This letter appears in today's Derby Telegraph:
Remember Rose, a great champion of young gays
AS we approach November 11, spare a thought for Rose Robertson, who died last August aged 94. She was a secret agent in Nazi-occupied France, a member of the Special Operations Executive, but had great difficulty talking about her wartime experiences.
However, she did reveal an incident which occurred in 1941. Billeted with two young male French Resistance fighters, Rose discovered them in an embrace. She knew nothing of homosexuality, was curious and horrified to hear of family prejudice and rejection. Their story affected her deeply. She was shocked that parents could be so heartless to their gay children.
After the war, Rose set out to learn more about people like me. She met distressed gay teens damaged by religious groups. She met parents – like Mr and Mrs Annable – who were variously distraught, angry, guilty, ashamed and hostile towards their children's "perversion".
In 1965 she formed the Friends and Families of Lesbians and Gays (FFLAG) which seeks to mediate between parents and kids in an effort to find understanding, acceptance and reconciliation.
Rose was an effective campaigner and gradually, police, local authorities, and irate parents began to trust this reassuring figure.
It all comes too late for Narvel. My parents are dead. To the best of my knowledge, I have one sister living in the USA. We have not spoken since 1963. Could Rose have made a difference?
Narvel Annable
Dovedale Crescent
Belper
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