Event overview
The Goldsmiths Queer History speaker series returns with Geoff Hardy discussing how his coming out and years at Goldsmiths contributed to a lifetime of LGBTQ activism.
To launch our 2018-19 Goldsmiths Queer History speaker series, we are delighted to welcome Geoff Hardy. A student at Goldsmiths in the 1970s, Geoff was involved in early gay activities and organising at Goldsmiths and has remained active in LGBTQ activism and politics in SouthEast London and across the UK ever since.
Born outside London in 1950, Geoff Hardy became a political activist during the 1960’s counterculture and peace movements. But it was only when he moved to London, in 1971, to study at Goldsmiths, that he saw an advert for Gay Liberation Front meetings. His first GLF meeting was life changing. Being an activist, he understood the GLF political outlook – the need to come out, be visible and connect to other oppressed groups. Geoff was one of the first students at Goldsmiths to come out, wear badges and talk openly about his life. These were both joyous and difficult times; he was often accused of ‘flaunting it’. Over time, others came out and things began to change at the College.
Geoff became a teacher at several local London schools and, in 1976, continuing to live the politics of gay visibility, he came out in the classroom. He has continued to be an LGBT activist, first in SE London where he was involved with various projects, including the setting up of Greenwich Lesbian and Gay Centre. Geoff met Peter in 1980 and they moved to Shrewsbury a few years later. In 2006, they founded the Shropshire Rainbow Film Festival. Geoff was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award, by Midlands Zone, in 2012 and is currently involved researching Shropshire’s LGBT history.
This event is free and open to the public, but please register
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Oct 2018 | 5:00pm - 7:00pm |
Accessibility
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