We wonder what the LGBTQI+ marchers from the UK’s first Pride march, held 52 years ago, would think about queer lives today in 2024.
Looking back to 1972, would the marchers have considered that the UK would still be a place where hate crime against LGBTQI people was common? Would the people who identified as trans at the march think their own existence would still be subject to undue scrutiny and debate? Could they have imagined that Cher, the iconic Shoop Shoop chanteuse, would have just released her 27th album?
Just as marchers weaved through Piccadilly and Soho in 1972, we recognise that the journey towards progress and equality for the LGBTQI+ community has been similarly nonlinear. Whilst legal milestones, such as equal marriage, have been lauded as evidence of progress, there is growing inequality among people living queer lives. This includes challenges experienced by queer migrants and transgender youth navigating a healthcare system that is often ill-equipped to meet critical needs. This underscores the invaluable role of grassroots organisations in supporting LGBTQI+ individuals nationwide.
The Henry Smith Charity is proud to support incredible organisations across the UK, with lived experience driving most of their work. Rainbow Migration provides practical and emotional support for LGBTQI+ people seeking asylum. As well as access to legal advice and support with navigating the asylum system, a crucial part of their offer is peer support groups and wellbeing activities to enable their service users to build community with other LGBTQI+ people.
“Rainbow migration has saved my life! They offer more than help and guidance. They give you love, compassion, and respect. They made me realise I am worth something. I felt so important to them… I have my life and my power! It has been an incredible journey.”
– Rainbow Migration Trans Support Group Member
Similarly grounded in lived experience, Proud2Be supports LGBTQIA+ adults and young people across Devon, providing one-to-one and group sessions that build community and combat rural isolation. One of the organisation’s greatest strengths is the long-term engagement it provides and its strong ethos of peer support, with many young people engaging with the organisation for several years and even returning as volunteers and staff members.
‘’As a teenager, I started going to a youth group that had a huge impact on my life. At the time I was struggling with school and had a difficult relationship with my family and this youth group felt like the only safe space I had where I could be myself.
The youth workers at this group empowered me to take part in the community beyond the youth group and gave me opportunities to develop skills I wouldn’t have otherwise, including public speaking, delivering training, planning projects, and advocating for myself.
The positive impact of this support and experience is something that I will continue to feel for the rest of my life.’’
– Alex, Proud2Be Youth Group Participant
This Pride month, we are championing our brilliant partners and the vital work they are doing both for queer communities today and in the future whilst acknowledging that the sector needs more funds, allyship, and support for structural change. Much as the 1972 marchers marched for a better future for LGBTQI+ people, we too support queer communities across the nation now and to come.
This June, the organisations we support march:
- So that migrants to no longer experience additional scrutiny and barriers in accessing sanctuary due to their LGBTQI+ identity.
- For equal parenting rights for LGBTQI+ families, including adoption and fertility treatment rights, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity
- For funders to be committed to justice and equality for all sections of the LGBTQI+ community.
The first Pride march sparked a new era of civil rights for people with LGBTQI+ identities. Today, our community celebrates and protests across all four nations, from Norwich to Dundee.
What will you be marching for this year?
Authors
Lydia Burton, Grants Manager, Tom Cowie, Grants Co-ordinator and Ellen Rowland, Communications Manager