Are the armed forces more accepting of lesbians?

Dr Joan Heggie was dismissed from the military police in 1984 for being gay. She is now working as a Research Fellow at the Middlesbrough-based University of Teesside. Joan is seeking volunteers for a new project which will explore the experiences of lesbians in all of the armed forces, Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force, since 2000.

Joan, 46, is originally from Scotland and now lives in Darlington. She joined the Army aged 16, serving for eight years in the UK, Ireland, Germany and Cyprus. Joan said: “I was army barmy and devastated when I was dismissed for being gay. I lost my income, somewhere to live and friendship networks. I was also unemployed for six months and had to stay with friends because my parents didn’t know why I’d been dismissed.”

Joan later joined the Civil Service, leaving after ten years to enrol as a mature student. She went on to achieve a first degree, a Masters and a PhD.

The ban on homosexuality in the armed forces was lifted in 2000, meaning gay men and women could not face dismissal because of their sexuality. Joan’s new research will see if things have really improved for lesbians in the forces since the ban was lifted.

Joan said: “My research is aimed at women who served before and after 2000, or who have even left the forces since then. The kinds of issues I’ll look at include; are lesbians now more open about their sexuality in the workplace? Do they take their partners to functions? Are the armed forces taking the new civil partnerships into consideration, for example with pensions or postings abroad for lesbian couples?

“Respondents don’t need to be living or serving in the UK. Lesbians serving in all parts of the world, including Iraq, are welcome to reply.”

All responses will be confidential and any details which could possibly lead to identification will be changed. To take part, respondents will need to complete a questionnaire, followed later by a face-to-face interview. For more details on Joan’s research e-mail j.heggie@tees.ac.uk or call 01642 384478.

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