Peter Tatchell
Peter Tatchell is a human rights campaigner.[1]
Contents
Background
Tatchell was born in Melbourne, Australia in 1952. Inspired by gay liberation protests in New York, he came out as gay in 1969. He moved to London in 1971, after refusing to be drafted into the Autralian Army, which was then involved in the Vietnam War.[2]
Gay Liberation Front
In London, Tatchell joined the Gay Liberation Front (GLF). In 1973, he was the GLF delegate to the World Youth Festival, becoming the first person to publicly advocate gay liberation in a communist country.[3]
Bermondsey by-election
Tatchell stood for Labour in the 1983 Bermondsey by-election, in which he was the target of a notorious smear campaign. He recalled the episode in an interview with the Independent in 2006, after it was revealed his Liberal opponent, Simon Hughes had had gay affairs:
- Mr Tatchell said one Liberal member admitted to him that the party was behind the anonymous and illegal campaign leaflet "Which Queen Will You Vote For?", which ridiculed his sexuality and "invited local voters to have a go at me by listing my home address and phone number".
- Mr Tatchell, now a member of the Green Party, said it was "ironic" that Mr Hughes had admitted he was gay. He received "information" to that effect at the time of the by-election but Labour took a decision not to retaliate.[4]
Tatchell said that he had forgiven Hughes for his part in the campaign.[5]
Outrage!
Tatchell was one of 30 people who collectively founded the gay rights group Outrage!, on 10 May 1990.[6]
Views
On Iran
Though Tatchell has tried to present himself as a champion of gay rights in Iran, some gay Iranians remain suspicious.
- Peter Tatchel, the head of OutRage!, proclaimed, "This is just the latest barbarity by the Islamo-fascists in Iran," and he goes on to advocate economic sanctions and political isolation for Iran...This language is more in harmony with the "clash of civilizations" rhetoric adopted by the Bush administration than with human rights advocacy. It paints the violence of the Iranian regime as in a class of its own, barbaric and distinct from the presumably civilized violence of the war on Iraq, Abu Ghraib, and Guantanamo.[7]
Affiliations
- OutRage!
- Harry's Place - blogger
External Resources
- Website http://www.petertatchell.net
References
- ↑ Guardian, Peter Tatchell, accessed 31 March 2010.
- ↑ About Peter, PETER TATCHELL HUMAN RIGHTS FUNDPETER TATCHELL HUMAN RIGHTS FUND, accessed 31 March 2010.
- ↑ About Peter, PETER TATCHELL HUMAN RIGHTS FUNDPETER TATCHELL HUMAN RIGHTS FUND, accessed 31 March 2010.
- ↑ Andrew Grice, The 'homophobic' campaign that helped win Bermondsey, The Independent, 27 January 2006.
- ↑ Andrew Grice, The 'homophobic' campaign that helped win Bermondsey, The Independent, 27 January 2006.
- ↑ OutRage!, petertattchell.net, accessed 31 March 2010.
- ↑ Mitra Roshan, Gays in Iran, ZNet, 16 March 2006
