Latest news with #PeterTatchell
Edinburgh Reporter
a day ago
- Politics
- Edinburgh Reporter
Fringe 2025: Conversations with the Godless: Peter Tatchell
Peter Tatchell has been arrested 103 times (though convicted only once) and lived to tell the tale. He may be best known as an LGBT+ rights activist, but he's campaigned for numerous causes over the last 58 years. Today he's here at The Stand to talk about his life and career with Chief Executive of Humanists UK, Andrew Copson. Tatchell is a patron of the organisation. 'He's very necessary…incredibly brave…doing good work in a world where most people are too timid' Sir Elton John Is Tatchell happy, asks Copson, with being described as a 'veteran humans rights campaigner'? Indeed he is, and at the age of 73 he has no plans to retire, and has said that he intends to carry on protesting well into his 90s. His activism is motivated by a sense of injustice, born of two key events in his working class Melbourne childhood. Australia had no free health care until 1975, and even after that it was patchy. Tatchell's mother was severely asthmatic; her treatment swallowed up most of the family's money; was that fair? Things got worse when his mother remarried a violently abusive man; both Peter and his mother suffered, but Australia at that time had no women's refuges, no charities that might help. 'It left me with a burning sense of injustice.' In 1963 white racists bombed the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, a key civil rights meeting place. Four young girls were murdered. The bombing marked a turning point in the US, and a pivotal moment for 11 year-old Peter Tatchell. His interest in the Black Civil Rights movement led to his first campaign, opposing the death penalty in the state of Victoria. While it did not succeed in saving the life of an alleged murderer against whom evidence was poor, it did help fuel a public outcry. By 1969 Tatchell realised he was gay. Homosexual activity was still a crime in Victoria – punishments included long prison sentences and compulsory psychiatric treatment. He'd heard about the Stonewall uprising in the US: 'I had no gay role models, so when I heard about Stonewall I thought 'YES! I want to be a part of that.' When his friends were too scared to join him in a public campaign, he started writing to newspapers, at first anonymously but later in his own name. He was very scared, but again that sense of injustice won through, coupled with his lifelong view that, 'it's always better to do something than nothing.' He adapted his campaign from the Black civil rights movement. Credit: Peter Tatchell Foundation Two years later, he moved to the UK. He opposed Australia's involvement in Vietnam, wanted to avoid the draft, and thought he'd stay just two years, until the government changed back home. He's been here ever since. He stayed partly because the 1967 Sexual Offences Act had partially decriminalised homosexual acts. In Australia they were still illegal. The Gay Liberation Front, the first mass movement of LGBT people in the UK, was campaigning. Within five days Tatchell was at his first meeting; less than a month later he was campaigning, 'It was so exciting to be part of that.' Tatchell had noted that non-violent direct action had worked for the Black Civil Rights movement when lobbying the President had not, and decided to try the same approach for LGBT+ rights. In the 1970s and 80s the Westminster Parliament would not even allow a discussion of LGBT rights. In 1972 he helped organise the UK's first Pride march. That year GLF started to splinter; eventually, in the 90s, Tatchell and some other members formed OutRage! They also worked with lobbying groups like Stonewall. You need, he says, a two-pronged approach; direct action and lobbying are not mutually exclusive. Every campaign begins at the grassroots, 'Parliament is usually the last place to get a message.' OutRage! used protests to attract media coverage and raise public consciousness about the scale of LGBT+ oppression; when public opinion starts to shift, he says, MPs have to listen. Prior to the direct action campaign there was almost no public awareness of what was going on. Credit: Peter Tatchell Foundation In 1998 he and other activists famously interrupted the Archbishop of Canterbury's Easter sermon at Canterbury Cathedral. At the time. Tatchell says, the Archbishop opposed changes in the law to give LGBT+ people equal rights; he also opposed same-sex marriages, and supported the ban on LGBT+ people fostering children. OutRage! had been requesting a meeting with him for eight years; if he wouldn't come to them, they'd go to him. Tatchell walked up to the pulpit and began his own sermon; discrimination, he said, was not Christian. As the police tried to remove him he clung on to the pulpit, which promptly fell to pieces. Church wardens punched and scratched him. A video of the event proved he had not damaged the pulpit, but he was still charged with 'indecent behaviour in a church', 'I did not have my trousers down!' Magistrates had no choice but to convict him, but they fined him just £18.60 in reference to the date of the statute under which he'd been charged. Copson asked Tatchell about OutRage!'s controversial outing of closeted people. Tatchell insists this is not what happened, that the group never named anyone just because they were gay or closeted. What it did do was name some influential closeted people who were using their positions to target the LGBT+ community. Those people were ten Anglican bishops, who persisted in saying homosexuality was a sin and LGBT+ people should not have equality before the law, 'There was no Biblical justification for it at all. After that not one of them said anything more against the community.' OutRage! also wrote to twenty MPs who'd voted in favour of anti-gay laws, saying that this was hypocritical given their own sexuality, 'There was no threat, we told them it was their own decision but we hoped they would choose the morally right option. Most of them never voted in this way again.' The irony of the tabloid press's two-faced approach is not lost on him, 'When they outed adulterous 'family values' MPs, there was no outcry. When we did it we were called terrorists and LGBT+ fascists.' Any regrets about it, asks Copson? Only, replies Tatchell, that he wishes he'd used that tactic earlier to deal with bigots; he still thinks it's a good one, and he's trying to encourage LGBT+ people in Poland to use it, 'but they're scared.' Would he advocate its use in African and Arab countries, where, says Copson, well known closeted statesmen impose anti-LGBT laws? It'd probably too dangerous, says Tatchell, but in any case it's a decision for local activists. He's not bothered about outing being risky for the statesmen though; 'they bring it on themselves, but they should be given fair warning and a chance to change.' Tatchell is very clear and uncompromising in his stance on just about every issue Copson raises. He says this comes from always putting himself in the position of the victims. And he doesn't act alone; everything is discussed with his fellow activists 'I'm just often the front man.' Credit: Peter Tatchell Foundation And although he has strong convictions, he's not afraid to change his mind. He used to support hate crime legislation, but now feels it may infringe free speech. It's one thing, he says, having an opinion that he doesn't agree with, and quite another to issue death threats. People are entitled to their views. The definition of 'hate' is difficult, and laws that were intended to protect people are often used for other purposes. He's very concerned about current policing; human rights legislation should not be interpreted as a tool to prevent people expressing a legitimate opinion. In May this year he attended a Palestinian Solidarity march with a placard, 'Stop Israeli genocide, stop Hamas executions.' He was arrested for 'racially and religiously aggravated breach of the peace.' 'My criticism of Hamas, a proscribed organisation, mentioned neither race nor religion, but that was the basis of my arrest….the Met eventually told me there'd be 'no further action' – there will be from me! The English Public Order laws were written to deal with football violence and violent street disorder, but I've been arrested for a 'Gay Equality Now' sign. The laws are so broad they can be used to justify anything.' After decades of Tory government, what, asks Copson, does Tatchell think of Keir Starmer's new regime? Is it better? No, Tachell replies, it's a huge disappointment. Starmer promised to outlaw gay conversion therapy; nothing has happened. Exorcisms and beatings are still being inflicted on LGBT+ people. The Scottish government has also dropped its commitment to legislate against this. In opposition, the Labour Party condemned the anti-Trans agenda. Now it's banned puberty blockers (on the basis that they are dangerous) for young trans children, but not for non-trans children with early onset puberty. So are they 'dangerous' or not? Keir Starmer has said that the much discussed Supreme Court decision on 'biological sex' 'provides clarity' – 'rubbish' says Tatchell. The Court took representations from anti-Trans groups but not from any Trans ones. It even refused to allow the intervention of Dr Victoria McCloud, the UK's first transgender judge, and Stephen Whittle of the Good Law Project. (McCloud intends to take the government and the Supreme Court to the European Court of Human Rights.) 'Would they make a decision about Black issues without hearing the representations of the Black community?' As the session draws to a close, the audience has many questions, Tatchell's views on the monarchy being one of them. He supports its abolition on the basis that it is incompatible with democracy. Public positions of statehood, he says, should be open to everyone; the crown, the highest office in the land, excludes every single one of us except the Windsor family. This is also 'profoundly, if unintentionally, racist, as no person of colour can ever be head of state.' He doesn't want to see a president with executive powers, but one with only ceremonial duties, as in Germany, would be good. 'It'd be much cheaper too.' Credit: Peter Tatchell Foundation Another question focuses on the Trans community. What does he think should be done to protect them, and how do we build a broad base of allyship? Public opinion, says Tatchell, has shifted against trans people and a different approach is now needed. His controversial view is that trans and non-trans people are not the same, though they are of course equal, and their differences should be celebrated, 'We should say 'yes, there is a difference, but it's great.'' He feels this could bring the community more public support. He also thinks much more work needs to be done to highlight the shared experiences of trans and non-trans women. They both suffer misogyny, domestic abuse, hate crimes and prejudice and should be working together to oppose these things. A final question asks for his views on the rights of Indigenous Peoples in his native Australia. Having heard that many Aboriginal students were leaving school early to work to support their families, he and others campaigned for a scholarship fund to help them stay on to get qualifications, better jobs and the ability to uplift their own communities. The scheme still exists today and has helped many people. Credit: Peter Tatchell Foundation Peter Tatchell is often described as a 'fearless' campaigner, but he mentions more than once that he has been 'terrified' when taking direct action. He's been violently assaulted over 300 times, his coordination, memory, balance, vision and concentration are somewhat impaired, and he suffers from PTSD. Nevertheless, he has always persevered, still motivated by that burning sense of injustice, still always ready to put himself out there to try to right the many wrongs of the world. Not many people have been prepared to stick their neck out as consistently as he has over almost six decades of protest. Is he brave, foolhardy or a combination of both? I'll stick with Richard Holloway's opinion, A modern-day prophet…dauntingly brave in his pursuit of equality and justice Rchard Holloway Conversations with the Godless is a series of events being hosted by Humanists UK at The Stand Comedy Club, York Place (various Venue numbers, please check) this August. Journalist and broadcaster Polly Toynbee and writer, comedian and broadcaster (The Infinite Monkey Cage with Brian Cox) Robin Ince are next, on 14 and 15 August (times vary.) For full details please check the Fringe tab on The Stand website here. The Peter Tatchell Foundation promotes and protects the human rights of individuals, communities and nations, in the UK and internationally. Read more here and sign up for Peter's free weekly newsletter here. Like this: Like Related
Yahoo
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Sorry seems to be the hardest word
Back in 2013 the Manchester Evening News published confidential Home Office files revealing the meltdown that followed GMP's former police chief Sir James Anderton's comments about the HIV/AIDS crisis. Government ministers and civil servants scrambled to prevent the collapse of Britain's second biggest police force and keep Sir James in post. The trouble originated from remarks in 1986 when Anderton had claimed that the victims of AIDS were in a 'human cesspool of their own making'. READ MORE: 'Our bins are full, they stink and we've got maggots - we need more collections' READ MORE: Regulator orders bosses at Greater Manchester hospital's obstetrics and gynaecology department to make improvements Last week activist Peter Tatchell once again slammed GMP for their failure to issue a proper apology for the historical action of Manchester's police force against the LGBTQ+ community, spanning decades, which included police raids on gay-led venues as well as Anderton's comments. We also had something to say about it. Welcome to Unmissable, our weekly digest of the stories we think you might have missed. Peter Tatchell is a sometimes controversial figure, but what he was asking for in his press release was a proper apology, and our LGBTQ writer Adam Maidment thinks he has a point. In a wide ranging comment piece he takes on the issue saying - 'As individuals, we are taught from an early age to say sorry when we have done or said something wrong or done something unacceptable.' 'We are taught that there is great benefit in acknowledging and accepting a mistake. It allows us to move on, it allows us to rebuild relationships.' It's a complex issue about how much those working at GMP now should have to say about the past mistakes. Adam's is a thoughtful measured piece well worth your time In another feisty comment piece, Jo Timan our politics writer addressed the growing row between Sadiq Khan and presumably anyone outside of the North Circular about funding. We also published further revelations about the activities of convicted sex offender Todros Grynhaus, told the twisty tale of 'Rochdale's Chernobyl' and looked into the controversial issue of surge pricing in Greater Manchester's bars. GMP's chief constable said an apology over the force's historical 'gay witch-hunts' would make 'little or no difference', but Adam Maidment disagrees. Read it HERE. Of course, the mayor will always make the case for the city he represents - as he should. But his 'us-versus-them' rhetoric is unhelpful says Jo Timan. Read it HERE. Last week the Manchester Evening News revealed that a paedophile was living just 24 steps from a playground. Now it has emerged that a house his company owns next door is being rented out on sites such as Airbnb and - and the listings are aimed at families. Read it HERE. The factory has been vacant for years, but locals are worried it could become a health and safety risk. George Lythgoe investigates what the future holds for the old Turner Brothers Asbestos factory. Read it HERE. The bar insists it is 'common with the entire industry' - but Sacha Lord feels it 'doesn't sit right'. Read it HERE.
The Independent
13-06-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Greater Manchester Police chief refuses to apologise for past homophobia in ‘insult' to LGBT+ community
The chief constable of Greater Manchester Police (GMP) has refused to apologise to the LGBT+ community for historic homophobia in the force. Campaigners said it was an 'insult' after 21 other forces have issued formal apologies over their past conduct, adding that GMP was 'involved in some of the most extreme unlawful victimisation of LGBTs by any UK force'. Human rights charity the Peter Tatchell Foundation first issued calls to all forces to say sorry for 'decades-long victimisation' of the LGBT+ community in June 2023. However, in a recent letter, seen by The Independent, its chief constable, Stephen Watson, declined to 'accede to your request for a general apology', adding it could be seen as 'superficial and merely performative' and could 'unfairly impugn' the service of past officers. The director of the foundation, Peter Tatchell, who was this week named in The Independent 's Pride List 2025 for his gay rights activism, said: 'This refusal to apologise is an insult to the LGBT+ community, who suffered so much at the hands of the Manchester police in decades past.' Mr Tatchell has this week again written to CC Watson, appealing once again for him to apologise – noting the troubling history of the force under the late Chief Constable Sir James Anderton in the 1980s. At the height of the Aids crisis, Mr Anderton said gay men were "swirling about in a human cesspit of their own making", resulting in calls for his resignation. 'Greater Manchester Police has a particularly troubling homophobic history that deserves specific acknowledgement and apology,' Mr Tatchell said. 'Under Chief Constable James Anderton in the 1980s, the force became synonymous with open hostility towards the LGBT+ community.' He claimed Mr Anderton's comments were not 'isolated rhetoric' and the force targeted gay venues in raids in the 1980s, which in some cases led to gay and bisexual men being outed and subjected to homophobic insults, threats and violence. Mr Tatchell added: 'To now refuse to apologise adds insult to injury. Apologies are not symbolic—they are acts of justice and healing. They show leadership and humanity. They tell survivors of police witch-hunts: 'We see you, we acknowledge the harm we caused, and we are sorry.' 'Twenty-one other forces have recognised that acknowledging past wrongs helps rebuild LGBT+ trust. It will encourage more LGBTs to report hate crime, sexual assaults and domestic violence, which is what we all want. 'Not saying sorry undermines LGBT+ confidence in the police and will damage the police's reputation among LGBTs. 'We are not suggesting all past officers were bad or blaming today's officers. An apology is about taking responsibility for homophobic police behaviour in previous decades and saying sorry.' Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley was the first to apologise in 2023, in a move which was welcomed by Mr Tatchell for drawing 'a line under past Met persecution'. A string of others subsequently followed suit, including Merseyside Police's former chief constable Serena Kennedy, who issued their "sincere apology and deepest regret" for "historical prejudice". Others include Dorset and North Yorkshire Police. In his refusal letter, dated April 2025, CC Watson, who was appointed in 2021, said GMP is proud to serve its many diverse communities and strives to understand their past experiences with the force. He said the force has made 'considerable' progress over the past 40 years and takes a zero-tolerance approach to discrimination. He wrote: 'I am, of course, sorry that GMP, and those police bodies which preceded the presently formed GMP prior to 1974, didn't always perform to the standards deserved by those whom we serve. 'It is also the case, however, that over these many decades, literally thousands of police officers have performed their duties with decency, professionalism and compassion. 'Whilst I acknowledge that you are not seeking an apology for officer's having upheld the laws of the day, it would nevertheless be quite unjust for me as the current chief constable to cast some sort of sweeping assertion as to the general conduct of the force over a prolonged period of time, particularly when the period in question is now so dated that virtually no serving officer in the entire force can speak to the period with any personal knowledge. 'Such an apology could well be seen, even by the intended recipients, as both superficial and merely performative. 'It would unfairly impugn the faithful and valued services of past officers; and any such apology would likely make little or no difference to developing contemporary practice which is, as you acknowledge, currently very good and which carries the confidence both of our current LGBTQ+ community and our own staff association. 'With regret, therefore, I find that I cannot accede to your request for a general apology.'
BBC News
13-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Greater Manchester Police refuses to apologise to LGBTQ+ community
Greater Manchester Police's chief constable has refused to apologise for what human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell has described as "anti-LGBTQ+ persecution" in the force's past. Police chiefs across the country, including Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, have apologised to the LGBTQ+ community following a campaign launched by the Peter Tatchell Foundation in 2023. As part of the campaign, Mr Tatchell wrote to Greater Manchester Police (GMP) boss Stephen Watson, who declined to issue a general apology. In a letter sent to Mr Tatchell in late April and seen by the BBC, Mr Watson said such an apology could be seen as "superficial and merely performative". He said it would also "unfairly impugn the faithful and valued services of past officers" and likely "make little or no difference to developing contemporary practice". "I am of course sorry that GMP, and those police bodies which preceded the presently formed GMP prior to 1974, didn't always perform to the standards deserved by those who we served," Mr Watson said. "It is also the case however that over these many decades, literally thousands of police officers have performed their duties with decency, professionalism and compassion."In response, Mr Tatchell said the the refusal to apologise was "an insult" given GMP's "particularly troubling history", particularly while the force was led by the late Sir James Anderton between 1975 and 1991. In the mid-1980s, at the height of the Aids crisis, Mr Anderton said gay men were "swirling about in a human cesspit of their own making", resulting in calls for his resignation. Mr Tatchell said: "We never disputed that many officers served well. Our request was solely an apology for those who acted in abusive and illegal ways."He said 21 chief constables had apologised to their LGBTQ+ communities to date. "For many LGBT+ people, hearing their Chief Constable acknowledge historic mistreatment would be profoundly healing," Mr Tatchell said. "Apologies are not symbolic gestures. They are acts of justice." In his letter, Mr Watson said that while he would not issue a general apology, he would be "more than willing" to apologise to any individual who experienced "the sort of wrongdoing" Mr Tatchell described, if evidence were to be provided. But Mr Tatchell said there were a number of "obvious and well-known" incidents where LGBTQ+ people were victimised by GMP, including raids on local gay venues during which patrons were subjected to "vindictive, malicious police harassment". "GMP was at the forefront of police homophobia in the UK," he said. Greater Manchester Police declined to comment further. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
The Independent
11-06-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Peter Tatchell on LGBT+ rights being under fresh threat: ‘I might retire from protest when I'm 95'
Few figures are as synonymous with LGBT+ rights as is Peter Tatchell. He was integral to the organisation of Britain's first Pride march, in 1972. 'I've been to every London Pride march since then,' says the 73-year-old. 'This year will be my 54th.' In his six decades of activism and protest, which began as an 'instinctive reaction against injustice' when he was a young teenager, he's been arrested 103 times (at time of writing) and received too many hate letters and threatening phone calls to count. He's been subjected to more than 300 violent assaults and 50 attacks on his flat. Horrifyingly, these vicious acts have included bottles and bricks being thrown through his windows, arson, and even a bullet through his front door. He's previously been under armed police protection, and was even listed as a target for assassination in a foiled plot in the Nineties. He describes these experiences as akin to 'living through a low-level civil war'. Of course, enduring such atrocities has taken its toll. 'It's been terrifying, and for years I've suffered from PTSD,' says Tatchell. Yet he's determined never to give up, and doesn't want to 'let the bigots win'. 'Protest is the lifeblood of democracy,' he says, 'and without it we end up like Putin's Russia.' Tatchell maintains that, as long as he has good health, he'll continue to protest – and 'might consider retiring around the age of 95' – but acknowledges that such freedom of expression is under threat. 'Police are increasingly cracking down on the right to peaceful protest,' he tells me. One of his main campaigns at the Peter Tatchell Foundation, formed in 2011, is #ApologiseNow. It seeks acknowledgement of the indignities previously suffered by the LGBT+ community at the hands of some police officers, including harassment, entrapment, beatings, raids on gay venues, and the public outing of LGBT+ people. He thinks a formal apology would help to rebuild trust. As part of this campaign, Tatchell is appealing to Pride organisers across the country to ban the participation of the police in their marches if they've refused to apologise. Greater Manchester Police plan to march in Manchester's event this year, but have 'point blank refused to apologise', says Tatchell, though he adds that police are welcome to march as individuals in civilian clothes. For Tatchell, it is evident that there are still problems between the police and the LGBT+ community. It's something he still experiences: in May this year, he was forcibly removed from the Birmingham Pride march after West Midlands Police claimed he didn't have permission to march and that organisers had requested his removal. Tatchell says the police stance is 'a complete lie', and the event's organiser later condemned the episode. Tatchell claims that some of 'the most vicious homophobic officers in the country' worked for West Midlands Police in the 1970s and 80s, and that they 'wrecked LGBT+ people's lives'. He thinks his recent treatment only 'reinforces how homophobic they are'. So far, the #ApologiseNow campaign has won apologies from 21 of the UK's 45 forces, including the Metropolitan Police, Merseyside, and Police Scotland. As a direct impact of the Peter Tatchell Foundation's work, there have been systemic changes within some forces, such as the introduction of homophobic hate crime hotlines and the appointment of LGBT+ liaison officers. Other campaigns orchestrated by the foundation include helping more than 200 LGBT+ refugees by supporting them in making asylum claims and putting them in touch with solicitors who can represent them, all without charge. Much has changed since Tatchell began campaigning, including the full decriminalisation of homosexuality and an end to the use of electroconvulsive therapy as a 'cure' for being gay. But now, he says, attitudes are beginning to roll back. 'Until a decade ago, public opinion was shifting towards ever greater acceptance, but now it's gone into reverse,' says Tatchell. 'There's a new demonisation of trans people that echoes that of LGBs in the 1970s and 80s. It's all based on scaremongering and blanket generalisations.' Tatchell attributes this to a 'combination of Conservative government, the rise of Ukip and Brexit, plus Twitter has helped amplify and quasi-legitimised homophobia, biphobia and transphobia'. He doesn't see things improving any time soon, adding: 'I fear anti-LGBT+ sentiment will get worse.' This change in attitudes is being felt on a far wider scale than just within Britain. In March, Hungary passed a draconian law that effectively bans Pride and similar events by outlawing any public assembly that might be considered to involve the promotion of homosexuality. It's a move that critics say is a breach of EU law, and opposes the fundamental values of human dignity, freedom, equality, and respect for human rights enshrined in the EU treaties. In response, Tatchell is organising a Solidarity Pride protest that will be held outside the Hungarian embassy in London on 21 June. 'The aim is to stand with the beleaguered LGBT+ people of Hungary, and to show them people in other countries know and care about their victimisation,' he says. He's calling for pressure to be put on the EU to sanction the regime of Hungary's prime minister Viktor Orban in order to prevent the emboldening of other right-wing member states to act similarly. He says some EU countries have been vocal in opposing the Budapest ban, but notes: 'We haven't seen any action yet... We need more than words, we need sanctions.'
