Last week the government backed down over specific reference to lesbians and gay men in the notorious Paragraph 16 of the guidelines to the Children Act. Many lesbian and gay activists have seen this decision as a major victory over the Tories.
However, the guidelines, which will be implemented by local authorities in October, still contain the following wording: 'The chosen way of life of some adults may mean they would not be able to provide a suitable environment for the care and nurture of a child'.
As happened with Section 28, the danger in with local authorities practising 'self-censorship'. What is needed now is an offensive campaign aimed at local authorities demanding equal rights for lesbians and gay men in fostering and adoption. In the run-up to the general election the Labour Party will be under increasing pressure to back off from its (paper) commitment to lesbian and gay rights.
Meanwhile the attacks continue. Clause 25 of the Criminal Justice Bill which threatens many thousands of gay men with even harsher sentencing for consensual sex is back in the Commons next week. Police harassment and homophobic atlacks are increasing. 'The 'virgin birth' scandal in March was designed to stir up public outrage, at a time when Licensing Authorities are being set up to implement the Embryology Act.
The West Midlands Coalition for Lesbian and Gay Rights (CLGR) has called a national conference entitled 'Thinking about the future' on 18 May. There will be information updates on the latest attacks and the conference will also look at ways of carrying the campaign forward into an offensive for lesbian and gay equality.
Further details about both the conference and the LCLGR AGM can be found on page 15.