The London Lesbian Offensive Group (L.L.O.G.) was a feminist lesbian activist group focussed on contesting anti-lesbianism. It was officially formed after strong interest shown at the 1982 Lesbian Conference workshop called “On Anti-Lesbian in the WLM”. It was comprised of women with differing feminist politics, all concerned with the prevalence of anti-lesbianism, and sought to prove the anti-lesbianism should be identified as political oppression. There was also a strong focus on the treatment of lesbian mothers, as most of the core members were mothers themselves. They held meetings and workshops for other women to attend, wrote articles and collaborated with other lesbian activist groups, and held discussions considering the Women’s Liberation Movement and its impact on lesbian women.
Katharine Morton (1912 – 2008) was an architect and conservation activist. She grew up in the Lake District with her father Sir Samuel Haslam Scott, an important figure in the National Trust for conservation in the Lake District, and showed a talent for drawing from an early age. During this time, it was not conventional for women to have a career, and as such she didn’t start training until 1937. She qualified as an architect during WW2, as well as marrying her husband in 1944. Together they moved to Carlisle where Katharine became involved with Care of Churches work for the Carlisle Diocese and committee work for the National Trust. They moved to London in 1976, and remained until her husband died in 1987, whereupon she moved to St Johns Wood and continued to work and travel. She was regularly involved in community groups such as the Girl Guides, as well as giving lectures, most notably for interior design. Katharine was also an avid sailing and skiing fan, and spent much of her life indulging in the pastimes. She passed away in her flat in 2008 under the care of her daughter and live-in carer.
Kate Charlesworth is a cartoonist and artist who has regularly contributed to LGBT and equality campaigns with her art. In 1988, when Clause 28 of the Local Government Act was pushing to ban the promotion of and education about homosexuality, she and three other local cartoonists produced a series of postcards to campaign against it. Her work has appeared in LGBT publications such as “The Pink Paper”, “Gay News”, “Strip AIDS”, and “Dyke’s Delight”, as well as “The Guardian”, “The Independent” and “New Internationalist”. She has also illustrated multiple books, including The Cartoon History of Time (2013), All That – the Other Half of History (1986), and Sally Heathcote: Suffragette (2014). Further, she has done work for the National Association of Local Government Officers (NALGO), a union which merged with two others to form UNISON in 1993. Her work has appeared in several exhibitions, including Rainbow City in 2006, and sh[OUT] in 2009. Her autobiography, Sensible Footwear: A Girl’s Guide, was published in 2019, and explores the evolution of LGBT experiences and perceptions in society from the 1950s to present day. She is openly lesbian, and currently lives with her partner in Scotland.
Jessie McKirdy (1936 - present) is a peace activist who was born in Scotland and has lived in the USA since 1997. She was a member of the Glasgow Women for Peace in Glasgow in the 1980’s protesting against nuclear armaments being deployed in Scotland. As part of this, she attended the Greenham Commons Women’s Peace Camp on December 12th, 1982. Following the closure of the camp in 2000 to make way for the memorial site, McKirdy put together the papers she had kept on the Greenham Commons camp, including photographs and newspaper clippings.
The Josephine Butler Society, originally known as the Ladies National Association (LNA), was founded by Josephine Butler (1828 – 1906), and was created in order to oppose the Contagious Disease Acts of 1864, 1866 and 1869. These Acts focussed on suppressing venereal disease in the armed forces. The 1869 act controversially forced women suspected of being a prostitute to be examined and, if found to be infected, be quarantined for up to three months. The LNA campaigned against such measures, and in 1886 the Contagious Diseases Acts were repealed. The LNA further campaigned against sex trafficking and child prostitution, and it was their efforts that raised the age of consent to 16 in 1885, as well as introducing measures to suppress brothels and prevent trafficking. In 1915, the LNA joined with the British Branch of the International Abolitionist Federation (IAF), also founded by Josephine Butler, to become the Association for Moral and Social Hygiene (AMSH). The society took Josephine Butler’s name in 1962. The society acts to this day as a pressure group campaigning against the legalisation of prostitution, the trafficking of women and the marginalisation of those vulnerable to being forced into the profession.
Gryffe Women's Aid was established in 1981, and was the first Asian, Black and Minority Ethnic Women's Aid group in Scotland. The group's first refuge was opened in a cottage at Quarriers Village by the river Gryffe in Kilmacolm in the same year and ran at the same location until 1997.
The group began with a group of 15 volunteers in Inverclyde, introducing one full-time and two-part time workers in 1982. By 1990, 12 workers were employed at Hemat Gryffe, however, after Urban Aid funding ended, the project ran without funds for two years. The drop-in centre at Hope Street was closed and the group lacked a home base, but continued to provide women with support and services.
In 1994/5, a small grant from Strathclyde Council, supplemented by money from J. Paul Getty, allowed a drop-in centre to be opened on Willow Street. It was at this time that Hemat, meaning "courage" was added to the group's name. The refuge at Quarriers Village was closed and spaces were offered in flats throughout Glasgow. In 1998, a new purpose built refuge space was opened with room for 12 families and single women. Further funding allowed other refuges to be opened in the West End of Glasgow in the following few years, including a refuge for elderly Asian, Black and Minority Ethnic women, supported by Scottish Homes and Southside Housing Association.
The group continues to provide refuge, support, services, and outreach to women and children today.