LGBTQ+ History Month ��
What is LGBTQ+ History Month?
First celebrated in the UK in 2005, this historic event takes place in February to coincide with the abolition of Section 28 in 2003 which banned local authorities from being able to “intentionally promote homosexuality”. But the event originated in the United States, and was first celebrated there in 1994
The founder of LGBTQ+ History Month is Rodney Wilson, a high-school teacher from Missouri who became the first openly gay teacher in this US state It takes place on different months depending on the country celebrating, which is quite a few To date, the event has been celebrated in the UK, the US, Australia, Canada, Hungary, Cuba, Uganda, Armenia, Brazil, and more
Why is it important?
Originally, the aim of LGBTQ+ History Month was to encourage openness and honesty about being queer. But in 2025, the aims have become much more ambitious, with SchoolsOut pushing to educate and empower people both within and outside of the queer community. For some, being LGBT can be the cause of bullying, threats, and seriously affects their wellbeing, and so it is important that open conversations happen in education early But more than that, the queer community is full of wonderful people who strive for change for the better Educating people about LGBTQ+ history makes people feel safe, seen, and heard, and encourages them to be the best version of themselves.
LGBTQ+ Organisations
The Kite Trust ��
LGBTQ+ support in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough
https://thekitetrust org uk/
Cambridge Diamonds ��
Trans-gender and non-binary support in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough
http://www diamondstgc org uk/
LGBT Foundation ��
National charity based in Manchester with a focus on health and wellbeing
https://lgbt foundation/
Galop ��
National charity focused on anti-abuse for LGBTQ+ people
https://galop org uk/
LGBT Consortium ��
UK-based charity that supports not-for-profit LGBTQ+ organisations
https://www consortium lgbt/
A Long, Proud History
Long Road Sixth Form College had a long and proud history of supporting and celebrating the queer community Current members of staff remember there being some form of club or society for LGBT people since at least 2009 Sometime between 2011 to 2013 the previous club was rebranded to the Gay-Straight Alliance by ex-student Adam Olivant in an attempt to foster a relationship with the straight students at the college Adam also went on to set up a Beat Bullying group in which students were offered support and mentoring for bullying, including homophobia In 2013, the club was renamed Pride Club and has been running under this name ever since
In 2017, even OFSTED recognised and commended the college, saying “ a student-led lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) group enables new LGBT students to meet, discuss their identities and support each other at the college ”
In 2019, a number of events and activities took place to coincide with LGBT History Month Students organised and prepared their own LGBT History Month presentations at Pride Club, trips to the Cambridge Zoology and Fitzwilliam Museums took place, and there were talks on Queer Sexual Health from the Kite Trust and a former Long Road student Chris Stening on how coming out has impacted his life Additionally, students were encouraged to wear rainbow coloured attire on the first and last day of the month
February 2020 saw members of the Pride Club attend the Houses of Parliament during the Pride at Parliament student tours. They were given a tour of the building with a focus on LGBT legislation and even got to watch a debate in the Houses of Commons Later that year, Long Road’s student-led film magazine The Long Lens published it’s second issue with the theme LGBT for the entire edition This included articles on LGBTQIA+ Representation in Film, The Importance of Pride, Writing From a LGBT POV, as well as reviews of LGBT films such as Moonlight and Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Our marketing guru Abby Futter put together a mini-zine in 2021 dedicated to LGBT History Month (similar to this one, thanks for the inspiration, Abby!), including some articles written by students. She also wrote an article covering the LGBT History Month events at Long Road in 2022, which included a talk from Professor Stephen Whittle of Manchester Metropolitan University titled 50 Years of Trans Activism: A History of Change For Trans Human Rights In The UK
Student Services organised an event for International Women’s Day in 2023, which included the promotion of LGBT women such as Marsha P Johnson, Megan Rapinoe, Mary Anning (debated), as well as LGBT activist Emma Watson
In 2024, the Pride Club started work on Pride Corner, a small section of the college decorated and adorned with LGBT flags, self-made student art, and hand-painted pebbles.
Today, the Pride Club is still popular Regular activities include crafts, quizzes, gaming, drag make-up and socialising Whether you are LGBT or not, all respectful students are welcome to come along and join in the fun! Pride Club takes place on Tuesdays 12:20 - 13:05 in E3 in the Student Centre
What is a gay village?
Gay villages, also wonderfully known as “gayborhoods”, are geographic areas inhabited or frequented by LGBTQ+ people. Many of these have world-famous organisations and cultural sites including museums, restaurants, boutiques, nightlife, memorials, and more We thought it would be fun to explore some gay villages and queer-friendly places to celebrate the beauty and diversity through the lens of an LGBTQ+ person This list is not exhaustive, there are so many places we simply do not have the time to explore
Schöneberg, Germany
LGBTQ+ Places ��
Sitges, Spain
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Schöneberg is a locality in Berlin famous for being one of the world’s first gay villages. First recognised as such in the 1920's, this part of Berlin is famous for having a lot of cultural significance to the LGBTQ+ community Home to the world famous Eldorado nightclub in the 1930's, this ground-breaking establishment permitted cross-dressing and welcomed queer and heterosexual people alike The 1966 musical Cabaret was heavily influenced by the culture in Schöneberg and Berlin, and a plaque to commemorate this can be found at Nollendorfstraße. The Memorial to the First Homosexual Emancipation Movement is also just a stone’s throw away at Großer Tiergarten In the modern day, Schöneberg has a lively nightlife, museums, landmarks, and vibrant green areas and parks.
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Roughly 20 miles south-west of Barcelona lies the beautiful town of Sitges. Famous for it’s sandy beaches, LGBT culture, and thrilling nightlife, this is one of the most popular travel destinations for the LGBTQ+ community There are a number of prestigious events that the town runs Sitges Film Festival is one of the most renowned in the world and specialises in fantasy and horror films The Pride festival in Sitges is one of the most popular in Europe, and of course there is Carnival, with over 250,000 people attending
Cape Town, South Africa
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Cape Town is one of Africa’s most popular LGBT destinations for tourists It’s known for its upscale retail stores, fashion boutiques, art galleries, award-winning eateries, and leafy streets lined with brightly coloured cottages The nightlife is also a very popular attraction, especially in the De Waterkant suburb Like Sitges, Cape Town also has numerous LGBT events including Pink Loerie Mardi Gras & Arts Festival, Mother City Queer Project (costume party), and Out in Africa (LGBT film festival).
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Buenos Aires, Argentina
Bangkok, Thailand
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Often described as South America’s gay capital, Buenos Aires has been a popular destination for LGBTQ+ people since the 1990's It has some of the most progressive legislation in the world toward queer communities, with national ID cards with non-binary genders on them becoming available in 2021. The child of former president Alberto Fernández was one of the first recipients of these non-binary ID cards, and when political parties tried to weaponize this against him, he shrugged it off and said we're beyond that kind of discrimination as a society. Unique highlights of the city include it’s amazing queer ballroom scene as well as the Argentine Queer History Tour
Brighton, United Kingdom
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Brighton has firmly established itself as the gay capital of the UK, with LGBTQ+ history dating back to the 19th century If you wanted to find out more you can attend the Piers & Queers tour which is a guided tour of the queer history of the area Brighton also has the biggest pride festival in the UK, which includes a Pride Dog Show for proud pooches! The city has numerous organisations to support the LGBTQ+ community, making Brighton one of the most inclusive places to live in the UK
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Bangkok is Thailand’s capital and is also known as the “City of Angels” The slogan Mai Pen Rai means “ no worries” in Thai, and appropriately expresses the friendliness and live and let live mentality of the country Known for it’s stunning royal palaces and iconic long-tail boats, one of the biggest attractions to Bangkok is the food, with Anthony Bourdain saying “ ... it is made up of complex layers of flavour, sophisticated balances of spicy, sour, a little bitter, salty, herby, texture, cold, hot - it’s this interchange between elements that makes Thai food so thrilling”
San Francisco, United States of America
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Similarly to Brighton, San Francisco has a long history with the LGBTQ+ community which began in the 19th century. In the aftermath of the Stonewall riots, San Francisco was one of the forerunners in promoting rights for queer people Activists organised numerous marches in 1970, eventually leading to the Pride March in it’s current format. It continues to be a pioneer in the march towards equality for the LGBT community, and in 2021, San Francisco officially recognized August as Transgender History Month, becoming the first city in the United States to make such a declaration.
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Queer Art �� ��
On a bleak winter morning in 1987, Felix Gonzalez-Torres walked into a Manhattan general store and purchased two identical wall clocks and placed them on a wall, barely touching. In 1991, Felix’s long-term partner, Ross Laycock passed away from complications due to AIDS Felix himself would follow suit only 5 years later The sculpture “Untitled” (Perfect Lovers) would debut to the world in the Museum of Modern Art just before Laycock’s death. Passers-by would observe the clocks hanging together, steadily ticking away in unison By the time they would return, they had lagged, ticking in an eerie, rhythmic clack. By the end of the first week of the exhibition, one had stopped By the closing day, both were dead
On 24th February last year, I set about creating my own furry visual novel For those of you out of the loop, furries are a primarily online subculture centred around anthropomorphised (that is, in the form of humans) animal characters, in which media utilising species as a metaphor for a character’s personality or just for pure aesthetic means is celebrated Plus, a visual novel is a format of video game in which a story is told exclusively through a couple lines of dialog, a soundtrack and art pieces, the vast majority of which allow the player to make choices that affect the story.
Initially, I had a mountain of fear within me regarding how it would turn out So many factors ate away at my confidence; how would I balance each aspect by myself? How do I give time and thought to everything while maintaining my sanity? Am I good enough at any of this? Is this even worth it? Is this, god forbid, cringe? Coming up to a year later, I still maintain these fears Something deep within me is still telling me this is a bad idea What if your characters are too cliché? This is a feeling me and many others struggle with.
While this is far from a unique feeling to furry art, I can’t help but wonder how much of this is perpetuated by a broader fear of queer expression brought on by an inert, antiquated perception of art and media shared by many in the mainstream In my case, I’d certainly say that a lot of it comes from broader assumptions of the medium of visual novels being exclusive to soulless “stories” selling cheap thrills or melodramatic, over-the-top, pseudo-intellectual thrillers, but is this applicable in a broader sense? And how much is this brought on from being a predominantly queer art form?
y Murphy’s description of “ a really deep, panicky depression and the feeling that this has to happen” while working on albums, but the example I find the most relatable is that of Patricia Taxxon Born Eric Taxxon, she’s a transgender musician specialising in electronic music Since 2015, she’s put out 67 full-length albums and 11 EPs. That being said, she believes her discography really started on Christmas in 2018 with the release of Little Spoon, stating that it was the first album that came out exactly how she had imagined. In reality, she would soon come to see that it was the beginning of dismantling her fear of identity and gaining a freedom of selfexpression that would go on to define her style going forward. And what made this album this way? It was her first album with furries on the cover
Despite this discovery, it took her 3 years and a coming out to fully commit to this change in aesthetic, largely put down to a fear that years of non-functional special education had driven into her throughout her childhood. As a tall, heavily built, severely autistic child in America, she was othered near universally, to the extent that teachers had her pinned to the floor by a police officer as a 6-year-old. Of course, art is an excellent method of emotional representation, but it is undoubtedly a skill that needs to be learnt – something nearly impossible when handed cards like these Nonetheless, it happened. On October 26th,2021, she released “The Flowers of Robert Mapplethorpe”
An obvious allusion to a founding father of subversive queer art through photography, Robert Mapplethorpe, this album came with a note detailing her full commitment to furry imagery and a relentless determination to at last take off the mask As such, this project has a dramatically different tone to a lot of her prior work, drawing on deep influences from Brooklyn EBM and Industrial Noise music, both genres arising from queer artistic circles.
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Queer Art �� ��
Despite this apparent fearlessness, she has expressed at many points that she feels that the label of “furry” forbids her from being taken seriously Due to society’s preconceived notions towards furry art, this is understandable, but one can’t help but question the origin of this What has guided furry art in particular to have a near inescapable disdain towards it? Is it fair to put it down to being exclusively because it’s a queer subculture?
This is the point in which I remember the story of Untitled (Perfect Lovers). Undoubtedly, it is a heartbreakingly raw display of grief and the pressure of fate through subversion of the function household objects as metaphor for time Despite this, this narrative doesn’t justify it as art in the eyes of the farright media Both at the time and in the modern age, it has been used as a bargaining tool to paint minority arts as “unskilled” or “delusional” in order to feed into their superiority complex. I can’t help but fear that society’s broad approach to furry art is part of this rhetoric leaking into mainstream acceptance
While reading this, you may be thinking “well, they’re very obviously separate things, there are aspects which set the furry community apart that can be judged by themselves”, but I believe that at this point, it’s important to reiterate the broader history of queer subculture From my perspective, I believe that the furry community is in many ways the final remaining facet of the liberated queer arts scene that arose in the mid-to-late 20th century mainly in large American cities, most notably New York
My primary motivation for believing this is that I have family connections to this scene When my father was living off other people’s rent in exchange for his services in an art gallery in New York in the 80s and 90s, he witnessed each facet of this scene, and its eventual demise in the peak of the AIDS epidemic At many points throughout my life, we have discussed this; the beautiful people he met, the sheer creativity on display and the shenanigans they all got up to Each aspect described I can easily see clear resemblance of in the modern furry community. The open-mindedness, the artistic variety, the sense of community, everything They’re all there, clear as day
So, would it be a fair judgement to say that the general intolerance to furries and their art is a direct result in aggression towards queer arts? I would say, sort of Of course, everything I have raised is true, but there is a counterpoint that many people have a genuine lack of understanding of the community as a whole or its appeal that is manifested perhaps unhealthily through a lack of tolerance or acceptance
Given this approach, what could one do to combat this? Well, my best suggestion is to simply expose yourself to more diverse media Don’t fear that you will be judged for enjoying something or not – you are the only one who can make your own opinions and subjective analysis, and your skills in developing them will only improve with greater exposure
This article was written by Long Road student Alexander Haigh. A massive thank you for this beautifully written and pensive piece, it clearly took a lot of time and effort.