Despite the lockdown, we’re still advising, educating, supporting & campaigning
5 August 2020
Greetings!
I hope you are safe and well as the pandemic enters its seventh month
I am writing to update you on the work of the Peter Tatchell Foundation. As you would expect, we have had a challenging year, but we have not let COVID deter us from our goals and mission.
We are having to learn how to campaign and organise in different and socially distant ways. The battle for equality will not wait until the pandemic is over.
As well as helping individual refugees fleeing persecution, our foundation has been working to support the Lift the Ban campaign to allow asylum seekers to work while their claims are processed. – and to also end to end their detention by the Home Office.
We have also been collaborating with campaigns to defend the human rights of democrats in Hong Kong, Uyghur Muslims in China and LGBTs in Poland.
It was our great delight to publish the testimony of a gay man in the Gulf countries. He revealed in detail the extent and nature of anti-LGBT+ persecution there, including a state-sponsored gay conversion therapy programme and a lack of sexual health services. READ MORE
In May, we helped mark the 30th anniversary of the LGBT+ direct action group OutRage! by organising media coverage in The Guardian, Independent, Time Out, Attitude, Gay Times and The Face. READ MORE Disappointingly, the BBC declined to cover the anniversary.
Although this year’s Pride London parade was cancelled due to COVID, together with 11 other veterans of the Gay Liberation Front 1970-74, I marched on 27 June in London to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the GLF. We put politics back into Pride with five human rights demands. READ MORE
Like all charities, our biggest challenge right now is fundraising and I want to thank sincerely all of you who have supported us financially at this difficult time.
As always, our success starts with your generosity.
Yours,
Peter Tatchell