Hastings and Rother Rainbow Alliance celebrated our 10th year Anniversary at our AGM in Stade Hall in Hastings on Friday 22nd November. The event was attended by 65 members and guests included Cllrs Jay Kramer and Kim Forward, Luke Drunis from THT and Alex Ntung.
Speakers Jay Kramer and founder member Les Tostevin talked about how HRRA has supported local Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender communities over the 10 years. They highlighted ongoing work to combat homophobic and transphobic hate crime and development of social groups. A member spoke about her experiences of a homophobic attack and urged everyone to report any hate crime incidents; her main attacker was found guilty. Members enjoyed a buffet, raffle and music to finish the evening.
Jay Kramer paid tribute to the work of founder member Ambrose O’Boyle who sadly died earlier this year. Cllr Kramer said:“I am privileged to have worked with HRRA over the years. Ambrose was a true campaigner and activist with an inherent belief in social justice. He worked tirelessly on behalf of the LGBT community. It was down to Ambrose that the Rainbow Flag first flew over the Town Hall, and as a tribute to him it was flown at half-mast on the sad day of his funeral.”
Debbie Peters, Equalities Officer for Rother District Council sent a message “Please say thank you to all of HRRA for the work that you have helped us achieve in Rother council. Congratulations to HRRA for celebrating its 10th year.”
when will there be more social events for gay men as so far it is nearly all aimed at women
Rian, thank you for your comment. All HRRA organised events, apart from the Lesbian Book Club, are open to everyone. We have asked our members if any gay men would like to set up a gay men book club, but no-one has stepped forward yet. The various HRRA groups are organised by interested members and are then supported by HRRA.
The many events detailed on the ‘What’s On’ email list include many that are not organised by HRRA, so is not representative of HRRA supported events.