Sky News
Updated Sat, 29 June 2024
Politicians were accused of "deeply shameful" "point-scoring" over LGBT+ issues as London's Pride parade took over the centre of the capital today.
1.5 million LGBT+ people and supporters were expected to take to the streets for the annual parade, with community groups, sports clubs, performers and companies taking part.
Ginger Johnson, the most recent winner of Ru Paul's Drag Race UK, was performing on one and spoke to Sky News before going on stage.
"It is deeply shameful that politicians think they can use LGBT+ issues to score points against each other," said Ginger.
"It's easy for them to rile people up with conversations like that [whether trans people should be allowed into single sex bathrooms]," she said.
"I don't think they understand the danger that puts especially the trans community in."
Dr Who star David Tennant was called "the problem" by Rishi Sunak this week after he told Women and Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch to "shut up" because of her views on trans rights.
"It's just really really sad," said Kelly Panayi who was watching the parade with her wife.
"Who cares what people are, what they want to do? As long as they're not hurting each other, why does it matter?"
With fancy dress as far as the eye could see, plenty of people were taking the opportunity to celebrate the LGBT+ community together.
"When I was younger, I was a bit afraid to be gay in public," said Graham Kenny from Dublin.
"Pride is a chance to express yourself and feel safe doing that because everyone is here."
It's been 52 years since London's annual Pride parade began, kicking off three years after the Stonewall riots.
Those riots were triggered by LGBT+ people being hauled out of the Stonewall Inn by police in New York which kickstarted the gay rights movement.
Ruby Andrews was visiting the UK from the US and came to watch the parade. "It's just fantastic to see how you all are celebrating Pride, the numbers of people, we don't see this number [in the US]."
The colourful annual event mixed celebration with protest.
PEOPLE TAKE PART IN THE PRIDE IN LONDON PARADE (TIM ANDERSON/PA)
PA WIRE
Tens of thousands of people marched, many in colourful costumes, in this year’s Pride parade in central London.
The annual event, which had the theme #WeAreEverywhere in 2024, is a demonstration of LGBTQ+ pride and solidarity which celebrates diversity and fosters inclusion.
The parade was kicked off at midday by London’s Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan and his wife, Saadiya Khan, who stood at the front alongside the London Assembly chairman Andrew Boff, a Conservative, who is gay.
The event culminated in a mass gathering at Trafalgar Square where attendees enjoyed musical acts as free, cold soft drinks were handed out to crowds that had spent the day in the warm sun.
Alena Firestone, a 21-year-old student from Washington DC, in the US, said: “I’ve been to pride marches in DC and Philadelphia, and I saw that they were doing one in London so I wanted to see what it was all about.”
Ms Firestone went to watch the parade with her friend, Tamara Whitehead, 22, who studies with her at University College London.
Ms Firestone said: “In Washington, you march within the parade. But here, by standing on the side, you get a better feel for it.”
Among the myriad groups represented on the parade were Tesco workers, a marching band who treated crowds to a popular brass-version of Toxic by Britney Spears, and Ishigaki Ju-Jitsu – the UK’s largest LGBT+ martial arts club.
As the parade went down Piccadilly, spectators and participants danced and sang to loud pop music being pumped out of a Heart radio float.
Queers For Palestine marchers chanted “there is no pride in genocide” as they walked down Piccadilly.
The 50-person group held posters accusing Israel of genocide and condemning “pinkwashing” – the accusation that Israeli takes a progressive position on gay rights to improve its international reputation.
Asked why she wanted to march with the group, one young woman who did not want to be identified replied: “Free Palestine.”
Amran Khan, who did not want to give their age, said they were against pinkwashing.
Asked what they made of criticisms that Queers For Palestine ignore the limited gay rights within Palestinian society, they said: “I can’t speak because I’m not from there, but you have to be in a privileged position to ask that question.”
They said the group was getting a “very positive” reception from the crowd.
Another marcher, Tahir Kesai, said: “We decided to march because we think it’s important to be here. We’re too passionate about this cause not to participate.”
The 50-year-old from Windsor said: “Being gay means different things in different parts of the world.
“I don’t agree you have to be gay in a western way. I think people perceive it differently. I don’t think Israel is that gay friendly, either.”
Onlooker Wes, 42 and a GP from Surrey who did not want to give his surname, said he thought it was a “positive thing” that the group were part of the parade.
Ben, 44, a surgeon, also from Surrey, said: “Pride is a political event. It’s their freedom of speech.”
Christian counter-protesters gathered outside the parade reciting religious sermons criticising the march.
The group of seven men and one woman stood within a fenced off section adjacent to the route of the parade.
A middle-aged man addressed the parade through a loudspeaker and was met with jeers from marchers ridiculing him.
Beside the counter-protest was a cardboard cut-out of Jesus Christ holding a sign saying “I’m sorry about them” with an arrow pointing towards the group.
Jenny Watson, 32, organised an alternative gathering for lesbians separate from the Pride parade.
The group met by the Emmeline Pankhurst statue at 11am on Saturday to chant and discuss themes around “lesbian resistance”.
One of the chants included: “Lesbians, not queer, we march with no fear.”
Ms Watson, a town planner from Belfast, said: “We didn’t want to advertise it because we didn’t want to be ambushed. (Our event) was not a protest, it’s a celebration.”
She said: “I’ve been coming to Pride since I was 18 – then it was easy, simple and fun.
“But it’s been taken over. The last time I went was two years ago. Towards the end of the parade I noticed this bus full of men in kink outfits with ball gags. I thought, what has this become?
“I don’t feel that it represents lesbians any more. It’s not welcoming.
“They said we don’t respect their values, but what are their values? Men can be women, and women can be men?
“Stonewall (the LGBT campaign group set-up in 1989) was about presenting gay people as normal, but now it’s turned into a circus. It’s not about saying gay people are normal. Now, there’s people in the LGBT community who just want to be a bit different.”
This follows similar arrests of Just Stop Oil supporters
By Arthur Townend
SOCIALIST WORKER
Saturday 29 June 2024
LGBT+ people have marched for Palestine, but cops arrested them at London Pride (Picture: Guy Smallman)
Police arrested some 30 activists at the gigantic London Pride LGBT+ march, on Saturday. Their “crime” was to think about holding a protest.
Using recently passed repressive laws, police detained protesters before they took any action. A group of pro-Palestine activists planned to do a ‘die-in’ at the Pride march.
The group wanted to show solidarity with Palestine—and expose that London Pride is sponsored by companies complicit in Israel’s genocidal murder of Palestinians.
These firms include HSBC, which has £100 million invested in Caterpillar. Caterpillar makes bulldozers used to flatten Palestinian homes.
Lloyds bank and Starbucks are also corporate sponsors of Pride, both of which have links with Israel.
Those arrested had not acted. and they held no “die-in”.
The 2023 Public Order Act contains Serious Disruption Prevention Orders, which empower the police to intervene before individuals cause serious public disruption.
It enables the police to suppress protests before they start. A similar set of arrests took place earlier this week. Police raided meetings of Just Stop Oil (JSO) and the homes of the climate justice group’s supporters. They arrested 27 activists.
Cops seized JSO activists on suspicion of planning to cause widespread disruption at airports during the summer holidays.
Police repression of pro-Palestine groups continues elsewhere. At the Cardiff Pride march last Saturday, Cymru Queers for Palestine staged a protest to oppose the Principality Building Society’s sponsorship of the event.
Principality Building Society is tied to Barclays, which has investments in companies complicit in genocide.
South Wales Police, who were marching in support of Cardiff Pride, “grabbed, dragged and brutalised” peaceful protesters, Cymru Queers for Palestine said.
The arrests at London Pride and of JSO activists show a clear escalation of police repression. It’s a disgusting way of suppressing those fighting for climate action and challenging imperialism. There must be resistance.
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