A ROW has erupted over the wording of a recently unveiled plaque - because it refers to ‘gender nonconforming’ rather than ‘lesbian’.

The York plaque, the UK’s first permanent rainbow plaque, is dedicated to Anne Lister, the 19th-century diarist who is often referred to as ‘the first modern lesbian’.

It was unveiled at Holy Trinity Church in Goodramgate on

July 24 by York Civic Trust, York LGBT Forum and the Churches Conservation Trust.

The plaque commemorates Easter Sunday, 1834, when Anne received what she considered as a blessing of her ‘marriage’ to the woman she regarded as her wife, Ann Walker.

However, the use of the phrase ‘gender nonconforming’ on the plaque, instead of the word lesbian, has caused consternation.

So much so, that a petition, ‘Don’t let them erase her story’, has been set up on change.org and now has more than 2,000 signatures.

One Twitter user, Devlin, @devlineire, said: “York LGBT Forum got this passed... notice we don’t say the word lesbian anymore!!! Outrageous.”

Bella Grrl, @BellaGrrl, said: “Great plaque @yorklgbthistory and @yorkcivictrust. However, please don’t ignore that #AnneLister was a #lesbian.”

Dashka Va, @VaDashka, said: “It’s an embarrassment to the city. Poor #AnneLister, poor #AnnWalker to be shamed like this. The ignominy.”

Another user Kate, @Boster_clack, said: “Lesbian erasure on a colourful plaque. Section 28 was used to keep our history hidden from us, now they are just erasing any mention of the word lesbian. How do we know where to go if we don’t know where we’ve come from? #lesbian #lgbt #lesbianerasure #annelister .”

In response, York Civic Trust has issued a statement on its website saying: “The plaque consultation group are listening to the positives and negatives expressed about this plaque’s wording. The intention of the plaque is to recognise the impact Anne Lister has had on so many people and to celebrate an important figure in LGBT history.

“While we’ve received many positive responses, we are really sorry that there are also many people who feel let down by the wording.”

The statement goes on to say that the wording was decided after consultations with York’s LGBT community, which took place from July 2017 to February 2018, but that they are now open to changing it.

According to a spokesman, a plaque usually costs £600-£700, which would also be the replacement cost. The cost here was marginally higher due to the hand-painted rainbow around the edge.

However, much of the funding comes from donations and this particular plaque was part-funded by the York LGBT Forum.

Vist yorkcivictrust.co.uk/anne-lister-rainbow-plaque-unveiling/ for the full statement.

To have a say on the future wording register for updates at eepurl.com/dCzwyP or follow @yorklgbthistory.