Soldiers and sexuality at Military Pride
by ROB HAYNES - Wednesday, July 9, 2008
http://www.metro.co.uk/metrolife/article.html?in_article_id=211238&in_page_id=241When homosexuality was decriminalised in the UK in 1967 it remained illegal in the armed forces. Personnel could be dismissed on grounds of their sexuality until 2000, when a long legal battle had to be taken to the European Court Of Human Rights in order to overturn decades of lingering institutional prejudice.
The Imperial War Museum North again takes up its mission to investigate the wider impact of war by looking at the hidden histories of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities in conflict from World War I to the present day.
Timed to coincide with the Manchester Pride festival, 12 people have come forward to share their experiences via portrait photography and personal testimonies, including serving soldier craftsman Richard J Cann, who has received the General Service Medal (Northern Ireland) and the Iraq Medal (Operation Telic).
