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Intro to the Queer History Files
Article written by Ben Chidley
Keeping queer history alive whilst governing bodies like the USA are desperately
trying to strip us from the history books is vital to me. As part of the younger
generation of LGBT people, I realise the importance of educating myself and others
about our history, where we come from and how we got the rights we do today.
Section 28
The local government act of 1988, introduced by Thatcher’s government, had three
main intentions:
- Market efficiency
- Council restrictions
- Ideological control.
Of course, the most impactful and infamous policy being section 28. Section 28
banned the ‘promotion’ of homosexuality within local authorities. It specifically sought
to prevent schools from promoting the acceptability of homosexuality. Libraries even
removed books and resources that featured LGBTQ+ themes, driven by the concern
that an alternative representation of family structures could be detrimental to the
development of a child.
This was arguably a result of the heavy criticism that the book Jenny Lives with Eric
and Martin received. The book was an educational picture book tracking the normal
life of a young girl living with her father and his male partner. Its purpose was simply
to reduce anti-gay prejudice and reflect diverse families. Tabloids like, The Daily Mail
and The Sun (shocker!) reported that the book was widely available to young
children in school libraries. Headlines attacked it as "sordid sex lessons," which prompted intense public outrage
The conservative government not only wanted to ensure that local councils refrained
from spending public money on promoting LGBTQ+ rights or education, but they also
intended to foster an atmosphere of fear, uncertainty and self-censorship.
You would think that having the first female prime minister in the UK would have
come with some major progressions for the rights of different minority groups.
However, Thatcher strongly believed in the nuclear family and once famously said
that "Children who need to be taught to respect traditional moral values are
being taught that they have an inalienable right to be gay. All of those children
are being cheated of a sound start in life, yes cheated"
Thatchers views are only perpetuated by the time period. We have to remember that
this is 1988, the height of the AIDS crisis. Gay men were already being alienated,
dismissed and abused within society. The culmination of this led to a don’t ask, don’t
tell environment.
At the time, many LGBT people were not able to come out until their late 20s as a
result of the hostile nature of section 28. Most students only ever remember hearing
the word gay when it was used as an insult by other students. Teachers would never
bother to intervene or try to prevent bullying, as they did not want to be seen to be
“promoting the homosexual agenda.” Imagine how conflicting this must have been
for the teachers!
It was almost impossible to be gay throughout this time period. People were isolated
in a school, where they were unable to discuss what they stand for, who they love or
even better understand themselves as all resources had been taken away from
them. This led to many people, even now, to still feel a deep shame about their
sexuality.
Timeline: How did we get to 2003, when the section was finally repealed?
1987 – Protests began before the section was even implemented. LGBTQ activists began to organise protests, leaflets and public meetings.
January 9th , 1988 – 15,000 people marched in London including; teachers, pupils and parents.
February 2nd , 1988 - Lesbian activists abseil into the house of lords to protest a vote in favour of Section 28.
February 20th , 1988 – The Largest UK march recorded in history by this date within Manchester. Over 20,000 people joined the protest.
May 23rd , 1988 – Lesbian activists famously swarmed the 6-o clock news on the BBC shouting “Stop section 28!” during the broadcast. (Icons!)
May 24th , 1989 – We begin to see the formation of smaller LGBT groups. This was also when Stonewall Uk was first launched as a direct result of Section 28
1990s – We see a lot of cultural resistance. There becomes a surge in LGBTQ characters being played on tv. Remember when bentenders introduced Colin and
Barry? That iconic forehead kiss outraged the nation!
There were also many council and teacher union that categorically refused to enforce the laws of the section. Pride marches also dramatically began to grow in size after the impact of section 28.
1997 – The end of the long Tory reign as a Labour government was finally ushered in. This led to many people pressuring the labour government to repeal the section.
February 7th , 2000 – The house of lords notably rejected the repeal of the section following a strong campaign by Baroness Young, which led to even more nationwide
outrage. This led to celebrities like Ian McKellen and Elton John to get involved in protesting for the ban of Section 28.
June 21st , 2000 – Scotland is the first country to repeal the Section 28 clause with a majority vote of 82.
18th November 2003 - After 15 years of protesting, Section 28 was finally repealed In England in Wales. This led to schools rebuilding their initiatives to include all pupils
from all sexualities. It is also worthy to note that this was repealed after the death of Baroness Young, a strong, anti-gay voice in the house of lords.
