Happy LGBT History Month

LGBT+ History Month is about visibility, celebration, and remembering the people and movements that pushed change forward. But it’s also a reminder of who still gets missed by systems that are meant to keep us safe.

When people think about domestic abuse, they often picture cisgender, heterosexual relationships and that shapes how services respond, what they look for, what questions get asked, and who gets believed.

For LGBT+ people, abuse can be:

- misread (e.g., mutualised as “it’s just a toxic relationship”)

- minimised (“it can’t be that serious”)

- missed altogether because the signs don’t fit a straight template

- harder to disclose due to fear of outing, stigma, racism, disability discrimination, or past bad experiences with services

And even when a service is LGBT+ friendly, there can be a postcode lottery: in some areas there are specialist pathways; in others, support depends on who answers the phone.

This month matters because history isn’t only what’s behind us, it’s what we’re building now:

- domestic abuse support that’s genuinely LGBT+ competent

- understanding coercive control beyond heteronormative scripts

- services that work for people who are “structurally stuck” (not just in immediate crisis)

- funding and training that match the reality of LGBT+ peoples lives

LGBT+ History Month exists because people fought to be seen, heard, and protected and that legacy continues through organisations like Stonewall and Galop.