Lectures on Tap - "LGBTQ+ in the Military: A US & UK History"

Join us for a compelling evening as Sarah Rabin, MSc, traces the intertwined histories of LGBTQ+ service in the US and UK Armed Forces. LGBTQ+ people have always served, even under criminalization and exclusion. This talk follows the complex, non-linear journey toward inclusion on both sides of the Atlantic, from historic bans to today’s renewed efforts to roll back rights.

Against the backdrop of transgender service bans, defunded research, and redacted data, Sarah will show how shifts in US policy reverberate through the UK military and beyond, reshaping global science, military readiness, and equality movements. Drawing on new research with UK Iraq and Afghanistan–era LGBTQ+ personnel, she explores what happens when evidence disappears and progress reverses—and what that means for human rights, public trust, and mental health.