Pride
& Prejudice :
lesbian and gay London
This exhibition ran from 2 July to 22 August 1999
The
'Vice of Buggery' became punishable by death in 1553. The death
penalty was abolished in 1861, but homosexuality continued to be
a criminal offence in the UK until 1967. By the 1970s the Gay Liberation
Front was shouting 'gay is good' around the streets of London and
2000 people took part in the first London Pride march. Lesbian and
gay support networks, newspapers, pubs and clubs began to appear,
and with them emerged the growth of the cultural and economic power
of gay men and lesbians in London.
In 1988, Section 28 of the Local Government Act banned the 'promotion'
of homosexuality by local authorities. This was the first piece
of anti-gay legislation to be passed for 103 years, and the first
to legislate against lesbians. The Museum of London is risking prosecution
under Section 28 by putting on this exhibition in which it aims
to celebrate the diversity of lesbian and gay life in London, to
examine the enduring appeal of London to lesbians and gay men from
around the UK and the world, and to explore the systems of oppression
that lesbians and gays face.
Pride & Prejudice gives a historic overview of homosexuality, through
exhibits such as a 1707 ballad 'The Women Haters Lamentation', and
the memoirs of Charlotte Charke (1713-60). The youngest child of
Poet Laureate Colley Cibber, Charlotte dressed as a man and lived
as man and wife with a woman whom she refers to in her memoirs as
Mrs Brown. The exhibition looks at topics such as homosexuality
and the law, the Pink Pound and lesbian and gay dress codes. It
also includes oral history material from the Hall-Carpenter Archive,
in which people recount their experiences as gay and lesbian Londoners,
and a computer interactive to allow you the opportunity to express
your own opinions.
Lesbian and gay culture is more visible now than ever before. Cafés
and bars are no longer hidden; they are eye-catching with large
windows and tables on the street. Mainstream companies have joined
the battle to capture this niche market: Bass have 14 gay pubs in
London, and the Virgin Group publishes books for the gay and lesbian
market. But despite their power in the marketplace, homosexuals
still do not have equality under the law and are still targets of
attack: on 30 April 1999 a bomb exploded in a Soho gay bar killing
three people and seriously injuring many more.
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