'Gross Indecency Between Women': Policing Lesbians or Policing Lesbian Police?

Inventing a ‘Lesbian Age of Consent’? The History of the Minimum Age for Sex between Women in the UK

“…The 1920s was a period of growing public concern with female homosexuality and its regulation (Weeks, 1977(Weeks, : 87-100, 1989Faraday, 1985;Doan, 1997Doan, , 2001. As Martha Vicinus has argued, in some ways lesbianism posed less of a threat to the social order than male homosexuality because it had less potential to cross boundaries of age and class (Vicinus, 1989a).…”

“…The Lords' rejection derived largely from a concern that prohibition would be counterproductive in publicizing sex between women. In many discussions of the regulation of homosexuality in the UK this failed attempt at prohibition is the major focus with respect to lesbianism, and the parliamentary debates over this proposal have received considerable analysis (Edwards, 1981: 44;Faraday, 1985Faraday, , 1988Jeffreys, 1985;Weeks, 1989: 105-6;Doan, 1997;Oram and Turnbull, 2001: 166-9). Laura Doan's recent research (1997) has suggested that the motivation for the proposed law derived from antagonism towards women entering the police service.…”

“…It goes entirely unmentioned in most feminist and critical commentaries on sex offences and homosexuality in the UK (e.g. Warner, 1983;Weeks, 1989;Ainley, 1995: 14-29;Edwards, 1996: 60-1;Doan, 1997;Oram and Turnbull, 2001: 155-8). In the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1922, section 1, applying only in England and Wales, stated: to such practice or behaviour or not, be guilty of an offence against this Act, and shall be liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment with or without hard labour for a period not exceeding two years, or on summary conviction to imprisonment for a period not exceeding three months.…”

“…It is also clear that attempts to criminalize sexual behaviour between females were particularly motivated by concern over sexual activity involving young women and girls. The issue of 'gross indecency between women' was first raised in the Joint Select Committee of 1920 (Doan, 1997). The committee's report records exchanges with an expert witness, Mr Cecil Maurice Chapman, Metropolitan Police Magistrate for Westminster (Joint Select Committee 1920, paras 1479-501).…”

“…Even in critical sociolegal scholarship on sex offences and homosexuality which is informed by feminist and progay/queer perspectives, the existence of an age of consent law applying to sex between women usually goes entirely unmentioned (e.g. Weeks, 1977Weeks, , 1989Warner, 1983;Edwards, 1996: 60-1;Doan, 1997;Oram and Turnbull, 2001: 155-8). Some commentaries have been misleading: for example, Nigel Warner's discussion of the law, stating 'Sexual relationships between lesbians have never been criminal except in the case of members of the armed forces .…”