Welcome to our September update.
The 27th of September 2024 is a very special day, It is the 25th Anniversary of the European Court of Human Rights ruling in Strasbourg, that the UK’s military gay ban constituted a violation of the right to respect of an individual’s private life, under Article 8 of the Convention on Human Rights, leading to the lifting of the ban in the UK Armed Forces on 12th January 2000.
FWP’s Chair, founder of the Armed Forces Legal Challenge Group that led to this extraordinary occassion, reflects on this groundbreaking decision and its historical outcomes, and a ‘Festival of Anniversaries’.
“We all deserve our place in the history books, both as victims of an outdated, irrational, and illegal policy, and also as the generation that fought hard to end it. As I was speaking last weekend to the group of veterans that met in Blackpool to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the ECHR ruling on the 27th of September 1999, I noticed that it was another anniversary too.
On 28 September 1994, we held the very first meeting of the Armed Forces Legal Challenge Group. So that’s the 30th Anniversary of the campaign. I only found the minutes of that meeting when I was going through all my papers for the Etherton Review, and to be honest, I only vaguely remember the details of that meeting now, but I do have strong memories of being amazed how many lawyers came, and many of them went on to represent their clients all the way to the decision, the lifting of the ban, and the compensation that some received. The attendee list reads like a list of the great human rights lawyers of our time.
As we run through our various anniversaries between now and next January, it’s important that we remember the activism that forced the government’s hand to lift the ban. One important reason for that is we have to find that energy again if we are to have any impact in our campaign to Scrap the Cap.
The Conservatives stood behind the ban until 1997, and Labour, despite our many hopes, didn’t lift the ban until the court ruling forced their hand. We need to find the determination and energy to keep up the pressure again. If we don’t do that, nobody else will.
Just as the brave four men and women that spent five years in the public eye fighting our battle for us did, we need to keep focused now and keep the pressure on. Craig and the Op Crescendo activities are having an impact, and I know that many of you have taken up the cause with local MPs and veterans’ groups and you are being noticed. We now have lots of meetings planned with MPs and these are because of the letters you are writing. Thank you!
As we approach 12 January 2025, we also need to find time to think about the new generations of veterans that are leaving the forces, many of whom started to serve after the ban was lifted, and I hope that in the social events and celebrations that are beginning to appear, we get a chance to welcome those new veterans into our fellowship.” Ed.
You can read more about the history of the campaign and legal challenges that led to Strasbourg on our website, in our Current News section and in our Review and Directory 2024. Over the next few days we will post a series of short articles hearing from those involved in the legal challenge, including from John Beckett and Graeme Grady, two of the four dismissed veterans whose cases were heard by the ECHR in making their judgement; along with Duncan Lustig-Prean and Jeanette Smith.
We were delighted to have held a celebration in Blackpool over the weekend of 20th to 22ndSeptember, to celebrate this important anniversary, where we heard from Ed, John, Graeme and Charlie Brown, who was dismissed in the midnight hour of the ban being lifted, and Emma Riley spoke of her own case pending in Strasbourg at the time too. Veterans travelled from far afield and locally and we were really well hosted, particularly by Blackpool Football Club, Blackpool Council, and the Mardi Gras Hotel and Bar, who are all Pride in Veterans Standard members.
From now and throughout 2025, we will be marking the 25th Anniversary year through a series of in-person and virtual events, media articles, news stories and more, through the widest possible mediums. Raising awareness of this history and acknowledging the sacrifices, losses and remarkable achievements of the LGBT+ military community. The weekend of the 11th -12th January will of course be a busy beginning to the year, so do please hold the date. For example, on Sunday 12th January, for one of the events in London, the RAF is holding a tri-service LGBT+ Service of commemoration and celebration in the historic St Clement Danes Church, to which veterans are invited, and the Imperial War Museum is holding events in its museums in Manchester and London, with more being planned by single service museums, and many more organisations! Events and occasions will be held wide and far across the UK, through LGBT+ History Month, Pride Month, and beyond, building towards the opening ceremony of the LGBT Armed Forces Community Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum in the Autumn of 2025. We will give as much notice as possible and hope to be able to provide a calendar of events, including those being organised by all three services and other organisations. So please keep an eye on our newsletters, bulletins and other updates.
September was another incredibly busy period for FWP, and you can read more about the LGBT Armed Forces Community Memorial in the memorial team’s update in this newsletter. The community team have been busy connecting with veterans and families, and organisations throughout their regions, building awareness and confidence, and helping organisations demonstrate their inclusive welcomes, so they are seen by those who would benefit from their service provision and approached with the confidence of a warm welcome waiting. You can read some of the amazing work the team are doing in their regional sections of this newsletter.
FWP was also delighted to support the Imperial War Museum’s filmed interviews of veterans at IWM North and IWM London, ready for their 25thAnniversary events on 11th and 12th January 2025. For this part of their project, the IWM recorded 8 veteran’s stories, but they have expressed immense gratitude that over 50 veterans registered their interest in taking part and have asked us to extend their thanks to all. If you weren’t shortlisted for the film interviews element, the IWM wishes you to know there are other occasions and opportunities in hand to capture and tell even more of your stories. Stay tuned to our bulletins.
At the end of August, FWP’s Chief Executive was invited to Canada, by Veterans Affairs Canada and the LGBT Purge Fund team, to speak at their 2SLGBTQI Veterans Conference, joined online by Craig as Head of Campaign, to build on our close relationship by sharing our community and campaign experiences and understanding how each nation can best support each other. There is also the hope that we can jointly positively influence other nations to look at their own LGBTQ+ military histories and impacts, to recognise and support their own LGBTQ+ veterans and serving personnel. That would be another amazing legacy, for the UK and Canadian ban experiences with the lessons and values of awareness, acknowledgment, inclusion, and reparation, to influence international change for all LGBTQ+ service people, the world over. When nations look at how they treat their service people, the wider impact reverberates across so many different areas, such as mental and physical healthcare developments that will help shape more inclusive healthcare for all LGBTQ+ citizens, not just the military communities.
But we will cut this newsletter update short now to bring the focus back to the 25th Anniversary of the ECHR Judgement. In the words of John Beckett and Graeme Grady:
27th September 2024 marks the 25th Anniversary of the historic European Court of Human Rights Judgment.This legal challenge took 5 long years during which both Conservative and Labour Governments defended this policy of persecution. The UK Judiciary refused to overturn the military policy. It was the ECHR who finally granted us justice by ruling that the MOD policy was in breach of the Convention. This landmark judgment has benefited thousands of LGBT+ employees serving in militaries, civilian industries, and professions across Europe.Graeme Grady and myself were immensely proud to mark this 25th milestone alongside Fighting with Pride in Blackpool last weekend. Many of our historic legal challenge group meetings took place in Blackpool during the 1990’s. It was an honour and privilege to attend Blackpool together and celebrate the ECHR Judgment, which ultimately lifted the military Gay Ban. John and Graeme.
Best wishes,
Caroline and Ed
You can read the full FWP September Newsletter here.
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