LGBT activist Lex Watson, who passed away last month, was today honoured by being appointed a Member of the Order of Australia on the Queen’s Birthday list.
Watson was born in Perth in 1943, spent some of his formative years in Geraldton before attending the Perth Modern School and the University of Western Australia, where he won a scholarship and studied History, English and Philosophy.
Watson moved to Sydney to continue his studies and worked teaching politics in the Government Department of Sydney University. He became passionate about the rights of gays and lesbians and became involved with law reform, joining the ACT Homosexual Law Reform Society in 1970.
Watson became a founding member of Campaign Against Moral Persecution (CAMP), Australia’s first openly homosexual group. Watson has been credited with consolidating the organisation that paved the way for LGBT Rights in Australia as the group’s first co-president.
Watson spent his life advocating for the rights of the LGBT community, and assisted in creating a dialogue between the gay and medical communities in the midst of the development of public awareness of HIV/AIDS in the 1980s. He became founding president of the AIDS Council of NSW in 1985, and also founded NSW Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby.
In later years Watson became dedicated to recording the history of the LGBT community, and held a presidency of the Pride History Group.
The Pride History Group revealed that Watson reportedly knew about his award two weeks before he succumbed to his long battle with cancer.
The Pride History Group’s obituary of Lex Watson can be found here.
