CAMP: Australia’s Pioneer Homosexual Rights Activists
Image: (Clockwise from top left) Judith Mackay, Gary Dennison, Cora Zyp, Kym Skinner, Kierrynn Davis, and Philip Potter of CAMP.
The events of the first Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade on June 24, 1978 are now recognised as an important milestone in the history of the Pride movement in Australia. But there has been much less focus on the years leading up to 1978.
A new book, CAMP: Australia’s pioneer homosexual rights activists, by 78ers Robyn Kennedy and Robyn Plaister, commemorates the achievements of the first national gay and lesbian rights organisation, known as CAMP (Campaign Against Moral Persecution).
CAMP was founded in 1970 when sex between consenting male adults was illegal throughout Australia, carrying penalties of imprisonment for up to 14 years (with or without whipping). Lesbians were largely invisible, and their existence treated as an aberration and abhorrence.
There was no anti-discrimination legislation, and psychosurgery aimed at ‘curing’ lesbians and gay men, was common practice.
The prevailing attitudes of the time portrayed homosexual women and men as perverts, mentally ill and sinners. Unsurprisingly, prior to 1970, lesbians and gay men were reluctant to publicly come out; until then, there was no community where they could live openly and find support.
CAMP’s Role In Driving Social Change
Following its establishment in Sydney, CAMP flourished, quickly spreading to other states and university campuses. CAMP was a literal lifesaver, with many of those featured in the book acknowledging that without CAMP, they may never have found a way to live comfortably as themselves.
This new book provides an insight into the role of CAMP in driving social change through the lived experiences of individuals who each played a role in achieving the rights we enjoy today. These first-person stories are accompanied by specially commissioned portrait photographs, along with rare archival images.
The book also includes the most comprehensive narrative of each branch of CAMP ever compiled, providing an important historical record of the origins of the Pride movement in Australia.
Available in hardback (288 pages) from September 26, 2022 at $49.95 per copy. For pre-orders contact [email protected]
