Brish soldiers sacked for beg gay n get their medals back | LGBTQ+ rights | The Guardian

Contents:

• RISHI SUNAK APOLOGIS TO LGBT VETERANS FOR PAST ARMED FORC GAY BAN
• I WAS GAY THE BRISH ARMY WHEN WAS ILLEGAL. IT DROVE ME TO DRK AND AN ATTEMPT ON MY OWN LIFE
• BRISH SOLDIERS SACKED FOR BEG GAY N GET THEIR MEDALS BACK
• PRI OF THE ARMY: SOLDIER MAGAZE HONOURS GAY SERVICEMEN AND WOMEN

RISHI SUNAK APOLOGIS TO LGBT VETERANS FOR PAST ARMED FORC GAY BAN

“As today’s report mak clear, that perd many endured the most horrific sexual abe and vlence, homophobic bullyg and harassment, all while bravely servg this untry, ” Sunak told MP. Promisg the ernment would implement the “vast majory” of Etherton’s remendatns, Wallace said he would fully update the Commons a formal bate about the issue after the about pensatn, Wallace said he hoped to fd “an elegant solutn that match the need and the requirements of those dividuals”, promisg to set this out after Kelly Holm, who served the army and me out as gay last year, was among mpaigners who weled the apology.

Starmer said one of his nstuents, Ken Wright, a former RAF service member who was “forced to leave the job he loved simply bee he was gay”, was the public gallery to hear the apology. Pri London clus people of every race and fah, whether disabled or able-bodied, and all sexuali and genrs cludg lbian, gay, bisexual, asexual, queer, qutng, tersex, trans*, genrqueer, genr variant or non-bary as well as straight and cis alli.

Sce the legalisatn of gay civil partnerships Bra, the Brish ary has regnised civil partnerships and granted married gay upl exactly the same rights to allowanc and hog as straight upl.

I WAS GAY THE BRISH ARMY WHEN WAS ILLEGAL. IT DROVE ME TO DRK AND AN ATTEMPT ON MY OWN LIFE

Durg my time wh the RLC I was really stgglg wh who I was and g to terms wh beg Gay and didn’t help that my iends and lleagu were prsurg me to “e out the closet” although I know they were not beg vdictive or mean, mentally I jt wasn’t ready and I cid I need a change. I remembered my first week there I me out as Gay [...

BRISH SOLDIERS SACKED FOR BEG GAY N GET THEIR MEDALS BACK

I remembered my first week there I me out as Gay, was an credibly sry but exhilaratg time, was such a mix of emotns, the strangt thg was the lack of rponse, as if wasn’t a problem at all, I wasn’t even sure what I was expectg but I felt good, so I spent the next 2 years tellg everyone that would listen that I was gay! It was illegal to be gay the UK ary until 2000 and Rishi Sunak has said sorry to those who were sacked or forced out.

PRI OF THE ARMY: SOLDIER MAGAZE HONOURS GAY SERVICEMEN AND WOMEN

“Durg this time, many have suffered the most horrific sexual abe and vlence, homophobic harassment, while urageoly servg this untry, ” he ntued. "Today, on behalf of the Brish state, I apologise, " Rishi Sunak a change the law 2000, lbian, gay, bisexual or transgenr people were not allowed to serve the Brish army.

All bee people spected me of beg gay, " said one person. Image source, Emma RileyImage ptn, Rad operator Emma Riley was discharged om the Navy for beg a lbian the 1990sRishi Sunak has apologised for the historil treatment of LGBT veterans who were sacked or forced out of the ary for beg PM lled the ban an "appallg failure" of the Brish was illegal to be gay the Brish ary until 2000 - wh thoands of veterans thought to be affected.

Addrsg MPs, the prime mister said: "Many endured the most horrific sexual abe and vlence, homophobic bullyg and harassment all while bravely servg this untry. "The LGBT Veterans Inpennt Review, led by Bra's first openly gay judge Lord Etherton, began last year and heard about the experienc of 1, 145 veterans between 1967 to 2000. Homosexualy was crimalised the UK 1967 but a ban ntued the armed forc.

Acrdg to the report, the Mistry of Defence said at the time that jtifitn for the policy clud "matenance of operatnal effectivens and efficiency" - but the report said there had been an "prehensible policy of homophobic bigotry" the armed forc. It heard shockg acunts of homophobia, bullyg, blackmail, sexual asslts, "disgraceful" medil examatns, and nversn mak 49 remendatns to the ernment cludg:Affected veterans to be given an "appropriate fancial reward" pped at £50m overallThe rtoratn of medals that had to be hand back on dismissal or dischargeThe clarifitn of pensn rights The prentatn of a special veterans' badgeThe ernment said would rpond full after summer of the veterans affected watched the PM's public of them, Emma Riley, 51, was a Royal Navy rad operator for three years before she was arrted and discharged for beg a lbian after tellg a lleague her sexualy the early told BBC News she weled the report, and hoped would be put to place "swiftly.

Carol Man, who was dismissed after tellg her boss she was gay 1978, kept her sexualy secret for another 30 years and said she had been "robbed" of her life.

"Olympian Dame Kelly Holm, who served the army and me out as gay last year, lled the publitn of the report a "historic moment", while Cathere Dixon, a former army officer who is now vice chair at Stonewall, said was "an important step towards jtice" for those whose ary reers were "ed" bee of their sexualy. Many still have a crimal rerd to this also tails how some veterans faced a plete loss of e, while others were emed eligible to claim their pensn bee of their report more than 20 years after four servicemen and women, who were sacked for beg gay, won a se the European Court of Human Rights and overturned the armed forc chary Royal Brish Legn lled on the ernment to accept the report's remendatns chary's director general Charl Byrne weled both the report and Mr Sunak's "landmark apology", sayg many people who had dited their liv to the untry were "forced or felt prsured to leave the armed forc, and this mistreatment stroyed or shortened their reer".

REUTERS/Henry NichollsLONDON, July 19 (Rters) - Brish Prime Mister Rishi Sunak apologised on Wednday to LGBT ary veterans who endured sexual abe, vlence, bullyg and harassment while servg the armed forc before a ban on homosexualy was lifted 2000. Bra lifted the ban only after the European Court of Human Rights rejected an argument that was need to protect morale and fightg power amongst s troops, sayg the policy had vlated human to that, many gay people had sought to hi their sexualy or risk beg discharged om the armed pennt review was lnched last year to exame the ttimoni of LGBT veterans who served between 1967 and 2000 to regnise the impact of the polici. "As today’s report mak clear, that perd many endured the most horrific sexual abe and vlence, homophobic bullyg and harassment while bravely servg this untry, " he said.

"The report said a public ll for evince had led to more than 1, 120 rpons beg submted, cludg about 300 om veterans who were dismissed or discharged bee of LGBT same-sex sexual acts and homosexual orientatn. Homosexualy was crimalised 1967 England and Wal, and throughout the entire Uned Kgdom the early 1980s.

Prime Mister Rishi Sunak apologized Wednday for the treatment of gay veterans, sayg that a prev ban on LGBTQ+ people servg the U.