LGBT+ History Month, Section 28 and schools

By Imogen Shaw

Not to be confused with UK Pride Month which takes place in June, LGBT+ History Month is an event which aims to increase the visibility of the LGBTQ+ community, and their history and experiences, in the curriculum and culture of educational institutions, as well as within the wider community.

While 2022 will mark the 50^th anniversary of UK Pride, I’ve noticed that some people are still surprised when you tell them that LGBT+ History Month has only been around for seventeen years – especially those in their mid-twenties or younger. LGBT+ History Month originated in the US in 1994, but in the UK, it began eleven years later, following an initiative founded by two British teachers and activists.

In 2005, Sue Sanders and Paul Patrick organised LGBT+ History Month as part of a Schools Out UK project. Schools Out is a programme that seeks to educate young people about the issues that members of the LGBTQ+ community face, and aims to make schools inclusive for all, regardless of students’ gender identity or sexual orientation.

The event was first held in February to coincide with the 2003 abolition of Section 28 of the 1988 Local Government Act in England and Wales (Section 28 was repealed in Scotland in 2000).

Section 28, a piece of legislation introduced under Margaret Thatcher, stipulated that local authorities were not allowed to "intentionally promote homosexuality or publish material with the intention of promoting homosexuality". It also prohibited “the teaching in any maintained school of the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship”.

In practice, the law censored schoolbooks and the national curriculum, and could put teachers at risk of losing their jobs for, effectively, making any mention of the existence of gay people. Section 28 had impact far beyond educational settings, but many LGBTQ+ people who grew up in the 1990s have spoken about the cruel and particular impact the policy had on them during their formative school years.

Two years to the month after Section 28 was repealed across Britain, the first LGBT+ History Month event was held, featuring more than 100 events across the country. Nowadays, the event includes thousands of events, including talks and discussions from prominent figures, LGBTQ+ city tours and exhibitions, and live performances.

Despite the event’s rapid growth, it maintains a particularly strong connection with work to promote LGBTQ+ education and equality in schools. This is reflective of its origins, but also of the work still to be done to ensure LGBTQ+ students feel able to thrive and be their whole selves at school.

According to data gathered in 2020, fewer than one third of secondary school pupils believe it would be safe to come out as LGBTQ+ in their schools. More than 70% of teachers report witnessing bullying based on sexuality or gender identity at their schools, and, even more worryingly, one in five secondary school staff reported they rarely or never responded when they witnessed such bullying.

There is no doubt we have come a long way since the days of Section 28, but progress can never be taken for granted. In 2018, LGBT+ History Month co-founder Sue Sanders gave an interview to Pink News, in which she drew a link between the media treatment of gay people and the fears associated with being an out gay teacher under Section 28. One only has to look at the worrying rise in transphobia across the UK media landscape – and now on social media, too – to see that, for many within the LGBTQ+ community, the repeal of Section 28 has not erased the underlying attitudes that made being out at work and school a frightening prospect for those who lived through it.

This is why initiatives like LGBT+ History Month are still so necessary, and why it is important that they are rooted in education.

If you want to find out more about LGBT+ History month and the work of Schools Out, have a look at their resources for LGBT+ History Month 2022.