Stonewall’s new CEO Simon Blake had a busy first day on the job making a stand against LGBTQ+ hate crime
The new CEO of Europe’s largest LGBTQ+ charity, Stonewall, began his new role over the weekend by hosting a panel discussion at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool on Sunday (22 September).
Simon Blake OBE was appointed the new chief executive of Stonewall in June of this year. He joins the charity after spending six years as the Chief Executive of Mental Health First Aid England. Prior to that, he worked as Chief Executive of the National Union of Students.
Blake spent his first day chairing a discussion at the Labour Party Conference about how to tackle LGBTQ+ hate crime. He was joined by the Women & Equalities Minister, Annalise Dodds, members of LGBT+ Labour and Colum McGuire from the Vodafone Foundation.
💬 We’re here at #Lab24 Conference!
We had an insightful panel with @LGBTLabour, @VodafoneFdn, and @AnnelieseDodds on tackling rising anti-LGBTQ+ hate.
We discussed the opportunities for working together with Government to progress #LGBTQ+ rights – at this critical time to… pic.twitter.com/UJiZ36lDrU— Stonewall (@stonewalluk) September 22, 2024
In a statement, Blake said: “The path to LGBTQ+ equality has always required enormous courage and effective collaboration. It has also at times been fraught with challenge and that is certainly true in the last few years. It is against this backdrop that I take on the role as CEO of Stonewall”
Blake said that while growing up in rural England in 1989 he remembered feeling isolated and alone.
“Despite living in the face of an HIV epidemic that would shape and devastate the lives of so many of my peers, homophobia was rife and there was an absence of accurate information at home, at school or in the community to help us,” he added.
“We are stronger when we stand together in solidarity” – Simon Blake, Stonewall CEO
Pointing to ways that society had progressed since then, he highlighted how the vast majority of the public now supported LGBTQ+ equality. Still, he noted “the divisive rhetoric that has permeated public discourse and policy making in recent years”.
“In 2024, the truth is there is still much to be done to achieve LGBTQ+ equality and ensure everyone can lead fulfilling lives, without fear of prejudice, discrimination and harm,” he continued. “Stonewall’s own research shows that today on our shared streets, less than half of LGBTQ+ people feel safe holding their partner’s hand in public.”
In fact, according to research conducted by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in 2023, hate crime based on sexual orientation has risen by 112% over the last five years in England, while hate crimes committed against trans people increased by 186%.
Blake, who supported Stonewall during their campaign to repeal Section 28 and equalise the age of consent, said that he had spent 30 years campaigning for equal rights and social justice.
“I have learned that empathy is built, and change created, through dialogue and alliances,” he said. “We are stronger when we stand together in solidarity and that true equality benefits us all.”
Continuing, he said: “I am hopeful that my time at Stonewall will be one where we come together and ensure the UK once again leads the way in LGBTQ+ equality.”
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