CHANGE IS A FORCE FOR GOOD

Without change, the world wouldn’t move forward, learning and hopefully improving as it goes. The arrival of this issue coincides with London Pride, the capital’s annual celebration of LGBT+ rights and culture. If anything proves the power of positive change, it is this. Hearst – the company that publishes ELLE Decoration – will be marching in the parade on 6 July and I, along with my colleagues, will be there waving banners and shouting myself hoarse.

This year’s event is even more powerful, as it marks the fifty-year anniversary of the Stonewall riots in New York, where violent protests erupted in the face of police brutality and acted as a catalyst for the modern fight for LGBT+ rights. While acceptance and tolerance have come a long way since then, there is still much to be done. Last month, two women were brutally attacked on a London bus simply because of their sexuality, and a recent report by The Guardian newspaper outlined that homophobic and transphobic hate crimes in England and Wales have more than doubled in the past five years. These are two facts that have particular resonance for me.

Two years ago this summer, I myself was attacked with my boyfriend outside a gay bar in Liverpool. Stood close, holding hands, smoking a cigarette, were we doing anything depraved or offensive? No. We were just two men in love, enjoying a night out. Yet, nine people saw fit to express their anger at our difference with their fists, beating and kicking us to the kerb. I spent a month in hospital, but – thanks to an incredible team of doctors and nurses, and loving friends and family – I came through it stronger, and more determined to never let bigotry and small-minded values triumph. I know I was one of the lucky ones.

Some will say that the intro to a humble design and interiors magazine is hardly the place for politics or the overtly personal. I disagree. Given the chance, we should all leap onto any soapbox we can, no matter how small, and shout at the top of our voices about what matters, what means something to us and those around us. And so, hopefully without trivialising any of this, I present our latest biannual issue dedicated to transition. The pages in front of you are filled with the new, the unusual, what is to come – things some of you may find shocking, challenging even, but that, nonetheless, will become the new normal. Embrace change and diversity. Welcome difference, be inclusive, and do it all with love. Be proud. I know I am.