Christine Jardine reflects on the ongoing struggles for the LGBTQ community on IDAHOT
In the midst of the Covid 19 crisis it is easy to think it is the only issue in town. But there is another issue that as Liberals we should not need reminding of.
One aspect of it was highlighted to me this week when a friend told me that he cannot give blood.
My friend would like to help by providing blood from which plasma could be used in the fight against COVID-19 but regardless of how rare his blood group might be, of how healthy he is, he cannot donate because he is gay.
I was stunned.
We must surely recognise that there are still elements of our lives which label and marginalise the LGBTQ community
So I checked and, to be fair, the NHS site says all men must wait 3 months after having sex with another man before donating. It doesn't claim to be a ban, and says it is regardless of sexuality. But the reality is that as someone in a long term committed single-sex relationship that almost automatically excludes him.
And it is not the only example.
More than once in the past three yearsI have pressed the Government to fulfill the promise of its LGBT action plan and ban gay conversion therapy.
Today is International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia.
I would not suggest for a minute that safeguards to ensure donated blood is healthy is by its nature homophobic. I cannot say the same about the lack of a ban on gay conversion therapy.
We must surely recognise that there are still elements of our lives which label and marginalise the LGBTQ community and that this is one of them.
As Liberals we should be aware of the danger of assuming that everybody feels equally respected and protected in the current crisis. These past two months have posed problems for us all that we never thought we would have to face, and demanded strength we did not know that we had.
But we are not there yet.
In striving to reach that moment we would do well to remember the words of US politician Daniel Patrick Moynihan:
"The central conservative truth is that it is culture, not politics, that determines the success of a society. The central liberal truth is that politics can change a culture and save it from itself."
All 64 seats on Derbyshire County Council are up for election on May 6th. At the moment Conservatives have 36 seats, Labour have 24 seats and Lib Dems have 3. There are 254 candidates competing across the 61 divisions of Derbyshire county.
In Chesterfield we currently have 1 County Council seat, that held by Barry in Stavely North and Whittington. So we have a lot to do - but what an opportunity. At the last county elections two of our candidates missed out by less than 250 votes. And 16 of the existing county councillors are not standing for re-election so the possibility of reshaping the current political balance is even greater. In Chesterfield our candidates are as follows
Councillor Glenys Falconer has been officially sworn into her extended term in office as Chesterfield's 380th Mayor, at Chesterfield Borough Council's Annual Council meeting.
Councillor Falconer - who took up the post in October 2020 - will serve as Mayor of Chesterfield until May 2022, under an extended term due to the COVID-19 crisis.
On the 21 April 2021, Her Majesty The Queen celebrated her 95th birthday. The Mayor of Chesterfield, Cllr Glenys Falconer, sent her these birthday greetings.
"On behalf of the citizens of the Borough of Chesterfield, I would like to send Your Majesty congratulations on your birthday. As you reach this milestone, we thank you for your tireless dedication to the country and Commonwealth and hope that you are able to take a moment to spend time with family and loved ones on this special day."
Urgent action is needed to save tens of thousands of lives from transport fumes and to fast-track climate-friendly transport. Liberal Democrats Leader, Ed Davey MP, argues his party's plan for massive new investment in clean air action would be a "treble dividend" for a local community's health, environment and economy.
April 22ndis the 51st Earth Day - an annual event designed to drive action on the environment and climate crisis around the world.
This year's theme is "Restore Our Earth", with all of us urged to focus not only on how we can reduce our impact on the planet - but also on how we might actively repair the world's ecosystems.
The virtual hustings are to be held on Monday 19th April by Chesterfield Climate Alliancefor the upcoming Derbyshire County Council elections.
The hustings will enableChesterfield residents to question representatives of the local political parties onwhat they will do if elected, on the subject of climate, environment and nature.
Glenys was born in North Wingfield and was educated at Deincourt School. She left aged 15 to work as a weaver at Robinson and Sons, which unfortunately caused Glenys to suffer from life-long hearing problems.
Glenys became a mother to her daughter Kirsty during her first marriage and got involved as a volunteer running a Mother and Baby group at Storrs Road Methodist Church. She then secured evening work at the Aquarius nightclub, enjoying seeing all the shows and serving the ubiquitous chicken in a basket! A brief move to working for the Civil Service Club ended when she was asked back to the Aquarius to run the Spanish bar during lunch times. All these jobs had to fit around her most important role; being a mother.
A virtual hustings will be held on Monday 12th April by Chesterfield Climate Alliancefor the upcoming Derbyshire County Council elections.
The hustings will enableChesterfield residents to question representatives of the local political parties onwhat they will do if elected, on the subject of climate, environment and nature.
