Stonewall (Pressure Group and Lobbyist)
About
Largest LGBT rights organisation in Europe
formed in 1989 by political activists and others campaigning against Section 28 of the Local
Government Act 1988, including Ian McKellen, Lisa Power, and Michael Cashman.
Stonewall diversified into policy development after Labour came to power in 1997, a period
which saw successful campaigns to: repeal Section 28, end the ban on LGBT people in the armed
forces, equalise the age of consent, extend adoption and IVF rights to same-sex couples, and
introduce civil partnerships
It remains a lobbying organisation rather than a membership organisation
Stonewall's most high-profile achievements have been in common law and parliamentary
lobbying.
Lobbying
Under Angela Mason, it became the most influential LGBT lobbying organisation in Britain.
Mason's tenure saw Stonewall support legal test cases in the European Court of Human Rights
which included:
Chris Morris and Euan Sutherland, who in Sutherland v United Kingdom successfully challenged
the unequal age of consent laws.
Duncan Lustig-Prean and John Beckett, who successfully challenged the ban on gay people in the
armed forces.
Legislative Changes
Legislative achievements in this period or arising from Mason's work include:
amendments to the 2002 Adoption and Children Bill, which treated lesbian and gay couples in
the same way as heterosexuals.
Equalisation of the age of consent to 16 years old, as part of the Sexual Offences (Amendment)
Act 2000, after the use of the Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949, in November 2000.
repeal of Clause 2a of the Local Government Act in Scotland (2000).
repeal Section 28 of the Local Government Act in England and Wales (2003).
recognition of anti-gay hate crimes through the Criminal Justice Act 2003.
introduction of the Civil Partnership Act 2004, which gave gay and lesbian couples a legal
framework equivalent to civil marriage.
Research and Events
Stonewall has also produced research reports in areas such as homophobic hate crime, lesbian
health and homophobia in football.
In 2015, and following a six-month consultation with trans communities, Stonewall became
trans inclusive.
Stonewall also holds a number of high-profile events, including the Stonewall Equality Dinner,
the Stonewall Summer Party and the Brighton Equality Walk.
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