Melanie Arcangeles-Earnshaw - EDI Policy Officer

It is also a time to uncover and learn from stories of remarkable individuals, a lot of whom are unsung heroes, who fought against various forms of marginalisation and injustices; such as Patrick Trevor-Roper who was a pioneering gay rights champion and more recently, we have Lady Phyll who continues to provide a voice for the minority ethnic LGBT+ communities.  

As an immigrant, this month also makes me reflect on the fact that whilst there have been positive changes socially and politically in countries such as the UK, it is not the same in other parts of the world. I am happy for my friends and family who are able to openly express their sexual orientation here in the UK; but sadly, elsewhere it is not always the case, and I am aware of other friends’ enduring struggles.  

This is why I think it is absolutely critical that we continue to share and bring to light inspiring stories from our LGBT+ communities; and it’s great that there are various ways of doing this nowadays, e.g. through books, online resources, social media, films and music, etc. Indeed, sometimes it only takes one powerful story to change lives or to bring about a sense of hope, courage and solidarity.