Courage to Be: Organised Gay Youth in England 1967 - 1990

The London Gay Teenage Group was a unique and ground-breaking youth group. It emerged in the heady days of the late 1970s. Set up and run by young people themselves, it achieved what many thought as impossible: registration as an official youth club catering mainly for gay and lesbian young people, at a time when gay male sex was still totally illegal for anyone aged under 21. 

Surviving for over 20 years, the group helped many young people navigate challenges, such as rejection by society, parents and family, schools, and the workplace. It provided a safe refuge from the competitive commercial and sometimes soul-destroying ‘gay scene’. Documented by former LGTG member Dr Clifford Williams and set in the context of the wider debate and activity of organised gay youth in England, this book offers a new and rarely written about picture of gay youth in England 1967-1990. The author has trawled through archives, and utilised social media networks to reconnect with many who were there at the time.