Exactly 30 years ago, Justin Fashanu became the first footballer to come out as gay in an exclusive cover story broken by The Sun. Within 8 years he would be found hanged in a garage in Shoreditch.

Between coming out and death by suicide Justin was subject to a vicious campaign of media homophobia - within days The Voice Magazine ran a cover story with his brother, John, declaring him an outcast, and the paper continued a homophobic agenda against Black gays and lesbians

This began to subside when, in May 1991, the journalist Diran Adebayo interviewed Justin with a more positive story. But this was the result of pressure built by Black gay activists and liberal advertisers threatening to pull funding from The Voice and financially ruin it.

Little is remembered about the history of The Voice, the only Black British newspaper, as a source of warfare against Black British gays. Columnist Tony Sewell, who regularly wrote against homosexuals, was appointed Chair of the Race Commission by Boris Johnson just this year.

One thing I’ve reflected on this Black History Month, particularly as I continue my research into the histories of Black British gay men, is just how much collective amnesia there has been about the institutional cruelty Black gays received, even though this is in living memory.

It’s very difficult to source original copies of The Voice Magazine from the 90s, particularly the homophobic cover stories, and I haven’t been able to physically visit archives yet. But here’s a picture of the paper being held by Black gay activist and trade unionist Ted Brown

If you are interested in more snapshots of Black British gay history, check out this piece I wrote for The Guardian here: https://twitter.com/jasebyjason/status/1314497587702124544