Author: Simon Harris

“Open on paper, closed in practice”: Sahir urges licensing authority to protect GBar’s future

Liverpool charity calls for a safe, sustainable future for LGBTQ+ venue – warning that unworkable restrictions could cost the community a vital space.

Sahir has urged Liverpool’s licensing authority and Merseyside Police to work towards a solution that allows GBar to operate safely and remain commercially viable.

The Liverpool HIV and LGBTQ+ charity says the review of the venue’s licence must recognise both the seriousness of the incident that prompted it and the consequences of losing an established LGBTQ+ community space.

Sahir’s Chief Executive, Simon Harris, has submitted a representation and asked to address the licensing committee in person. He is particularly concerned that restrictions on opening hours could make the venue’s survival impossible, even if its licence is retained.

Simon said:

“Safety must come first. People should be able to go out, enjoy themselves and get home safely. The incident that brought GBar’s licence under review is serious and deserves proper scrutiny.

“But we need a solution that protects people and gives this venue a workable future. Keeping GBar open on paper while imposing conditions that make it impossible to survive would still mean losing it. The committee must examine that risk.”

Sahir is calling for practical safeguards, clear expectations and meaningful accountability, alongside careful consideration of the impact any restrictions would have on the business.

Simon said the importance of LGBTQ+ venues reaches far beyond their dancefloors.

“I am not a customer of GBar or any other nightclub. But I am a gay man, and I have a personal stake in whether Liverpool remains somewhere LGBTQ+ people can meet, celebrate and feel safe being themselves.

“For some people, choosing a nightclub is about the music. For others, it is about being able to hold their partner’s hand without looking over their shoulder.

“For a young person who does not feel accepted at home, walking through the doors of an LGBTQ+ venue can mean finally being able to breathe. Finally being able to belong. That matters.”

The charity says GBar’s longstanding contribution to Liverpool’s LGBTQ+ life should form part of the consideration of its future, while recognising that every operator has a responsibility to meet the required safety standards.

“When an LGBTQ+ venue disappears, the need for it does not,” Simon added.

“The people who found friendship, confidence and community there still need somewhere to go. Every loss narrows those opportunities.

“GBar’s history does not exempt it from its responsibilities. It does mean there is something valuable at stake.

“I am asking the police, the licensing authority and the operators to find a workable way forward, with effective safeguards and clear accountability. Give GBar a fair opportunity to demonstrate that it can meet the standards required.

“Liverpool’s LGBTQ+ community deserves places that are safe, welcoming and able to survive. That should be the ambition of this process.”

Sahir’s representation was made independently. GBar did not ask the charity to intervene.

Real stories bring Sahir’s PrEP campaign to life in Crosby

Sahir launched its new HIV prevention campaign, “Sex Happens. PrEP Helps.”, at Crosby Library on 15 September, with Ben Youden among the local people helping to bring its message to life.

The campaign puts real faces and real stories at the centre of conversations about PrEP. Its message is deliberately straightforward: people have sex, and everyone deserves clear information about the choices that can help them stay healthy. By speaking openly and without judgement, Sahir hopes to reach people who may never have considered whether PrEP is right for them.

PrEP, or pre-exposure prophylaxis, is medication that prevents HIV when taken correctly. It is available free through NHS sexual health services in England. Yet knowing it exists is only the first step. People also need to feel comfortable asking questions, discussing their circumstances and finding out how to access it.

That is why Ben’s involvement matters. Seeing a local person lend his face and voice to the campaign can make a health message feel less distant and easier to talk about. Sahir’s launch at Crosby Library brought that conversation into a familiar community space, where it belongs.

Sex happens. PrEP helps. Let’s talk about it.

Liverpool, nominate your icons!

Who deserves to be recognised for making Liverpool City Region a better, fairer and more compassionate place?

👇 SPECIAL OFFER BELOW 👇

On Thursday 26 November 2026, we will host the inaugural Sahir Awards at the Hilton Hotel Liverpool, celebrating the people, organisations and voices making a real difference to people living with HIV and to LGBTQ+ communities across our city region.

Hosted by the brilliant Scouse Danny Beard, the evening will bring our communities, supporters, businesses and friends together as we approach World AIDS Day.

But first, we need your nominations.

The Sahir Awards 2026

The Sahir HIV Champion Award Recognising an individual or organisation making an outstanding contribution to HIV awareness, prevention, support or tackling HIV stigma.  NOMINATE HERE

The LGBTQ+ Community Impact Award Celebrating someone whose work has made a real and positive difference to LGBTQ+ people and communities across Liverpool City Region. NOMINATE HERE

The Health Equity Award Recognising work that tackles health inequalities and helps ensure everyone can access compassionate, inclusive and equitable healthcare. NOMINATE HERE

The Young Changemaker Award Celebrating an inspiring young person who is using their voice, energy or actions to make positive change. NOMINATE HERE

The Spotlight Award For a celebrity, ally, performer, entertainer, artist, broadcaster or public figure who has used their voice, visibility or platform to advance HIV awareness or promote LGBTQ+ equality. NOMINATE HERE

The Online Activist & Influencer Award Recognising someone who uses their online platform, public profile or influence to champion HIV awareness, LGBTQ+ equality and positive social change. NOMINATE HERE

The Lifetime Contribution Award Honouring someone whose years of commitment, activism, service or leadership have made an exceptional contribution to our communities. NOMINATE HERE

Nominations close at 5pm on Wednesday 30 September. Nominees must live or work within Liverpool City Region.

Why this matters:

For 42 years, Sahir has stood alongside people living with HIV and LGBTQ+ communities across Merseyside. These awards are an opportunity to recognise the extraordinary people who have stood alongside us too — often quietly, without recognition and simply because they believe things can be better.

They are also an important fundraiser for Sahir.

Thanks to advances in medicine, where Sahir once helped people manage death, today we help people manage life. But continuing that work requires support.

So once you have made your nomination, we would love you to join us on the night.

Join us at the Sahir Awards

You can buy an individual ticket and come along yourself, or bring colleagues, friends or clients and book a table of ten.  THESE ARE EARLY BIRD PRICES! 

We offer a great meal, slap up entertainment and night to remember!

Individual Tickets – BOOK HERE – Special offer £70

Tables of Ten – BOOK HERE – Special offer £650

It promises to be a very special Liverpool evening — celebrating achievement, remembering why our work still matters and helping to secure Sahir’s future.

Please nominate. Please join us. And please help us make the first Sahir Awards an evening that our communities deserve.

Thank you, as always, for standing with Sahir.

Sahir warns Liverpool City Region must not be left behind after NICE decision on twice-yearly HIV prevention injection

10 September 2026

Liverpool HIV charity Sahir has expressed deep disappointment after NICE recommended against making twice-yearly injectable PrEP available for HIV prevention.

Lenacapavir is a long-acting form of PrEP which requires an injection just twice a year. PrEP – pre-exposure prophylaxis – prevents HIV-negative people from acquiring HIV when taken correctly.

Sahir, which has supported people living with and affected by HIV across Merseyside for more than four decades, says greater choice in HIV prevention is essential if the UK is serious about ending new HIV transmissions by 2030.

For some people, taking regular tablets is difficult. Others may struggle to attend sexual health services frequently, experience stigma around taking PrEP medication or simply find that the existing options do not work for their lives.

A twice-yearly injection could remove many of those barriers.

Simon Harris, Chief Executive of Sahir, said:

“PrEP has transformed HIV prevention, but it only works as a public health intervention if people can actually access it and use it in a way that works for them.

“Twice-yearly injectable PrEP could be genuinely transformational. Six months between doses means fewer appointments, no daily tablets and significantly more choice.

“Here in Liverpool City Region, we should be making HIV prevention easier to access, not putting new barriers in the way.

“If we are serious about ending new HIV transmissions by 2030, we cannot rely on one solution for everybody. We need a toolbox of prevention options that reflects the very different lives people lead.

“I would urge NICE, NHS England and Gilead to get back around the table and find a way forward. Cost matters, but so does the cost of failing to prevent HIV.

“We have come an extraordinary distance in the fight against HIV. This is not the moment to slow down.”

The decision comes just days before Sahir launches its new Liverpool City Region PrEP awareness campaign, Sex Happens. PrEP Helps – Local Faces, Real Stories, at Crosby Library at 6pm on Tuesday 15 September.

Sahir hopes to launch Mum’s Secret Medicine across Liverpool City Region

Liverpool HIV charity Sahir is hoping to launch a new children’s book designed to tackle HIV stigma by starting conversations early — with kindness, honesty and understanding.

Mum’s Secret Medicine, written by Summer Manjares, is aimed at children aged around 8–11 and tells the story of a child growing up with a mum who is living with HIV.

CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO OUR CROWDFUND TO GET THE BOOK IN PRINT

Through a warm and accessible family story, the book explains that modern HIV treatment keeps people healthy, challenges outdated myths about the virus and encourages children to respond with understanding rather than fear.

Sahir’s ambition is to produce enough copies to offer the book to every primary school across the Liverpool City Region.

Before that can happen, the charity needs to raise funds to professionally illustrate, print and distribute the book. The estimated printing cost alone is £154,400, and Sahir is now looking for businesses, charitable trusts, organisations and individual supporters who can help make the project a reality.

Author Summer Manjares said:

“Children are naturally curious, and often they are far more open-minded than adults. I wrote Mum’s Secret Medicine because HIV should never be something surrounded by shame, secrecy or fear.“At its heart, this is a story about a family, a mum who takes medicine to stay healthy, and a child learning that HIV does not change who somebody is or how much they are loved.”

Simon Harris, CEO of Sahir, said:

“Medical science has transformed HIV, but stigma has not always kept pace. We can wait until children become adults before trying to undo prejudice, or we can give them the facts, compassion and understanding from the very beginning.“Our dream is to put Mum’s Secret Medicine into primary schools right across the Liverpool City Region. It is an ambitious project and we simply cannot do it alone. We need an illustrator, we need funding for printing and we need partners who believe, as we do, that the next generation can grow up free from HIV stigma.”

Sahir has supported people living with HIV across Merseyside for more than 40 years. Today, effective treatment means people living with HIV can live long and healthy lives, while those on treatment with an undetectable viral load cannot pass HIV on sexually.

The charity hopes Mum’s Secret Medicine can help ensure the next generation grows up knowing the facts — and rejecting the stigma.

Businesses, funders, illustrators and organisations interested in supporting the project are encouraged to contact Sahir.

ENDS

LOCAL FACES, REAL STORIES – SAHIR LAUNCHES NEW PrEP CAMPAIGN

Bold Liverpool City Region campaign celebrates PrEP, challenges HIV stigma and puts local people at its heart

Liverpool LGBTQ+ and HIV charity Sahir will launch its new PrEP campaign, Local Faces, Real Stories, at Crosby Library at 5pm on Tuesday 15 September.

The campaign features 15 people from across Liverpool City Region, captured in striking artwork by Liverpool artist Ben Youdan, and aims to make PrEP more visible, better understood and free from stigma.

PrEP – pre-exposure prophylaxis – is medication taken by people who do not have HIV to prevent them acquiring the virus. When taken correctly, it is highly effective at preventing HIV through sex and is available free through NHS sexual health services.

Simon Harris, Chief Executive of Sahir, said:

“PrEP is extraordinary. We have medication that can prevent HIV, and we should be shouting about that from the rooftops.

“For too long HIV prevention has been wrapped in stigma, judgement and assumptions about who is at risk. PrEP isn’t something anyone should feel embarrassed about – it is healthcare, prevention and people taking control of their own health.

“There isn’t one face of PrEP, which is why this campaign uses real local people from different backgrounds, identities and walks of life.”

At the heart of the campaign are Ben Youdan’s colourful and distinctive portraits, designed to move sexual health messaging away from traditional clinical imagery and instead celebrate individuality, diversity and sexuality.

Ben Youdan said:

“I wanted these portraits to celebrate individuality, identity and sexuality rather than make sexual health feel frightening or clinical.

“Looking after your sexual health shouldn’t come with shame or judgement. These are real local people with real stories, and I hope the artwork makes people stop, look and think differently about who PrEP is for.”

Following the Crosby Library launch, Local Faces, Real Stories will be seen across community, healthcare and nightlife settings throughout Liverpool City Region, as well as through Sahir’s digital and outreach work.

Simon Harris added:

“PrEP, alongside testing, condoms and effective HIV treatment, gives us the tools to make new HIV transmissions a thing of the past. The challenge now is making sure everybody knows those tools are there for them.”

Launch: Tuesday 15 September 2026, 5pm, Crosby Library.

ENDS

THE BIG MERSEYSIDE HUNT: HELP SAHIR FIND THE FAMILIES BEHIND FIVE AIDS MEMORIAL QUILTS?

Liverpool HIV charity Sahir is launching a major public appeal to trace the families, friends and stories of five men remembered in its historic AIDS Memorial Quilts.

The quilts were lovingly made by friends and relatives during the height of the AIDS epidemic. But more than 25 years later, much of the history behind them has been lost.

PICTURES OF THE QUILTS BELOW

Now, ahead of World AIDS Day on 1 December 2026, Sahir is asking Merseyside — and beyond — to help find the people who knew and loved the men so their lives and stories can be properly remembered.

The five men are:

  • Gary Crabtree – currently nothing more is known.

  • John McNeight – currently nothing more is known.

  • Gerard ‘Gerry’ Murphy – a hairdresser, born 19 February 1968. Gerry died on 29 March 1993, aged just 25.

  • David Robert Brewer, known as ‘Bopper’ – born on 18 February. His quilt may have been made by friends called Dean and Graham, and there are indications he may originally have come from Wales.

  • Eddie Boyne – 1960–1999.

All five men either came from Liverpool or died in the city.

Sahir Chief Executive Simon Harris said:

“These quilts have been packed away for years, but when you unfold them you realise immediately that they are not simply historical artefacts. They are people.

“Someone chose every photograph, every word and every stitch because they loved the person whose name is on that quilt.

“We know so little about some of these five men that, at the moment, we have little more than a name. I want to change that.

“Somewhere in Merseyside, and perhaps further afield, there will be brothers, sisters, cousins, old friends, former colleagues and neighbours who remember Gary, John, Gerry, Bopper and Eddie.

“We want their photographs. We want their stories. We want to know what made them laugh, where they worked, where they went out, who they loved and what they dreamed about.

“HIV history must never become simply a list of statistics. These were people with lives, families, friendships and futures. This World AIDS Day, we want to put the people back into the history.”

Sahir hopes to involve relatives and friends in its World AIDS Day 2026 commemorations, ensuring the five men are remembered for the lives they lived, rather than simply for the illness that took them.

Simon added:

“If you recognise one of these names — even if you think what you know is insignificant — please contact us. A nickname, a workplace, a pub they visited or the name of an old friend could be the piece of information that reconnects us with a family.

“Merseyside has an extraordinary memory. We are asking people to help us use it.”

Anyone with information about Gary Crabtree, John McNeight, Gerard ‘Gerry’ Murphy, David ‘Bopper’ Brewer or Eddie Boyne should contact Simon Harris at simon.harris@sahir.org.uk.

  • Photographs of the five memorial quilts are attached to this press release.

  • Simon Harris is available for media interviews about the appeal, the quilts,

  • Sahir’s World AIDS Day plans and the importance of preserving Liverpool’s HIV and AIDS history.

 

Stand Red With Sahir

Liverpool workplaces urged to ‘Stand Red With Sahir’ this World AIDS Day

Sahir launches new workplace partnership offering businesses a simple way to raise money, increase HIV awareness and challenge stigma.

Liverpool’s HIV and LGBTQ+ charity Sahir is calling on businesses and organisations across the Liverpool City Region to Stand Red With Sahir this World AIDS Day.

The new workplace initiative, launching ahead of World AIDS Day on Tuesday 1 December 2026, will see Sahir work directly with employers who want to raise funds, educate their teams and demonstrate their support for people living with HIV.

Sahir will provide participating workplaces with red ribbons, fundraising collection tins, HIV information and campaign literature, as well as safer sex packs where requested.

Businesses can organise their own activities, including Wear Red days, coffee mornings, quizzes, office collections or staff fundraising challenges. Employers will also be encouraged to match money raised by their teams.

Sahir can also provide a speaker to visit participating workplaces to talk about HIV today, the importance of tackling stigma and the charity’s work across Liverpool City Region.

Sahir Chief Executive Simon Harris said:

“We want this to be a genuine partnership. We can provide the ribbons, collection tins, information, expertise and speakers; businesses provide the people, enthusiasm and opportunity to reach new audiences.

“HIV has changed enormously, but stigma has not disappeared. World AIDS Day gives every workplace an opportunity to start a conversation, learn something and stand alongside people living with HIV.

“Whether you are a small office with ten people or a major Liverpool employer with thousands of staff, we would love you to Stand Red With Sahir.”

Sahir has supported people affected by HIV in Liverpool and the wider city region for more than 40 years. Today its work includes HIV support, prevention, sexual health information, LGBTQ+ services and challenging the inequalities and stigma that continue to affect local communities.

Businesses and organisations interested in taking part in Stand Red With Sahir are invited to contact Simon Harris at simon.harris@sahir.org.uk.

ENDS

Notes to editors

Stand Red With Sahir takes place in the run-up to World AIDS Day on 1 December 2026.

Sahir can provide participating organisations with red ribbons, collection tins, HIV information and literature, safer sex packs on request, digital campaign materials and workplace speakers.

Sahir is a Liverpool-based HIV and LGBTQ+ charity and has served communities across the region for more than 40 years.

Media enquiries/interviews:
Simon Harris, Chief Executive, Sahir
simon.harris@sahir.org.uk

Every Stitch Is Someone We Lost – We Remember Gerard

I have been Chief Executive of Sahir for 90 days, and almost since the day I arrived I have been meaning to spend some time with Sahir’s AIDS Memorial Quilts.

Today, I finally did.

For many people, HIV is understood through numbers. Around 15,000 lives lost in the UK. More than 44 million worldwide. Numbers so enormous they can become almost impossible to comprehend.

But nobody is a number.

I last lost a friend to HIV in 2003. I count myself extraordinarily lucky that advances in medical science have transformed HIV treatment so completely. There was a time when funerals seemed to arrive with frightening regularity; when another diagnosis could mean preparing yourself for another goodbye.

Thankfully, those funerals no longer fill my diary.

And perhaps, with the passing of time, it becomes easier to forget just how much was lost.

Then today we unfurled the quilts.

Suddenly, HIV wasn’t a statistic. It was names. Photographs. Dates. Pieces of clothing. Messages from mothers, partners, friends and families. Carefully stitched pieces of lives that ended far too soon.

I didn’t know any of the people memorialised on those quilts, but I felt their absence.

One panel in particular stayed with me: Gerard Murphy.

I found myself thinking about his mum. About the hands that may have chosen the photographs and fabric. About the unbearable act of reducing a son’s life to a square of cloth because there would be no more birthdays, Christmases, phone calls or ordinary days together.

Thirty-three years later, I wonder about her.

Grief doesn’t disappear because the years pass. A mother’s love certainly doesn’t.

That is the extraordinary power of the AIDS Memorial Quilt. It refuses to allow people to become statistics. It says: this person was here. They were loved. They mattered. Remember them.

Next year, the national AIDS Memorial Quilt will come to Liverpool, bringing with it hundreds more names, hundreds more stories and countless reminders of a generation we lost.

And remembering matters.

Because HIV has changed, but it has not gone away. Neither has the stigma that surrounded it then and, shamefully, still exists today.

In Sahir’s earliest days, much of our work was about managing death: supporting people through illness, loss and grief at a time when there was so little hope.

Today, because of extraordinary advances in medicine, our work is overwhelmingly about supporting people to live — to live well, confidently, openly and without shame.

That transformation is something worth celebrating.

But our job is not finished.

We must continue fighting stigma. We must continue educating. We must continue supporting people living with HIV. And we must continue saying the names of those who never had the opportunity to benefit from the treatments available today.

So today, we remember Gerard.

We remember every life stitched into those quilts.

And we remember that behind every HIV statistic there was, and always will be, a human being.

Someone’s child. Someone’s partner. Someone’s friend.

Someone who mattered.

 

Simon Harris

 

Danny Beard Returns Home To Present Sahir Awards

Danny Beard will host the first ever Sahir Awards this November, as Liverpool’s oldest HIV and LGBT+ charity launches a new celebration of courage, care and community.

The inaugural Sahir Awards will take place ahead of World AIDS Day 2026, bringing together community leaders, supporters, businesses, public sector partners and activists to celebrate people making a real difference across the Liverpool City Region.

Hosted by Danny Beard, one of the UK’s best-loved drag performers and winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, the evening will recognise outstanding contributions to HIV awareness, LGBT+ equality, health equity and community support.

PICTURE OF DANNY BELOW

The five award categories are:

  • HIV Champion Award

  • LGBT+ Community Impact Award

  • Health Equity Award

  • Young Changemaker Award

  • Online Activist and Influencer Award

  • Lifetime Contribution Award

Each category will honour individuals, groups or organisations whose work has helped challenge stigma, improve lives and build stronger, safer communities.

The dinner event will also raise vital funds for Sahir’s frontline services supporting people living with HIV, LGBT+ people and people seeking asylum across the Liverpool City Region.

Simon Harris, Chief Executive Officer of Sahir, said:

“We are absolutely thrilled that Danny Beard will host our inaugural Sahir Awards. Danny brings warmth, humour, heart and star quality — exactly what this special evening deserves.

“World AIDS Day is a time to remember, reflect and recommit ourselves to ending HIV stigma. But it is also a moment to celebrate the people who keep pushing our communities forward.

“The Sahir Awards will shine a light on courage, care and community. Across our region there are people doing remarkable work, often quietly and without recognition. These awards are our chance to say thank you, celebrate their impact and raise the funds we need to keep supporting people when they need us most.”

Nominations for the awards are open via the Sahir website and nominees must live, work, volunteer or deliver services in the Liverpool City Region. Nominations will close at 5pm on Wednesday 30 September 2026.

Further details about tickets, sponsorship and the venue will be announced soon.

ENDS

WHEN ATTACKING DIVERSITY BECOMES NORMAL

There was a time when politicians would have hesitated before openly attacking diversity, inclusion and equality.

Not anymore.

Across politics, attacks on diversity have become increasingly normalised. Diversity is dismissed as “woke”, equality initiatives are portrayed as unnecessary bureaucracy, and minorities are too often turned into convenient political dividing lines.

That should concern all of us.

Because diversity is not an ideology. It is a fact.

Our communities are made up of people of different races, religions, sexual orientations, gender identities, backgrounds, abilities and experiences. Recognising that reality does not divide society. Pretending those differences — and the inequalities that sometimes come with them — do not exist is what causes harm.

The argument we increasingly hear is simple: stop talking about identity, stop treating groups differently and just treat everybody the same.

But equality has never been that simple.

Treating everybody identically only produces equality if everybody begins from the same position and faces the same barriers. They do not.

For LGBTQ+ communities, we know this from history.

The rights many of us now take for granted were achieved precisely because people challenged discrimination. Same-sex relationships were criminalised. Gay men were dismissed from jobs. LGBTQ+ people were treated as mentally ill. Section 28 deliberately restricted discussion of homosexuality in schools.

Progress did not happen because society stopped talking about inequality. It happened because people refused to ignore it.

The same lesson runs through the history of HIV.

HIV stigma was allowed to flourish partly because those most affected were often people society was already comfortable marginalising: gay and bisexual men, Black African communities, migrants, people who use drugs and others whose voices were too easily ignored.

We have made extraordinary medical progress. Today, effective HIV treatment means people can live long, healthy lives, and someone with an undetectable viral load cannot sexually transmit HIV.

But science alone cannot eradicate prejudice.

People still fear taking an HIV test because of stigma. People living with HIV still encounter ignorance and discrimination. LGBTQ+ people continue to experience inequalities in healthcare, housing, employment and personal safety.

That is precisely why the political retreat from diversity matters.

When politicians repeatedly portray diversity as a problem, something changes. Language once considered unacceptable becomes mainstream. Prejudice is given permission to dress itself up as common sense. People who already feel vulnerable hear something very clearly: perhaps your equality is negotiable after all.

And there is another side to this debate which is too often forgotten.

Diversity works.

Organisations make better decisions when different experiences are represented. Healthcare works better when services understand the communities they serve. Employers benefit from wider perspectives. Communities become stronger when people feel they belong rather than feeling they must hide part of themselves to be accepted.

At Sahir, we see the importance of this every day.

We support people living with HIV, LGBTQ+ people, refugees and asylum seekers, families, young people and communities from across the Liverpool City Region.

Behind the political arguments about “diversity” are real human beings.

A teenager wondering whether coming out will cost them their family.

A trans person deciding whether they feel safe enough to ask for healthcare.

Someone newly diagnosed with HIV terrified that their friends will reject them.

An LGBTQ+ asylum seeker who has escaped a country where being themselves could mean imprisonment, violence or death.

To them, diversity and inclusion are not fashionable slogans.

They can mean being listened to rather than dismissed. Receiving appropriate healthcare rather than avoiding it. Finding safety rather than facing hostility. Belonging rather than merely being tolerated.

Of course diversity initiatives should be effective, evidence-based and accountable. Like any policy, they should be open to scrutiny and improvement.

But there is a vast difference between questioning how we promote equality and questioning whether equality itself has gone too far.

That is the line we must not allow political debate to erase.

Diversity is not something Britain should fear.

It is part of who Britain is.

And at a time when attacking diversity has become politically fashionable, those of us who believe in equality should be prepared to say something unfashionably simple:

Our differences are not the problem. How we choose to treat one another is.

Shobna’s Story – How Sahir was there for her

Shobna is a transgender woman from Syria who is seeking asylum in the UK. She is living with HIV and was also experiencing isolation, financial hardship, language barriers and difficulties accessing gender-affirming support.

After experiencing a violent sexual assault, Shobna was initially too frightened to contact the police. Her experiences with authorities in Syria had left her fearful that she would not be believed, respected or treated safely.

Sahir provided Shobna with consistent, compassionate and trauma-informed support. We gave her the time and space to make her own decisions, helped her understand the options available to her and supported her when she felt ready to report the assault to the police.

Alongside this, we helped Shobna remain engaged with her HIV care and medication and supported her to access follow-up sexual health testing and specialist services.

She is no longer facing these challenges alone.

Shobna told us: “I don’t know what I would have done. Without you, I would be alone.”

Through trusted, specialist support, Shobna was able to report the violence she had experienced, protect her health and begin rebuilding her sense of safety, confidence and control over her life.