Stephen Fry Endorses UEA’s LGBT Campaign + His Letter

Stephen Fry has endorsed the LGBT+ Student Experience Survey and Report to be held in Freshers' week in September and published early October.

Consultation has already begun with the initial LGBT+ Student Experience Report being drafted by the LGBT officer, Richard Laverick.

In September, during Welcome week (Freshers week), LGBT+ members of the Union will be invited to take part in a student experience survey.

The results of this will effect the final report which is to be published and presented to Union Council. Recommendations include; mental health support, resource centre, better representation, better access to facilities, gender neutral toilets, and encouraging LGBT people in sport.

Stephen Fry has provided a rallying call to all LGBT students at UEA by providing the foreword to the final report, as well as encouraging students to take part in the biggest consultation of LGBT people in the history of UEA.

Here's the text provided by Stephen Fry:

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I am immensely proud to hold an honorary doctorate from UEA and was thrilled beyond measure to see the recent survey which found UEA students to be amongst the happiest and to enjoy the best lifestyle and student experience in the whole of the UK. Part of the university's high quality is to be found in its famed atmosphere of tolerance, acceptance, diversity and – if I can call it such – raffish Bohemian variety and larky sense of fun and frolic. Behind all that lies the grim fact that it's harder to be a student these days then ever before: you have to fight for your right to the education you receive and the price it will exact from you in the future. The best of you will continue to fight toooo, as students always have, for the rights and dignities of others – at home and at abroad. Some of you will be gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual or – as the good old personal ads have it – "bi-curious". You've chosen (and been clever and brilliant and adorable enough to be chosen by) one of the best universities in the land in which to be LGBT. But you can help make it even better.

Things have come on a lot in the thirty years since I graduated from my university. But sometimes it can seem that for every step forward the LGBT community makes in terms of acceptance and equality, we are sent two steps back by the forces of bigotry and intolerance. We only have to look around the world to see how the twin evils of nationalism and distorted religion have focused on LGBT people as the target for their hate, just as the Jews were singled out in the 20s and 30s. If that sounds hysterical and exaggerated – remember the words of Edward Burke, that "for evil to flourish all that us required is for good men to do nothing".
Open pride, sane insistent debate and a refusal to accept a culture of bullying, taunting and hatred are as necessary now as they have ever been.

We are also living in an age that is in danger of believing that HIV/AIDS to be a thing of the past and that coming out to friends and family is now as easy as pie, all the battles for gay acceptance having been won. If only that were true.

Without information, without your cooperation and assistance, the Union of Students at UEA can't fully do its important work advising, befriending and informing all who seek their help. The UEA LGBT Student Experience Survey is a hugely important and inspirational (I suspect it will become a model to be imitated across the country) project to learn more about the sexual identities, hopes, health and happiness of UEA students. You can be as open or as private and anonymous as you like, but do, I beg you, help with this wonderful idea. The data it generates will help the university and the union plan and focus its energies and resources in a way which will benefit all. I am very honoured to have been asked to introduce it to you and declare my support for it.

But that's enough earnest entreaty. You're a student at one of the best institutions in the world. Go out and have fun. Be comradely, be companionable, be kind.

Stephen Fry

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Any questions about the report or survey, or if you would like to get involved please contact teh LGBT officer at [email protected]

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