The 'Imitation Game' actor, along with Stephen Fry and Alan Turing's family, signs a petition urging British government to pardon thousands of convicted gay men.
- Feb 2, 2015
AceShowbiz - Benedict Cumberbatch joins a campaign to call for mass pardon of gay men. The actor who plays Alan Turing, a World War II hero convicted of gross indecency for being gay, in the movie "The Imitation Game" urges British government to pardon thousands of people who were prosecuted in the past under the country's now-defunct anti-gay law.
He's among signatories of an open letter asking the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to help with the campaign. "The UK's homophobic laws made the lives of generations of gay and bisexual men intolerable," the letter said. "It is up to young leaders of today including the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to acknowledge this mark on our history and not allow it to stand."
Cumberbatch was joined by stars like Stephen Fry and "The Imitation Game" director Morten Tyldum. Turing's great niece Rachel Barnes also signed the petition. The WWII codebreaker was given a posthumous pardon by the Queen in 2013, four years after Prime Minister Gordon Brown issued an "unequivocal apology" for the way he was treated.
"The apology and pardon of Alan Turing are to be welcomed but ignores over 49,000 men who were convicted under the same law, many of whom took their own lives," the letter continued. "An estimated 15,000 men are believed to still be alive."
They urged, "We call upon Her Majesty's Government to begin a discussion about the possibility of a pardoning all the men, alive or deceased, who like Alan Turing, were convicted."
Although the petition has been signed by more than 69,000 people, Prince William and Kate Middleton refused to get involved in the campaign. A spokesperson for the royal couple said it was a matter for government and they would not make any comment.
