Words by Smiley Team
It’s pride month, when the LGBT+ community come out onto the streets in their thousands to celebrate LGBT+ Pride. Founded in 1969, the awareness month launched to commemorate the Stonewall riots. This historic event was was triggered because a troop of police officers raided a Manhattan gay bar called the Stonewall Inn in June 28th 1969. The gay community rose up in protests that were again violently repressed by the police.
Today LGBT+ activists continue to spread awareness and equality throughout society. Here, in no particular order, are some of the UK’s modern day political activists who have fought for LGBT+ rights over the last decades.
Clara Barker
As a youth, Clara Barker struggled with her mental health. It was only as an adult, working as an engineer and material scientist at the University of Oxford, that she came out as a trans woman and gained acceptance. In 2017 she won a Points of Light award from the government for her volunteer work raising awareness of issues facing the LGBT+ community.
Katherine Gillespie Sells
With at least 30 years of activism under her belt, academic Katherine Gillespie Sells MBE has fought particularly around issues facing disabled people in the LGBT+ community. She created REGARD, an organisation dedicated to this area.
Rhammel Afflick
Activist and writer Rhammel Afflick campaigns around intersectionality, tackling knife crime and racism as well as problems in the LGBT+ community. He has campaigned since the age of 11 when he was elected to Kingston Youth Council in London. In 2021 he was awarded a BEM for services to the community in London.
Clare Dimyon
Since joining Pride, Clare Dimyon has worked as an lesbian activist, promoting LGBT+ rights and encouraging local communities to create events in European countries with poor records on equality. She was awarded an MBE in 2010 for “services to promoting the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in central and eastern Europe”.
Suran Dickson
As the ex-CEO of the charity, Diversity Role Models, Suran Dickson worked for several years tackling homophobic bullying in schools. She was recognised for her efforts, ranking 10th in The Independent’s Rainbow List of most influential LGBT+ figures in 2014.
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