As a black gay man I am appalled that Tony Sewell has been appointed chair of the government’s commission on race and ethnic disparities.
Sewell trawled the depths of the sewer as a columnist on the Voice by denying the presence of LGBT people within the black community. This led to many activists like myself being specifically targeted for harassment and abuse – something which Sewell ignored for 30 years until last week, when his homophobic past caught up with him (Race commission head Tony Sewell apologises for anti-gay comments, 16 July).
Are we seriously to believe that his views have changed? Why has it taken this long for him to own up to his errors? His abuse directly led to the isolation of the footballer Justin Fashanu when he came out, and the stigmatisation and rejection he felt from people who were supposedly allies within his own community.
As a friend of Justin’s, I implore the pro-LGBT MPs within parliament – including Damian Collins, who spoke up about homophobia in football – not to sit back and let Sewell’s appointment continue.
This man is clearly not fit for the job he is being asked to do.
Darryl Telles
Former chair, LGBT Coalition Against Racism
