Event type: Talk

For a long time, many thought that being LGBT+ has been in direct opposition to having a faith, that you could be one or the other but never both.

In 1977 Merseyside was the birthplace of the True Freedom Trust, a Christian organisation which became a founding member of Exodus International, an arm of the world’s largest ‘ex-gay’ organisation. As late as 2018 a church in Liverpool was offering a ‘gay conversion programme’ that consisted of three days of starvation and prayer.

A representative of that church described being gay as a ‘deceit of Satan’ and in 2022 conversion therapies are still not illegal in the UK. Christian groups have protested every Pride march that has been held in Liverpool.

Despite this, Liverpool also has a pioneering history of welcoming gay people within faith groups. Stories tell of Unitarian ministers blessing same-sex unions in the city in the 1960s and in 2012 Kieran Bohan and Warren Hartley became the first same-sex couple in the UK to tie the knot legally in a place of worship when they celebrated their civil partnership at Ullet Road Unitarian Church.

In 2017 the Bishop of Liverpool, an outspoken advocate against conversion therapy and for LGBT+ rights, became a patron of Liverpool Pride. Liverpool is also the headquarters of the Open Table Network, a growing network of Christian worship communities which are welcoming and affirmative to LGBTQIA+ people.

In this panel conversation you will hear from-

Chris Butler

Chris was born in Merseyside and grew up in a secular household but religious school. As he got older he became increasingly attracted to radical Christianity which was in complete odds with his growing realisation that he was gay. Chris attended True Freedom Trust meetings, attempted to ‘cure’ himself of being gay, and was ultimately exorcised. Eventually Chris lost his Christian faith but now sees himself as a spiritual person with an interest in exploring his spirituality.

Sister Maria Renate

As a teenager Sister Maria Renate was identified as having an intersex condition. After travelling the world she settled down to a religious life in 1987, performing pastoral care with LGBT+ communities, including many in the HIV/AIDS crisis. Today she continues her pastoral work as well as speaking regularly about her experiences as an intersex person and works with the Merseyside Police LGBT+ Network Executive.

Kieran Bohan

In his 20s Kieran trained to be a Roman Catholic priest but decided not to be ordained. Since then, he has been involved in many local groups supporting LGBT+ people of faith. He is now the Co-ordinator of the Open Table Network, a growing partnership of Christian worship communities which welcome and affirm LGBTQIA+ people, our families, friends and allies, which began in Liverpool in 2008.

In this conversation event you will hear the stories of their three panellists, talk through some of their shared experiences, and discuss whether having a Christian faith is compatible with being LGBT+.

In 2021, following a recent number of homophobic and transphobic attacks in Liverpool, a number of works by local LGBTQ+ artists were displayed across the City Centre by Homotopia Festival, the UK’s longest running LGBTQ+ arts and culture festival.

At 4 am on Wednesday 3 November one artwork, by local artist Ben Youdan, which read ‘Queer with no fear’ was ripped down from where it had been displayed, close to the scene of incidents of local homophobic violence. Ben’s artwork had been funded by Liverpool council’s culture department in response to the attacks,

Following the incident member of Liverpool’s LGBTQ+ communities came together, creating copies of the original artwork and distributing them throughout the city in an extraordinary example of grassroots activism. Liverpool has long been home to many LGBTQ+ artists and creatives, many of whom use their work to campaign for an end to discrimination against LGBTQ+ people, many of whom use their platform to champion LGBTQ+ visibility in the city and beyond.

In this event you will hear from three local creatives who use their work in different ways to make the LGBTQ+ community and their issues more visible, to champion the community, and to campaign for a more equal society, a place where we can be ‘Queer with no fear’.

In this panel conversation you will hear from-

Ben Youdan

Ben Youdan is a visual artist based, his mixed media work employs a wide variety of techniques and processes, including collage, drawing, painting, print-making and photography. The imagery created takes inspiration from the iconography and ephemera of popular culture, as well as referencing art history. His pieces explore themes such as identity, glamour, and sexuality.

Lo Tierney

Lo is a Liverpool-based illustrator and activist who specialises in activism-based art and portraiture. Lo has undertaken a number of projects recently celebrating the voices of local LGBTQ+ youth. As a neurodivergent artist diagnosed with ASD, Lo looks to highlight the diversity of people within the spectrum and celebrate them whilst also educating the public.

Dan Chan

Dan Chan (they/them) visual and drag artist. Their work takes a playful approach to explore their identity by unpicking racial and queer stereotypes. They create dreamscapes and fantasy beings to bring an idyllic world to life, much of this is inspired by imagery seen in meditation and dreams. A main aspect of their work is to create representation they never saw growing up with the hope for queer British Chinese youth to see themselves.

In this conversation event you will hear the stories of their three panellists, talk through some of their shared experiences as creatives and activists, and discuss the role of art and culture in the campaign for an end to LGBTQ+ discrimination

In this conversation and Q&A moderated by Dr Emma Murray (Senior Lecturer in Criminal Justice at Liverpool John Moores University and FACT’s Criminologist in Residence), FACT’s commissioned artist Melanie Crean and Anita Dockle (The Research Director for the Howard League for Penal Reform) discuss how artworks created in collaboration with participants can influence decision making.

Join the panel to learn more about how decision makers work alongside people with expertise through experience in participatory arts practices. The Machine to Unmake You, Melanie’s current work with the Veterans hub at HMP Altcourse, provides the framework for this conversation.

In this project, the incarcerated veterans share their expertise to create a campaign. This campaign will present their needs to those involved in the policy and practice of the criminal justice system.