Samuel Burton Green (29 January 1941 – 9 August 1999) was an
openly gay
Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity.
This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...
psychiatric nurse and
Liberal politician who was elected as a member of
Durham City Council in 1972.
He has been described as the first openly gay councillor in England
and first openly gay candidate in an election in Britain.
Political career
Green was aged 31 at the time of his election to the
Crossgate seat, and had stood for election to the council twice before. During the campaign he openly identified himself as gay and as a member of the
Gay Liberation Front
Gay Liberation Front (GLF) was the name of several gay liberation groups, the first of which was formed in New York City in 1969, immediately after the Stonewall riots. Similar organizations also formed in the UK, Australia and Canada. The GLF p ...
, and in an interview with ''
Gay News'' he reported that his sexuality had been extensively covered in the press and had attracted negative comments from opponents. He was elected to the seat, ousting an 18-year incumbent councillor.
As one of his actions as a councillor, he asked for ''Gay News'' to be stocked in the city's libraries.
Green retained his seat in the
1973
Events January
* January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...
and
1976 local elections, but did not stand in the
1979 elections (when the seat was incorporated into a larger Crossgate and
Framwelgate ward).
''World in Action'' documentary
In 1973, as part of long-running series ''
World in Action
''World in Action'' was a British investigative current affairs programme made by Granada Television for ITV from 7 January 1963 until 7 December 1998. Its campaigning journalism frequently had a major impact on events of the day. Its product ...
'',
ITV broadcast a 30-minute documentary about Green and his election to Durham council, entitled "Conversations with a Gay Liberal".
Council colleagues opposed production of the documentary, and banned filming in the Durham council chambers.
The documentary was selected in 1974 to be preserved in the
National Film Archive and was re-released on DVD in 2014 as part of ''World in Action: Volume 4''.
Legacy
In 2025,
City of Durham parish council, with the support of
Stonewall, agreed to place a
blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom, and certain other countries and territories, to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving a ...
commemorating Green on 40 The Avenue, which had been his house at the time of his first election.
See also
*
List of the first LGBT holders of political offices in the United Kingdom
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Green, Sam
Councillors in County Durham
Gay Liberation Front members
British LGBTQ rights activists
1941 births
English gay politicians
Liberal Party (UK) councillors
Psychiatric nurses
20th-century English politicians
20th-century English LGBTQ people
Male nurses
English nurses
20th-century nurses