not even considered for, library collections. They’ve classified LGBT people as ‘abnormalities’ or ‘neurological disorders’, and generally been shoved to the back of the shelf like we were shoved into the closet.
So how did we ever find the books we needed to empower ourselves as LGBT individuals? While novels and poetry can usually be found through specific displays or word of mouth, for non-fiction resources you’ll need to consult a library catalogue. The Dewey Decimal system is a library classification created by Melvil Dewey in 1876. It is the most popular classification system in the world, particularly in Britain. The DDS decides where a book will be placed on the shelf, and it reveals a lot about what early librarians thought of the subjects they were cataloguing.
In 1932, a reader looking for material on LGBT identities would have found themselves at either 132: Mental Derangements, or 159.9734746: Sexual Inversion.
In 1932, a reader looking for material on LGBT identities would have found themselves at either 132: Mental Derangements, or 159.9734746: Sexual Inversion. In 1965, we were moved to 616.85834: Neurological Disorders. By 1989 we were ‘Social Problems’ (363.49 – still widely used). Today you can still find us in the 300s – more specifically in the 306s, under ‘Sexual Relations’:
- 306.76: Sexual orientation, Asexuality
- 306.764: Heterosexuality
- 306.765: Bisexuality
- 306.766: Homosexuality
- 306.7662: Male homosexuality (gay men)
- 306.7663: Lesbianism
- 306.768: Transgenderism and Transsexualism
- 306.7685: Intersexuality
LGBT librarians and library users have long since highlighted that this system is inadequate for categorising the varied and dynamic LGBT community. They have been instrumental in making sure we have been classified properly in collections, and have taken part in campaigns, focus groups, and protests such as ‘library kiss-ins’ so that, nowadays, no one who is questioning their sexuality or gender identity needs to make the terrifying trip down to classification 132.
The demand for inclusive storytelling increases year by year.
In fact, many libraries are now abandoning Dewey because it is an outdated system that oversimplifies complex issues like gender, sexuality and race. We are also now more likely to see libraries actively promoting books on LGBT subjects, especially during events like LGBT History Month, as the demand for inclusive storytelling increases year by year.
What more can we do to improve the situation for all readers?
It is heartening to think about LGBT people finding comfort in the same stories throughout history – a woman studying the poems of Sappho in Alexandria, a university student poring over Oscar Wilde by candlelight, a lonely teenager reading Carol in an armchair. These people beat the odds to find the stories that represent them. We shouldn’t forget that many people in the past never found their own stories, and that many people today are still searching.
We shouldn’t forget that many people in the past never found their own stories, and that many people today are still searching.
For LGBT History Month 2020 the theme is ‘Poetry, Prose, and Plays’. Visit your local library this month and see what’s available there – not only for you, but for the entire community. Are there trans narratives on the shelves? Are there books celebrating LGBT people of colour? Are there resources on safer sex and asexuality? If you see gaps in the collection, ask your library what you can do to help fill them. LGBT books are out there, waiting to be read – so let’s make them accessible to everyone, and especially to those lonely teenagers.
Check out Stonewall's recommended reading list.
For resources and ideas on how to support your local library:
First-of-its-kind research uncovers what life is like for LGBT young people not in education, employment or training
Bullying at school, discrimination in the workplace and lack of home support can have devastating impact on mental health and prevent LGBT young people from reaching their potential
Almost one in five LGBT people (18 per cent) looking for work have faced discrimination trying to get a job because of who they are
A new report by lesbian, gay, bi and trans equality charity Stonewall and BritainThinks – Shut Out –reveals for the first-time what life is like for LGBT young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET).
The research shows that anti-LGBT bullying, lack of support at home or visible role models can have a devastating impact on LGBT young people’s mental health, and lead many to being ‘shut out’ of higher education and work. The report finds that once out of school and employment, LGBT young people are slipping through the gaps and face significant obstacles to re-entering education and work.
Through in-depth interviews and workshops, 30 LGBT young people were asked about their experiences of being not in education, training and employment, their mental health experiences and what would help them in the future.
Key findings show why these young people left education, training and employment, including:
- Experiences of familial rejection after coming out as LGBT
- Isolation at school and college due to anti-LGBT bullying and a lack of LGBT-specific support
- Negative experiences in the workplace, including anti-LGBT harassment
The report goes on to show that once out of education and employment, mental health struggles and difficulties accessing opportunities continue to hold LGBT young people back and prevent them from reaching their full potential.
Family relationships
The new report found that a breakdown in relationships with family, including rejection from family members due to being LGBT, was a key challenge for many LGBT young people.
Sean, a 24-year-old trans man from England, said: ‘My mum didn’t want me to transition, so I ended up moving into a hostel for a while.’
My mum didn’t want me to transition, so I ended up moving into a hostel for a while.'
Sean, 24
Previous research from Stonewall has found that only half of lesbian, gay and bi people (46 per cent) and trans people (47 per cent) feel able to be open about their sexual orientation or gender identity to everyone in their family.
Shut Out shows how difficult family relationships can leave LGBT young people without support, which can have a profound impact on their mental health and ability to stay in education or work.
Bullying in the classroom
Many of the young LGBT people interviewed expressed how experiences of bullying, coupled with a lack of support from teachers, led them to become disengaged from their education.
Aiden, a 21-year-old gay man from Scotland, said ‘At school, the bullying was really related to me being gay…I had to have a lot of time off when I was in school because of this discrimination. When I turned 18, I just stopped going.’
Stonewall’s School Report found that LGBT young people face troubling levels of isolation in Britain’s schools, nearly half of lesbian, gay, bi and trans pupils (45 per cent) – including 64 per cent of trans pupils – are bullied for being LGBT. Young LGBT people also face higher instances of mental health challenges, with two thirds of LGBT people aged 18-24 (68 per cent) experiencing depression in the last year.
The first time I experienced depression was when I was 14. I was young and in care, and I got feelings for a girl.
Adela, 23
The combination of these factors is preventing some LGBT young people from achieving their goals by shutting them out of education and limiting employment opportunities.
Adela, a 23 year old bi/pan woman from Wales said: ‘The first time I experienced depression was when I was 14. I was young and in care, and I got feelings for a girl.'
Mathew who is 21, gender-questioning and from Scotland said: ‘I was nervous about [leaving the house] because of the amount of times I’ve been bullied as a kid. I sometimes couldn't bring myself to leave my front door.’
Life after school
Leaving education to go to university or enter the workforce is a tricky transition for some LGBT young people. Of those that did go on to university, many felt forced to stop their studies due to unwelcoming environments which made their mental health worse.
Participants also shared their experiences of feeling forced to leave jobs because of anti-LGBT bullying, while some put off applying for positions as they feared they would be discriminated against. Stonewall research revealed that almost one in five LGBT people (18 per cent) looking for work have faced discrimination trying to get a job because of who they are.
He was anti-LGBT, and said that if any employees were gay, he’d fire them. So I left … I felt unsafe as an LGBT person.
Jamie, 19
Jamie, a 19-year-old non-binary person from England, spoke about their experience of being managed by someone who was openly homophobic: ‘He was a dodgy boss. He made me feel unsafe. He was anti-LGBT, and said that if any employees were gay, he’d fire them. So I left… I felt unsafe as an LGBT person.’
Barriers to re-entry
The LGBT young people interviewed described how challenging it was to re-enter education, employment and training once they had become shut out. A range of factors led to them being unable to get back into work or school, including poor mental and physical health.
The report also found that many of the young LGBT people lacked the practical support and knowledge they needed to find training opportunities and routes into work. As a result, the charity is calling for better mental health support for LGBT young people and specific careers guidance to help those that are shut out of education and employment.
Mo Wiltshire, Director of Education and Youth at Stonewall, said: ‘For the first time, this research sheds light on the challenges that young lesbian, gay, bi and trans people have faced, leading them to become shut out of education, employment or training.
Schools, colleges, local authorities and employers need to open their doors to LGBT young people, starting by creating environments in which everyone can thrive.
Mo Wiltshire, Stonewall Director of Education and Youth
‘This research has brought up many areas which we know present particular difficulty for LGBT people, such as bullying and a lack of support from their school days right through to the workplace. But now we can see that these challenges have lasting impacts, which is why it’s time to act.
‘Schools, colleges, local authorities and employers need to open their doors to LGBT young people, starting by creating environments in which everyone can thrive. No one should be shut out of education or work because they are LGBT, and we will keep fighting until every LGBT person has the support they need to be themselves and reach their full potential.’
8 March marks International Women's Day – ‘a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women’.
It has a clear purpose: to promote ‘unity, celebration, reflection, advocacy and action’.
Of course, we need more than just one day to celebrate all that women bring to the world, but the focus provided by International Women’s Day means we can draw attention to the inequalities faced by lesbians, bi women and trans (LBT+) people. We can use this day to not only acknowledge their many achievements, but to galvanise the momentum needed to ensure the LGBT movement – and society as a whole – grows more inclusive.
International Women's Day is an opportunity to hear from lesbians, bi women and trans people who have historically been silenced.
For us at Stonewall, International Women's Day is an opportunity to hear from lesbians, bi women and trans people who have historically been silenced. When we use our voices to highlight these injustices, and in particular, when we do so alongside our trans siblings, we empower one another. Working together, we can celebrate all of our identities and tackle the discrimination that affects each of us.
In Britain, people who identify as LBT+ disproportionately experience anxiety – 72 per cent of bi women and 60 per cent of lesbians experienced anxiety in the last year, compared with 56 per cent of bi men and 53 per cent of gay men. Trans people and lesbians in Britain are also more likely to report unequal treatment and lack of understanding by healthcare staff. Even in LGBT spaces, women are often excluded. 33 per cent of lesbians and 43 per cent of bi women in the UK say they ‘never attend LGBT-specific venues and events in [the] local community.’
The specific dangers faced by LBT+ communities can also be seen on a global scale. The Trans Murder Monitoring project recorded 2,982 murders of trans and gender-diverse people worldwide between 1 January and 30 September 2018 – with trans women of colour facing vastly disproportionate levels of violence.
Lesbians, bi women and trans people exist in a world that discriminates against us because of who we are and who we love.
Lesbians, bi women and trans people exist in a world that discriminates against us because of who we are and who we love. Plus, the combination of our gender identities and our sexual orientations means we often find ourselves at odds with the typical expectations around what it looks like or means to be ‘a woman’. Whether you’re a butch lesbian, a feminine bi woman with a boyfriend, or a trans person who changes how they express themselves day to day, we’re all at a higher risk of prejudice and harassment – no matter how we identify.
Because of this, we firmly believe that working for gender parity goes hand in hand with our fight for acceptance without exception for LGBT people. This International Women’s Day, we want to highlight the work of lesbian, bi women, and trans activists worldwide through our #OutOfTheMargins project.
Out of the Margins aims to address the specific needs, experiences and human rights violations of LBT+ people across the world. Since 2018, the project has brought together a global network of organisations working to advance and promote equal rights for LBT+ communities, using groundbreaking research and advocacy. Together, we’re fighting for a world where lesbians, bi women and trans people are fully included in their societies, and finally brought Out of the Margins.
We know that there is, and always has been, more that unites us than divides us.
We know that there is, and always has been, more that unites us than divides us. But only when we acknowledge the shared nature of our struggles can we work together to create a world where everyone is safe, supported, and free to be themselves. On this International Women’s Day, we urge our communities to come together in solidarity and begin taking the steps needed to make this a reality.
Please note: in light of COVID-19, this event has now been postponed. Please check Bi Pride's UK Twitter feed for further announcements.
At Stonewall, we loved attending the first-ever Bi Pride last year, so we're really excited to hear about the first Bi Pride Local in Swansea, in partnership with with Bi Cymru's BiFest 10-year anniversary.
Bi Pride UK has decided to give Wales that bi boost of positivity and celebration it deserves: it's teaming up with Bi Cymru to launch their flagship Bi Pride Local event, and celebrate the 10-year anniversary of BiFest.
Bi people continue to feel uncomfortable during other LGBTQ+ Prides.
Following last year’s success of the first-ever Bi Pride, 'the biggest bi gathering in history', Bi Pride UK concluded that events encouraging bi people to come together and celebrate their community are essential. Bi people continue to feel uncomfortable during other LGBTQ+ Prides. That's why the charity has decided to launch the first-ever Bi Pride Local event, partnering with Bi Cymru’s BiFest, and are striving to make 2020 even bigger and better for all individuals who fall under the bi umberella: bisexuals, biromantics, pansexuals, panromantics, polysexuals, polyromantics, homoflexibles, heteroflexibles and anyone else who experiences attraction beyond gender. Abigail and Ele are two of the organisers behind the event.
Abigail Kay, Bi Pride UK Chair, “I couldn’t be more excited about kicking off the first Bi Pride event of the year, in Wales. We’re honoured to be joining forces with Bi Cymru and celebrating a decade’s worth of BiFest celebrations, along with our very first Bi Pride Local event. I can’t wait to bring a wave of pink, purple, blue and yellow to Swansea!”
Ele Hicks, Bi Cymru, “We’re delighted to be working with Bi Pride UK to celebrate 10 years of BiFest Wales in May 2020. Bi Pride UK put on a great event last year and Bi Cymru are excited to collaborate to deliver a bigger, better, and free BiFest Cymru/Bi Pride Local for our 10th anniversary event."
A recent study showed that Wales is home to the largest number of bi people in the UK, with 8% stating they were attracted to more than one gender. It's surprising that, despite their large bi community, research by Stonewall shows that 3% of bi men in Wales had attempted to take their own life, and 34% of bi and lesbian women in Wales have experienced domestic abuse. HRC’s Foundation study of bi youths concluded that biphobia and sexual harassment affect bi people at a young age. 48% of bi people who've accessed the UK’s national healthcare services have experienced biphobic comments, and so two thirds felt they must identify as straight when receiving medical services, while 42% identified as gay, .
Bi Pride Local/Bi Fest will take place on Saturday 16 May at the YMCA in Swansea (1 The Kingsway, Swansea, SA1 5JQ). The whole event is set to run in two parts - a day event and a night event, with panels, talks, workshops, live music from bands and DJs, and a fully licensed bar with alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Speakers and performers will be announced closer to the event. Visit Bi Cymru’s website for more information on the day event and the night event.
All individuals who experience attraction beyond gender deserve to celebrate their identities proudly and unashamedly, free from ridicule.
Events organised by Bi Pride UK and Bi Cymru aim to celebrate bi visibility, as all individuals who experience attraction beyond gender deserve to celebrate their identities proudly and unashamedly, free from ridicule.
There's no need to register online for this one, just turn up on the day, and give Swansea the big bi celebration it deserves!
Chances are if you’ve read a newspaper, gone on the internet, or turned on the TV at all, you’ve probably seen some shocking headlines about trans people lately.
The sad reality is that there a lot of myths and misconceptions being repeated over and over again, which makes it harder to get to the truth on these issues. Much of which has focused on debating reforms to Scotland’s gender recognition laws, known as the 2004 Gender Recognition Act (GRA).
So, let’s start by separating fact from fiction. The GRA is the law that governs how trans people can get their gender identity legally recognised on their birth certificate. The current system is secretive, treats being trans as a medical condition, costs a lot of money and takes several years to go through. The whole process is so traumatic and dehumanising that many trans people simply can’t face it.
Being able to get a birth certificate with the right gender on it matters.
But being able to get a birth certificate with the right gender on it matters. It helps make life admin easier, but mainly it means a trans person has a piece of paper showing the Government knows who they are.
The fact is, we know the majority of Scottish people support trans people and want to see a reformed GRA. The Scottish Government’s previous consultation found that two-thirds of Scots (65 per cent) support a system of self-determination. Putting such a system in place would be life-changing for so many trans people. Just like everyone else, trans people deserve to be respected for who they are.
This toxic conversation has amplified inaccurate information and makes trans people second guess whether it’s even safe to go out in public.
However, discussions about the GRA are being driven by misinformation and hate, pushed out by a few loud voices, to make reform feel ‘controversial’. You don’t have to look far to find story after story questioning who can use what bathroom or changing room in relation to updating the GRA. Not only do these stories misrepresent the law and lived experiences of trans people – as the 2010 Equality Act protects trans people in accessing single-sex spaces that match their gender – they have a serious real-world impact on trans people’s lives. This toxic conversation has amplified inaccurate information and makes trans people second guess whether it’s even safe to go out in public.
It’s trans people who will benefit from GRA reform and a simpler process of legal gender recognition. My experience in Ireland, where our Government introduced similar reform back in 2015, show these changes to the law are hugely positive for trans people, and have little to no impact on anyone who isn’t trans.