Last week I went to Queer Question Time at the civic offices of Southwark Council which formally opened LGBT History Month on February 1st. There was a panel of speakers and the discussion included questions on whether the word 'queer' was now accepted by the LGBT community, if LGBT athletes and sportspeople should come out and whether Peter Tatchell should be offered a knighthood. Peter is, of course, a resident of Southwark, and was recently given a blue plaque outside his flat by the council for his services to human rights in the borough and worldwide. Sue Sanders, from Schools Out, who knows Peter well, said that Peter would never accept either a knighthood or a peerage but that people did not know the half of what he did and that he worked tirelessly for so many groups and campaigns all over the world.Matthew Parris, former Tory MP, and now Times columnist, provoked a storm of protest when he claimed that the LGBT movement was still too negative and defensive because homophobia was a thing of the past. Several people who worked in schools stood up and said that this was most certainly not the case and that homophobic bullying continued and many teachers were still not prepared to come out. Once again the Tories demonstrate that they live in a different world to everyone else, one that is rich, cosseted and safe.
The Gay & Lesbian Humanist Association are organising a rather light hearted event on Friday which I am going to go to about Laurel and Hardy.
Friday 11th February 2011, 7:30pm at Conway Hall
That's another fine dress you've gotten me into.
Terry Sanderson argues that Laurel and Hardy were far more sexually subversive than most people realise. Illustrated with lots of hilarious clips of their bed-sharing and drag-wearing-and maybe the first same-sex wedding ever seen in the movies.
Further Info here: http://www.galhameetup.com/events/15601758/?eventId=15601758&action=detail
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