by M McCann, Year 10
It was not until the Sexual Offences Act of 1967 that men aged 21 and over were legally allowed to have gay relationships. However, being openly gay in the armed forces was still not allowed until the year 2000 and until 2016 you were still legally able to be discharged from the army for ‘homosexual acts’. The fact that people in the armed forces were subject to so much prejudice is inhumane and frankly disgusting. The ban, which led to up to 200 sackings a year, was incredibly backwards. This was a time where there were more women of colour in Congress in America than there had ever been before but at the same time we were living in an unjustly homophobic society. But just because it was banned, doesn’t mean it stopped people from being gay, even if they had to keep it a secret. Gilbert Bradley and Gordon Bowsher fell in love during WWII, a time where being homosexual was a crime that could lead to you being shot if caught while serving in the armed forces. However, when Gilbert joined the army, their relationship survived through beautifully crafted letters that the pair sent back and forth throughout the war. The letters were discovered in 2008 after Mr Bradley died. Bradley and Bowsher first met on a houseboat in the summer of 1938 in Devon when Mr Bowsher was in a relationship with Mr Bradley’s nephew. Gilbert Bradley was forced into the armed forces; he was
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