“This month the Pride Alliance would like to highlight the contribution made be LGBTQ+ people to the military throughout history.  Gay and lesbian citizens in the United Kingdom have been allowed to serve openly in the Her Majesty’s Armed Forces since 2000.  The United Kingdom’s policy is to allow LGBTQ+ personnel to serve openly, and discrimination on a sexual orientation basis is forbidden.
It is also forbidden for someone to pressure LGBTQ+ people to come out.  All personnel are subject to the same rules against sexual harassment, regardless of gender or sexual orientation.

Stonewall, a British LGBT rights pressure group, spearheaded the movement to end British military prohibitions against openly LGBTQ+ service members. It began when Robert Ely, who had served in the British Army for seventeen years, approached Stonewall.  The discovery of a letter he had led to his sexual orientation being disclosed and he was subjected to an investigation and thrown out of the army.

In 1998, Stonewall was approached by Jeanette Smith, who had been thrown out of the Royal Air Force, and Duncan Lustig Prean, a Royal Navy commander who was being dismissed.  They asked Stonewall to arrange legal representation, leading to a long battle through the courts with Graham Grady and John Beckett also joining the case.  Although the judges in the High Court and Court of Appeal said that they felt the ban was not justified they could not overturn it and Stonewall had to take the case to Strasbourg and the European Court of Human Rights before winning it.

However, many LGBTQ+ people served in the military in the past, keeping their gender identity or sexuality secret out of fear.  If you would like to learn more about some LGBTQ+ military heroes, please check out the Pride Alliance notice board in the foyer.”