Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association

IDAHO Panel Discussion – As part of the International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO) programme, our panel discuss support for LGBT asylum seekers in the UK and what can be done to support LGBT people in other countries. Some gay people who are returned to their country of origin face persecution, imprisonment or even death. The aim of the discussion is to find ways for politicians, campaigners and others to support these victims of persecution. Members of the panel are S. Chelvan (a barrister representing the UK Lesbian and Gay Immigration Group), Nigel Warner (ILGA-Europe), Martin Lunnon (Amnesty International), Peter Tatchell (human rights activist) and Kizza Musinguzi (asylum seeker). There will be plenty of time for audience discussion and comment after panel members have given their perspective. Food and drink will be provided.

Gaud and Bennett – a play by Fire and Brimstone Productions. This is the story of DeRobigne Mortimer Bennett (1818–1882), the last man to be imprisoned for blasphemy in the United States. As editor of The Truth Seeker he constantly battled with the New York Society for the Suppression of Vice and its president, the soap manufacturer Samuel Colgate. Fire and Brimstone Productions is a group of freethinkers and their friends who arrange dramatisations based on events in freethought history. This play marks the abolition of the common law offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel in England and Wales.

GALHA’s Annual Weekend Conference and AGM take place this year at the Wessex Hotel in the beautiful city of Winchester. The Wessex is a four-star hotel overlooking the cathedral right in the centre of the city. We have secured a great group rate of £57.95 per person per night, which includes breakfast and a full three-course dinner. This is a flat rate regardless of whether you have a room of your own or share with someone else.

Events during the weekend include a tour of the historic city centre and Winchester Cathedral (named after the ’60s song of the same name...). We will dine in a private function room on the Saturday evening, and dinner will be followed by a gay humanist quiz – if such a thing is imaginable. We are also planning a day trip to a nearby vineyard for a guided tour and tutored tasting of English wines. Our Annual General Meeting will take place during the weekend.

Our weekend events are open to GALHA members and their friends and are always popular. If you’ve never been before then do join us this time. We’ll be in a great hotel in a lovely city. Places are limited, so book now. For booking details, or if you have any questions about the weekend, please contact David Christmas (telephone 0844 800 3067 or e-mail secretary@galha.org).

Bisexuality – Myth and Reality – a talk by GALHA member Grant Denkinson and his friends.

Romantic Forerunners of Gay Liberation – John Lauritsen, US campaigner, author, scholar, and long-time GALHA member, draws on his work on the Shelley/Byron circle, Jeremy Bentham, and the early German and English spokesmen for homosexual emancipation.

GALHA Lunch – For many members this is the social highlight of the GALHA year. We can promise a good lunch in a central London venue, lively conversation and a memorable guest speaker. Details to follow.

Just a Minute – based on the long running BBC Radio 4 programme of that name. Panellists from freethought and secular organisations will try to speak for sixty seconds on matters of humanist and gay interest “without hesitation, repetition or” – apart from the GALHA panellist! – “deviation”.

Birmingham Pride – GALHA hopes to have a presence at this event.

Pride London – GALHA hopes to have a presence at this event.

Oxford Pride – GALHA hopes to have a presence at this event.

Pride in Brighton & Hove – GALHA hopes to have a presence at this event.

Manchester Pride – GALHA hopes to have a presence at this event.

Pride Glasgow – GALHA hopes to have a presence at this event.