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LETTER TO EDITOR: Thank you LGBT Community Safety Forum

I wanted to write and thank Billie Lewis and the volunteers from the Brighton & Hove LGBT Community Safety Forum, for everything they did to help us with the Soul Safari days at the B Right On LGBT festival.

They did an absolutely amazing job with everything, and the space they created for us to work was great. It gave so many groups, including The Village MCC, the opportunity to feel that there was a bridge between the LGBT+ community and ourselves.

The Brighton Gay Men’s Chorus were able to mourn one of their own, acknowledging the dreadful loss whilst also celebrating the life of a good friend. Quakers, Buddhists, Christians, Pagans, Wiccans, Jews, and interfaith groups, as well as those who use mindfulness and other techniques to help someone ground themselves, were able to claim a place in the spectrum of LGBT+ spirituality and be recognised. It was a unique opportunity and appreciated by everyone involved.

None of this would have happened without the hard work of Billie, David, AJ, Kelly, Becky, Gavin, and the Lunch Positive volunteers led by Gary Pargeter.

I was so proud to be a part of a church where so many also volunteered their time and resources to support the event, but none of us would have had the opportunity to do so without the team from the B&H LGBT CSF.

The B Right On festival was a celebration of LGBT+ history month, and included lots of exceptional social events and some first class entertainment. If organisers had decided that nothing more was needed the festival would still have been a great success. Yet, understanding that LGBT+ life often includes a spiritual element, the B&H LGBT CSF planned to include that too. It took a huge leap of faith, and we applaud them for it.

Thank you for everything Billie. I do hope that the festival is repeated next year, and that once again those on the margins of the margins are recognised and given a voice.

Thank you so much for trusting us at The Village MCC to organise it, and I hope that you feel able to do so again.

Rev. Michael Hydes – Senior Pastor, Village MCC

MBE for local LGBT Vicar

Nigel Nash the Convenor of the Brighton Lesbian & Gay Christian Movement received an MBE in the 2016 Queens birthday Honours list.

The citation read: For work with children and for voluntary work with the LGBT+ Community.

The reference to voluntary work with the LGBT+ community refers to the 25 years Nigel has been convenor of the Brighton & Hove Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement (LGCM) and includes his work on anti bullying in schools and other work with individuals helping them come to terms with their sexuality.

Nigel said: “A few years ago, people couldn’t even say publicly that they were LGBT+, or that they loved someone of the same-sex, but now it is included in a citation from the Queen.  How far we have come, but within a couple of weeks of the announcement, we had the massacre in Orlando, so we still have a long way to go.”

Nigel is pictured on the day of his presentation by Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace.  In the picture are his parter, Fr David Ingledew, his mother and sister.

He had no idea the Honour was coming. He was nominated for his work, and information was collected from various people in the community before being submitted to the Honours panel for them to make a decision.

Activists take over London landmarks to reclaim our LGBT+ history

House of Lords
House of Lords

A group of LGBT+ activists took over key London landmarks yesterday, turning the city’s public spaces into a living museum of radical queer history, subverting English Heritage’s historic blue plaques and bringing living exhibits to its streets.

#Yesterqueer direct action is the first action by the Sexual Avengers, a network of campaigns and individuals campaigning for queer rights through direct action and community building.

By fixing up subversive queer versions of the English Heritage’s blue history plaques, the Sexual Avengers intend to bring often-ignored sites of radical queer history into the public eye.

Avenger targets included:

♦ The House of Lords (where lesbian activists abseiled in to protest Section 28),

♦ The Admiral Duncan gay pub (where three people lost their lives to a neo-Nazi nail bomb), and

♦ The home of Black Pride (the UK’s only queer pride event organised by people of colour),

#Yesterqueer draws attention to how radical queer history has been systematically hidden and co-opted to fit a particular, sanitised version of ‘gay’.

Following in the footsteps of the four lesbian activists who descended into the House of Lords on February 2, 1988, four lesbian Sexual Avengers scaled the side of the building in the early hours of yesterday morning (February 22), leaving security guards baffled while presenting a bold reminder of London’s radical queer history.

The Admiral Duncan in Old Compton Street, London
The Admiral Duncan in Old Compton Street, London

The action also hit the sites of queer clubs, venues and safe spaces across London. One-third of London’s queer spaces have closed in the past three years, as property developers, absentee owners and gentrification drive queer people not only out of their bars and clubs but even out of their homes. One in four homeless youth in London identify as LGBT+, and this number is rising. See below for a full list of sites.

Through #Yesterqueer, Sexual Avengers are demanding a permanent home in London for radical queer history. This is the first action in an ongoing campaign to put queer activism and the personal stories of queer people back on the map, from Whitehall to the back alleys of Soho.

Sexual Avenger Lucy Warin, said: “For us, the personal is political. I’ve grown up queer in a straight world that tells me I’m allowed to be gay, but not ‘too gay’. As a community we don’t get to celebrate our personal history much – straight people can’t identify the place they ‘come out’, they didn’t lose their virginity ‘in the closet’ and they probably can’t name one of the multiple places on public transport where I’ve lowered my voice or degendered my partner when telling a friend about a relationship. There should be no shame attached to these sites. We have to uncover our history to celebrate and learn from it.”

Sexual Avenger Ariana Jordão, 33, who attached the plaque to the House of Lords, added: “We did this to celebrate collective acts of queer resistance. The House of Lords represents the powerful who ignore the interests of the few, so this is about visibility, creating something that’s impossible to ignore – a rupture in the impenetrable powerhouse. It felt awesome standing on the shoulders of giants, and of my friends.” Ariana is a biologist, artist and gardener.

Sexual Avenger Tabitha Quirke, said: “One-third of London’s queer spaces have closed in the past three years, and queer homelessness is rocketing up. The threat to our identity and lives is growing, as capitalist investors force the closure of our bars, clubs and community spaces. Queer spaces have saved lives: now someone needs to save them.”

Sexual Avenger Dan Glass, concluded: “Radical queer history is full of hope, full of hard-fought campaigns by committed groups and individuals that have won us the rights we now enjoy today. London is unique as a ‘gay friendly’ city with no permanent LGBT+ museum or cultural space: comparable cities such as Berlin, San Francisco or New York all have such a space. We demand a queer cultural space to understand where we’ve come from, and how far we still have to go to achieve equality, especially for the most vulnerable members of our community.”

Sexual Avengers meet every Wednesday from 18:30 to 20:30 in East London.

For more information, click here:

 

PREVIEW: International Women’s Day: ‘Celebrating Women in Film’

The cinema concert has arrived…

The Brighton Film Quartet will be playing live at Brighton’s oldest arthouse cinema, the Duke of York’s, showcasing beautiful imagery from top local filmmaking talent on the big screen and a specially composed soundtrack.

The night entitled Celebrating Women in Film – with female composer, musicians and filmmakers – will be marking International Women’s Day, on Wednesday, March 8 with  SOUNDSCAPE – a live concert of pure escapism with this extraordinary all-female piano quartet.

Stunning big-screen visuals form a breathtaking backdrop to the quartet’s hauntingly beautiful cinematic music and multi-layered soundtrack. Classical meets minimalism, with an unexpected twist. Think Einaudi with attitude, Nyman on a night out. A collaboration of top filmmakers and the quartet’s pianist composer.

From the magical icescapes of Greenland to a moonlit Venetian sea. From orchestral accents, pulsing drumbeats to traces of triphop… nothing comes close for sheer evocative beauty and electric atmosphere. Don’t miss this unforgettable experience and a stunning testament to the power of women in film.


Event: Celebrating Women in Film

Where: Duke of York’s Picture House, Preston Rd, Brighton BN1 4NA

When: Wednesday, March 8

Time: 9pm

For more information, click here:

 

Major hate crime study to shape new and improved support services for victims

University of Leicester Criminologists lead major new study of hate crime in the West Midlands.

 

♦ Number of hate crimes in UK has risen in recent months

♦ Study highlights importance of providing support services for hate crime victims

♦ Research team looking for people in West Midlands to share their views through short survey or interviews

“With levels of hate crime escalating, it is crucial that support services are accessible, effective and retain the confidence of victims”Dr Stevie-Jade Hardy, University of Leicester

A major new study to investigate hate crime in the West Midlands and to shape the development of improved support services for victims is being led by the University of Leicester.

The project’s aims are closely aligned with the priorities set out within the Commissioner’s Police and Crime Plan which are to improve the quality of support offered to hate crime victims and to better understand victims’ needs through the criminal justice system.

The research, which is funded by the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson, will be led by Dr Stevie-Jade Hardy and Professor Neil Chakraborti from the University of Leicester Centre for Hate Studies within the Department of Criminology between February and April 2017.

The research comes at a time when numbers of reported hate crimes has risen across the country.

The findings and recommendations from the research will be used to shape new and improved support services for hate crime victims in the West Midlands.

David Jamieson
David Jamieson

West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson, said: “It is important that we make sure there is proper support for victims of hate crime.

“West Midlands Police take the investigation of hate crime very seriously, I also want to make sure the correct support is in place for victims too.”

Dr Stevie-Jade Hardy
Dr Stevie-Jade Hardy

Dr Stevie-Jade Hardy, added: “With levels of hate crime escalating, it is crucial that support services are accessible, effective and retain the confidence of victims. We therefore welcome this timely opportunity to work with the Police and Crime Commissioner to identify the support needs and expectations of hate crime victims.”

The research team is looking for people in the West Midlands to share their views either through a short survey or through interviews.

To complete the survey, click here: www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/MLCD6QR

During February and March 2017 the research team will be attending different community groups and organisations to hear from as many people as possible. If you would like to be involved in the project and for more information, email: mailto:LCHS@le.ac.uk

 

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