FOR most of my adult life, and for most of my time as an MSP in Parliament, it has felt like Scotland was moving in the right direction when it comes to LGBTQ+ rights and equality.
The change over the last 20 years has been huge. Rights that many fought for decades to secure were finally won.
From the scrapping of Section 28 through to equal marriage, and many other steps in between, that would have been unthinkable even a couple of generations ago.
Until recently the Scottish Parliament had built and maintained a strong track record, with only a small minority of MSPs opposing the progress that has been made since 1999, and few caring to admit to it afterwards.
READ MORE: SNP LGBT group raises concerns as Kate Forbes made Deputy FM
In 2015 the Time for Inclusive Education campaign was founded in Scotland.
Even Tory MSPs joined their call for LGBTQ-inclusive education, with the Scottish Government introducing the policy in 2018 to widespread political support across our parliament.
Could a campaign like this succeed today? Would it achieve such widespread support from all parties in our Chamber?
Things have changed.
That consensus and that drive for progress has been replaced by a bitterly divisive and reactionary culture war that has been knowingly and purposefully fuelled by politicians and parts of our media.
Now our community is very much in the firing line, and I know that a lot of people are deeply worried about what’s coming next.
It would be easy to say that it feels like a jump back in time to the 1980s. But, in some ways, it’s even worse.
I don’t want to romanticise those days. I remember them well.
I went to university in Manchester in the early 90s, at a time when police chief constable James Anderton, otherwise known as “God’s Copper”, was cheered on by the Tories and the right-wing press as his squads raided gay venues.
But even then, as hard as things were, there was a sense that it was gradually getting better.
Young LGBTQ+ people today are exposed to relentless demonisation and abuse, with social media giants fuelling it and cashing-in every step of the way, and far too many politicians joining in opportunistically.
It has a human cost. The normalisation of this kind of bigotry and prejudice ruins lives.
It leads to hurt, trauma, pain, and repression.
My heart and my solidarity go out to every young person who is coming to terms with their sexuality or identity, maybe considering coming out, but who is scared for their safety.
In Parliament this week, during a particularly awful debate on trans healthcare, I used my speech to highlight an email I had received from a constituent.
I won’t share any of their personal details, but it moved me.
It came from a young transgender person who told me, “I’m writing this because I’m scared. I’m writing this because I’m desperate. I’m writing this because I need transgender voices to be heard and to matter when the discussion of our identities and rights are being brought into question.”
The reality is that trans people’s voices have been completely marginalised from the discussions and debates that are about their rights and their lives at a time when they are more needed than ever.
Anti-equality policies that would have been unthinkable only a short time ago are now being talked about openly.
In Westminster we have a Tory government that wants to force schools to “out” trans students to their families when they don’t feel safe, and strip their rights from the Equality Act.
We are not at that stage in Scotland, but we can never be complacent.
There is a responsibility on all of us to stand resolutely against these kinds of policies and this kind of prejudice.
Our government has a key role to play in supporting vulnerable groups and communities who have been thrust onto the frontline of the culture war. What our leaders say matters, and what they do matters.
That is why my Scottish Green colleagues and I could not vote to endorse the appointment of Kate Forbes as Deputy First Minister.
How could we vote to support someone who has spoken out against same-sex marriage, gender reform, and a proper ban on so-called conversion therapy?
What message would it send when such repressive values are promoted to the second most powerful position in the Government?
These are not small issues. They are fundamental to the kind of country Scotland aspires to be. They go right to the core of what we mean when we talk about a fairer Scotland and building a more equal country.
When we negotiated the Bute House Agreement with the Scottish Government we ensured that it included a strong commitment to progressive politics and to equality that everyone around the cabinet table was bound by.
READ MORE: John Swinney under fire as Greens lash out at Kate Forbes
My party’s views on these questions have not changed, and nor will they.
My concern is not just that these policies will be watered down. It is that an SNP lurch to the right could mean some of them could be dropped entirely.
Our LGBTQ+ community deserves safety, joy, and the opportunity to flourish.
The Scotland that we want to see is one where everyone is free to be themselves without judgement.
When I look at our politics today, I fear that we are moving further away from that vision.
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Callum Baird, Editor of The National
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