Tamsin Wilton
Encyclopedia
Tamsin Elizabeth Wilton (1952 – April 30, 2006) was an Cornish
academic, a lesbian activist, theorist, social researcher, writer and cartoonist, and professor of Human Sexuality
in the School of Social Science at the University of the West of England. Wilton was a member of the editorial board
of the journal Sexualities and helped establish the UK LGBT Health Summit. In 2007 the LGBT Health Summit created the Tamsin Wilton Award for LGBT Health in honour of her research and written contributions in the field. Wilton focused on gay and lesbian health issues, authored ten published books in 14 years as well as chapters, papers, pamphlets, reports and articles in the LGBT press. She gave papers around the world, and as her reputation grew she became an international consultant to the AIDS Education Research Trust in Southern Africa
. She was made the UK's first Professor of Human Sexuality while at the University of the West of England
and died from an aneurysm
on 30 April 2006 not long after moving back to her native Cornwall.
at the University of Exeter
in 1973, and trained as a school teacher
. Initially she taught in a state school for five years, then managed a bookshop, then worked at the Arnolfini arts centre and a Service Nine voluntary agency, both in Bristol. from there she became involved in HIV voluntary work with the Aled Richards Trust Women and AIDS group. She also contributed cartoons to magazines, publishers and television companies. Her marriage ended in 1988, and she had to look after her young son Tom alone. In 1990 she began studying for a master's degree
in Gender
and Social Policy
and began research on the social aspects of HIV/AIDS with Peter Aggleton's team at Bristol Polytechnic (renamed University of the West of England) from where she published the first paper in her fifteen year career as a lesbian feminist
academic. She was appointed as the Director of the HIV/AIDS Social Research Unit at located within the faculty of Nursing Health and Applied Social Sciences, and later the faculty of Social Sciences.
men, particularly in relation to gendered behaviour. In the lesbian edition of Sexualities (3[2], May 2000), Wilton noted the marginalization of lesbian issues within sexuality studies and the journal. This conflictual approach was contra-punctuated by a warms in her personal relationships, which embodied a strong sense of solidarity with co-workers on sexuality, especially with gay men. She was keen to rework the debates on the relationship between gender and sexuality, and sought to integrate them as a focus for interdisciplinary study that included health policy, film theory
, sociology of sexuality, as well as feminist and queer theory
. Wilton's writing was aimed at both academic and lay audiences. Her published material reflected theoretical work on sexuality aimed at academics, a book designed for practitioner training, an introductory text for policy makers, discussion about the self-fashioning
required by women who transition from heterosexuality to lesbian
ism, books for lay members of the communities involved in her research, and an edited volume on lesbians and film.
She spoke about her research on women who come out as lesbians after living as a heterosexual, and their reluctance to talk about this, in the Observer newspaper: "There is likely to be a fear of judgment from lesbians. There's a thing called heterosexual privilege that the heterosexual community doesn't know about. It's the ability to move freely in the world in a way that assumes that heterosexuality is natural. You don't have people asking you questions about how you got to be that way. You don't have to watch your back when you hold your lover's hand in public."
Cornish people
The Cornish are a people associated with Cornwall, a county and Duchy in the south-west of the United Kingdom that is seen in some respects as distinct from England, having more in common with the other Celtic parts of the United Kingdom such as Wales, as well as with other Celtic nations in Europe...
academic, a lesbian activist, theorist, social researcher, writer and cartoonist, and professor of Human Sexuality
Human sexuality
Human sexuality is the awareness of gender differences, and the capacity to have erotic experiences and responses. Human sexuality can also be described as the way someone is sexually attracted to another person whether it is to opposite sexes , to the same sex , to either sexes , or not being...
in the School of Social Science at the University of the West of England. Wilton was a member of the editorial board
Editorial board
The editorial board is a group of people, usually at a publication, who dictate the tone and direction the publication's editorial policy will take.- Board makeup :...
of the journal Sexualities and helped establish the UK LGBT Health Summit. In 2007 the LGBT Health Summit created the Tamsin Wilton Award for LGBT Health in honour of her research and written contributions in the field. Wilton focused on gay and lesbian health issues, authored ten published books in 14 years as well as chapters, papers, pamphlets, reports and articles in the LGBT press. She gave papers around the world, and as her reputation grew she became an international consultant to the AIDS Education Research Trust in Southern Africa
Southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. Within the region are numerous territories, including the Republic of South Africa ; nowadays, the simpler term South Africa is generally reserved for the country in English.-UN...
. She was made the UK's first Professor of Human Sexuality while at the University of the West of England
University of the West of England
The University of the West of England is a university based in the English city of Bristol. Its main campus is at Frenchay, about five miles north of the city centre...
and died from an aneurysm
Aneurysm
An aneurysm or aneurism is a localized, blood-filled balloon-like bulge in the wall of a blood vessel. Aneurysms can commonly occur in arteries at the base of the brain and an aortic aneurysm occurs in the main artery carrying blood from the left ventricle of the heart...
on 30 April 2006 not long after moving back to her native Cornwall.
Early career and entry into academia
Wilton took her first degree in English and Fine ArtFine art
Fine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
at the University of Exeter
University of Exeter
The University of Exeter is a public university in South West England. It belongs to the 1994 Group, an association of 19 of the United Kingdom's smaller research-intensive universities....
in 1973, and trained as a school teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
. Initially she taught in a state school for five years, then managed a bookshop, then worked at the Arnolfini arts centre and a Service Nine voluntary agency, both in Bristol. from there she became involved in HIV voluntary work with the Aled Richards Trust Women and AIDS group. She also contributed cartoons to magazines, publishers and television companies. Her marriage ended in 1988, and she had to look after her young son Tom alone. In 1990 she began studying for a master's degree
Master's degree
A master's is an academic degree granted to individuals who have undergone study demonstrating a mastery or high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice...
in Gender
Gender
Gender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
and Social Policy
Social policy
Social policy primarily refers to guidelines, principles, legislation and activities that affect the living conditions conducive to human welfare. Thus, social policy is that part of public policy that has to do with social issues...
and began research on the social aspects of HIV/AIDS with Peter Aggleton's team at Bristol Polytechnic (renamed University of the West of England) from where she published the first paper in her fifteen year career as a lesbian feminist
Lesbian feminism
Lesbian feminism is a cultural movement and critical perspective, most popular in the 1970s and early 1980s , that questions the position of lesbians and women in society. It particularly refutes heteronormativity, the assumption that everyone is "straight" and society should be structured to serve...
academic. She was appointed as the Director of the HIV/AIDS Social Research Unit at located within the faculty of Nursing Health and Applied Social Sciences, and later the faculty of Social Sciences.
Sexuality in life and work
In the late 1980s Wilton came out as a lesbian, which gave her a strong sense of identity and politics as well as informing her intellectual work, although she never felt completely accepted by lesbians who had come out earlier in life because of her personal history of heterosexuality. She wrote in 1993, "the positionality of “lesbian” offers a potent site from which to investigate the social, cultural and political interlocution of gender and sexuality". She saw herself as having a distinctly lesbian perspective on the issues she researched in a way that challenged the assumptions of colleagues and gayGay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
men, particularly in relation to gendered behaviour. In the lesbian edition of Sexualities (3[2], May 2000), Wilton noted the marginalization of lesbian issues within sexuality studies and the journal. This conflictual approach was contra-punctuated by a warms in her personal relationships, which embodied a strong sense of solidarity with co-workers on sexuality, especially with gay men. She was keen to rework the debates on the relationship between gender and sexuality, and sought to integrate them as a focus for interdisciplinary study that included health policy, film theory
Film theory
Film theory is an academic discipline that aims to explore the essence of the cinema and provides conceptual frameworks for understanding film's relationship to reality, the other arts, individual viewers, and society at large...
, sociology of sexuality, as well as feminist and queer theory
Queer theory
Queer theory is a field of critical theory that emerged in the early 1990s out of the fields of LGBT studies and feminist studies. Queer theory includes both queer readings of texts and the theorisation of 'queerness' itself...
. Wilton's writing was aimed at both academic and lay audiences. Her published material reflected theoretical work on sexuality aimed at academics, a book designed for practitioner training, an introductory text for policy makers, discussion about the self-fashioning
Self-fashioning
Self-fashioning, a term introduced by Stephen Greenblatt , is used to describe the process of constructing one's identity and public persona according to a set of socially acceptable standards...
required by women who transition from heterosexuality to lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
ism, books for lay members of the communities involved in her research, and an edited volume on lesbians and film.
She spoke about her research on women who come out as lesbians after living as a heterosexual, and their reluctance to talk about this, in the Observer newspaper: "There is likely to be a fear of judgment from lesbians. There's a thing called heterosexual privilege that the heterosexual community doesn't know about. It's the ability to move freely in the world in a way that assumes that heterosexuality is natural. You don't have people asking you questions about how you got to be that way. You don't have to watch your back when you hold your lover's hand in public."