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"I now live in the bright lights of London where being gay is not so vilified. I used to live in a small village called Banwell just outside of Weston-Super-Mare in Weston. When I went to school I was bullied constantly by people who 'suspected' me of being gay. It got worse as a guy I’d 'had fun with' told everyone about it because I was not willing to anymore. I was pushed through a window and had little help as teachers were older and pretended to not notice. It needs to stop."—Ashley Hawkins, London, United Kingdom

Testimonials

We asked the police and other organisations what they thought about Silence Is Not Golden and our efforts to raise awareness and tackle homophobia.

The SING project is an imaginative and progressive initiative which provides a very effective means of promoting the unacceptable nature of homophobia. It also enables the police to be contacted in an easy, straightforward and highly accessible way. Supporting minority groups like the lesbian and gay community, and ensuring obstacles to reporting hate crime are removed is vital to promoting trust and confidence and providing a top quality policing service for the benefit of all. —Inspector Jim Gale, Force Diversity Unit, Devon and Cornwall Constabulary

My abhorrence of homophobia is informed by my understanding of the gospel of salvation by grace alone and The House Of Bishops' Report: Issues In Human Sexuality. I have repeatedly spoken out against ignorant and cruel stigmatisation of lesbian and gay people. —Sentamu Ebor, Lord Archbishop of York

Northumbria police need the help and support of different communities in order to police effectively. The Silence Is Not Golden project provides an excellent means to address homophobia by encouraging victims and witnesses to tell someone what is happening. By raising awareness in relation hate crime we can work together to increase reporting of incidents to police and reduce the number of offences and the number of victims. Northumbria Police is pleased to be part of the Silence Is Not Golden project. —Sergeant Pam Bridges, Community Engagement, Northumbria Police

Winning the Newcomer Of The Year prize at the Inside Soap awards last year brought to light how far society has come, to be accepting of my sexuality and supportive of an openly gay character in mainstream TV. However, being subjected to a torrent of anti-gay abuse when I left the recording studios in November 2005 showed me that homophobia hasn't disappeared. Silence Is Not Golden is an fantastic project, which I hope will encourage people to report incidents to the police, as I did and help bring justice to the gay community.—Anthony Cotton, Sean Tully in Coronation Street

Glad to support your excellent initiative. Homophobia sucks. To hate or fear another person because of their homosexuality or bisexuality is irrational, abnormal, perverted, unnatural and degenerate. Homophobes are sick. They need treatment.—Peter Tatchell, OutRage!

I would encourage anyone who suffers homophobic abuse to report it. All hate crimes have suffered too long from neglect. It is only now when we see an increased number reported, combined with positive campaigns—such as Silence Is Not Golden—that we as a society can fully comprehend the suffering and pain inflicted, and respond to the problem. There is now a number of ways to report incidents, either in person or using the increasingly available third party reporting system; and the police—working in partnership with support agencies—are ready and able to respond.—John Roberts, Independent member of the Metropolitan Police Authority.

Homophobia is the violence that constrains all our lives. It develops from the stereotyping that grows in the silence that surrounds our lives. In order to remain safe, we keep quiet, and hide our lives and achievements. In the gap that such silence creates, lies and distortions grow. It is now time to break that silence. This has never been easy and remains a dangerous option. However, it is not as dangerous as the alternative, which allows the bigots to define who we are and what we do, with the resulting appalling consequences. Let us support each other in the brave and exciting step of reclaiming our lives—our history and our present—and use that reclamation to define our own futures. It is a great and frightening step. Silence, however, is definitely not golden. It is our enemy, however tempting it may appear to indulge it. It is time to raise our voices, the warm and the shrill, the angry and the proud, the tentative and the strong. Liberation needs noise, and there never was a better time than now! —Paul Patrick, Co-chair Schools OUT & LGBT History Month Steering Group

The more we can all do to tackle homophobia—and the hate crimes that so many people still suffer from—the better. Bullying at school or at work, gay-bashing, and overt discrimination are clear examples of the abuse people live with; but so many people suffer in silence. Many congratulations on all you do to lift the veil on that hidden pain and suffering.—Chris Bryant, MP

This is an excellent format for the police to interact with the LGBT community. Homophobic attacks and abuse should not be tolerated. Just because you are lesbian or gay it does not mean you should be physically attacked or verbally abused. Please ensure ALL incidents are reported. If the police are not told about attacks or abuse, we can't offer support or try and stop the next one. We often work on a jigsaw approach and your report may be the first or final piece in a jigsaw of intelligence and information that may stop the next attack. I appreciate we are not perfect, and that we need to build trust and confidence; however, through the True Vision reporting scheme you can remain anonymous if you so wish, and still ensure the information is passed on.—Sergeant Steven Hodgkins, LGBT Officer, Blackpool Police (part of Lancashire Constabulary)

As Chief Executive of The Albert Kennedy Trust, I fully support the work of OUTeverywhere in launching this website. AKT still receive phone calls from people as young as 12 who have been kicked out of home because of their sexuality—homophobia must stop and any initiative to raise awareness and challenge discrimination is worth our support.—Richard McKendrick, Chief Executive, The Albert Kennedy Trust.

The police's ability to deal with hate crime effectively has never been so high, and I believe that there is a great deal more confidence in minority groups to report crime. We must give everyone the opportunity to report crime in a way that they feel comfortable with. The more information about incidents and prevention that can be carried by organisations like OUTeverywhere, the greater the opportunities to help prevent people becoming victims of crime. If the worst comes to the worst, and they become a victim, they are able to report it without fearing that they will be ignored or treated differently.—Inspector Steve Page, Humberside Police.

Northamptonshire Police are pleased to support the Silence Is Not Golden initiative, and wish to actively encourage the community to report any homophobic incidents that occur. In a modern society, people should be able to live their lives without being subject to discrimination, fear or intimidation.—Inspector David Webster, Community Policing and Partnerships, Northamptonshire Police.

Any organisation that sets out to provide an open and safe environment for gay and lesbian people whilst providing practical and moral support is clearly providing a valuable and worthwhile service. Strathclyde Police is delighted to assist where possible and participate as required.—Inspector John McTear, LGBT Liaison Officer, Strathclyde Police.