Peter "Bon" Bonsall-Boone ( 1938 – 19 May 2017) was an Australian

LGBT rights Rights affecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people vary greatly by country or jurisdiction—encompassing everything from the legal recognition of same-sex marriage to the death penalty for homosexuality. Notably, , 33 ...

activist. He was a foundation member of the Campaign Against Moral Persecution (CAMP) and participated in the first

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras or Sydney Mardi Gras is an event in Sydney, New South Wales attended by hundreds of thousands of people from around Australia and overseas. One of the largest such festivals in the world, Mardi Gras is the ...

Biography

Peter was born in 1938 and grew up in

Gladesville Gladesville is a suburb in the Lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Gladesville is located 10 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Ryde a ...

. When he turned 18 he changed his surname to include both his parents, Winifred Bonsall and Michael Boone. At the age of 19, in 1957, Bonsall-Boone was convicted twice of homosexual activity after being arrested on separate occasions at a public toilet and at a Sydney train station where he went to meet other gay men. He later said that these convictions prevented him from his goal of becoming an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

priest; he was expelled from his theological college in 1962 when his criminal record was discovered. He met his life partner, Peter De Waal, in 1966, and they both became foundation members of the Campaign Against Moral Persecution (CAMP), one of the earliest gay rights organisations in Australia. Bonsall-Boon established the religious sub-committee of CAMP known as Cross+Section and served as secretary of CAMP (1972-1974) and was elected co-president in 1974. In 1972, Bonsall-Boone and De Waal appeared in an episode of the

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documentary series ''Chequerboard'' that featured them kissing briefly. Their kiss has been reported as the first kiss between a same-sex couple on Australian television. At the time, Bonsall-Boone was working as a secretary for St Clements Anglican Church in the Sydney suburb of

Mosman Mosman is a suburb on the Lower North Shore region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Mosman is located 8 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local governm ...

; he lost this job as a result of his television appearance. In 1973, Bonsall-Boone and De Waal set up an LGBT help line called Phone-A-Friend from their home. In 1978, Bonsall-Boone participated in a protest that would later be recognised as the inaugural

, and was charged in the aftermath of the event. Bonsall-Boone was one of the group known as the “

78ers The 78ers are a group of LGBT activists who marched in the original Sydney Mardi Gras on 24 June 1978 and participated in the subsequent protests against police violence and the arrests of participants in the Mardi Gras. In 1997 a small group of ...

” who participated in the events in Sydney in 1978 including the first

parade, protests at Darlinghurst and Central Police Stations and Central Court, and marches through the city. When Bonsall-Boone was diagnosed with cancer in 2015, he said that his dying wish was to be able to marry De Waal. They campaigned parliament and wrote to the Prime Minister

Malcolm Turnbull Malcolm Bligh Turnbull (born 24 October 1954) is an Australian former politician and businessman who served as the 29th prime minister of Australia from 2015 to 2018. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Turnbull grad ...

in 2017 in an attempt to have same-sex marriage legalised, noting: "please do it quickly as Bon's time is fast running out!" Bonsall-Boone died on 19 May 2017, several months after celebrating his 50th anniversary with de Waal.

Legacy

In June 2017, Bonsall-Boone (posthumously) and De Waal were both inducted as a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in the 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours, "for significant service to the community as a LGBTQI advocate and supporter, and through a range of volunteer roles."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bonsall Boone, Peter 1938 births 2017 deaths Australian Anglicans Australian LGBT rights activists Members of the Order of Australia People from Sydney LGBT culture in Sydney Australian gay men