Professor Paul Johnson awarded OBE in Queen's Birthday Honours

Executive Dean becomes an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to equality, to diversity and to human rights.

Professor Paul Johnson is Executive Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University and a sociologist and member of the School of Sociology and Social Policy. He becomes an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for services to equality, to diversity and to human rights in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list for services to the country.

Professor Johnson joined the University as Executive Dean in January 2022 from the University of York, where he was head of its Department of Sociology. His research is concerned with a number of broad questions about the relationship between law, human rights and sexual orientation and he has a particular interest in the European Convention on Human Rights and lesbian and gay rights.

 I am incredibly grateful that work designed to address contemporary and historical injustices suffered by lesbian, gay and bisexual people, and to advance equality and human rights, has been recognized in this way.

He regularly engages with the UK Parliament and has worked on many aspects of law reform relating to sexual orientation equality. Most recently, following a six-year campaign, provisions in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 made available disregards and pardons to a wide range of people convicted under now repealed homophobic laws for conduct that is no longer an offence.

Professor Johnson said:  “I am incredibly grateful that work designed to address contemporary and historical injustices suffered by lesbian, gay and bisexual people, and to advance equality and human rights, has been recognized in this way.

“I have been very fortunate in recent years to work in two great universities – Leeds and York – that support social scientists to carry out research with the aim of changing the world, for the good of all. It is an honour to do the work that I do.”