Why pride matters: celebrating visibility, equality, and community

Author: Geraldine Achieng, business development manager, LGBT Foundation 

Pride events are powerful and multifaceted celebrations that play a crucial role in promoting visibility, acceptance, and equality for the LGBTQ+ community. Not only do we commemorate the history of the LGBTQ+ rights movement, which honours the struggles and achievements of those who fought for equality, but we also celebrate the rich diversity within the LGBTQ+ community, including various sexual orientations, gender identities, and cultural backgrounds. 

'Do we need a literal song and dance around one’s identity?' is a question thrown out often. Well to put some perspective into the Importance of Pride, the National LGBT Survey found that 68% of LGBTQ+ people still feel unsafe holding hands in public. That was 5 years ago, and fast forward to the present, we’re currently facing the highest rate of hate crime in the UK against LGBTQ+ individuals, particularly within our trans communities. Pride events provide a platform for LGBTQ+ individuals to express their identities openly and proudly, which is crucial for self-acceptance and their mental health. Pride offers safe spaces where LGBTQ+ individuals connect, share experiences, and find support. These events crucially help in building and strengthening support networks, reducing feelings of isolation and loneliness. Only love exists at pride, and every individual deserves to know unconditional love.

Local (town and parish) councils play a significant role in supporting pride to create a more inclusive and supportive environment that fosters a sense of belonging and acceptance for the LGBTQ+ community. Here are some steps that can really help towards unification.

Organise and support local pride events

Host Pride events, parades, festivals, and other events that celebrate the LGBTQ+ community. Creating safe public spaces for events in places such as parks and community centres for LGBTQ+ events and gatherings also fosters support networks for the community. Collaborating with local LGBTQ+ organisations to host workshops, seminars, and cultural events can always be beneficial.

Raise awareness to empower LGBTQ+ communities

Actively celebrate pride by flying the rainbow flag on council buildings, lighting up landmarks in rainbow colours, and promoting local pride-related activities. Launching education and awareness campaigns to educate the community about LGBTQ+ issues, history, and rights will bring together allies alike. It’s vital to actively using inclusive language in all council communication! Using inclusive language promotes messages of acceptance and support. It’s all about understanding identities, having inclusive conversations and allyship in the right way.

Implement diversity training

This is less of a consideration and more of a non-negotiation. It’s okay to acknowledge that we don’t know what we don’t know! It’s so important to move beyond tokenism and embrace the transformative power of education and awareness. Investing in organisational training really helps to navigate things like language and definitions. It’s when you start to critically engage with language, that you acknowledge its power. The use of preferred pronouns is an issue which has society divided. But it’s simply language evolving, for both allies and the LGBTQ+ community. Mistakes are inevitable, but the intent to learn is proactive. The LGBT Foundation has been running our CPD-accredited training academy for organisations, and pride in practice as an accreditation and social prescribing scheme for 14 years now. The sheer difference in primary care experiences LGBTQ+ communities report to us is why we reinforce the importance of education. 

Inclusive representation and visibility 

Spotlighting the achievements and contributions of LGBTQ+ individuals enforces that sense of belonging in the community and promotes local visibility. It’s a priority to develop policies that protect the rights of LGBTQ+ individuals, including anti-discrimination measures particularly in housing assistance, mental health support, employment, and youth services. Further advocating for LGBTQ+ rights at higher levels of government and supporting legislation that promotes equality and inclusivity is key for stakeholders aiming to be strong allies. Representation will also be key too: encouraging and support LGBTQ+ individuals to run for council positions and participate in local governance truly empowers LGBTQ+ communities.

Pride events create a sense of solidarity among the LGBTQ+ community, highlighting the fight for equality. We are privileged to exist visibly, as in far too many countries LGBTQ+ rights are still heavily suppressed. So for pride season, celebrate loudly, and celebrate proudly!

The following blog post is for informational purposes only and should not be considered professional or legal advice. The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the National Association of Local Councils. Any links to external sources included in this blog post are provided for convenience and do not constitute endorsement or approval of those websites' content, products, services, or policies. Therefore, readers should use discretion and judgment when applying the information to their circumstances. Finally, this blog post may be updated or revised without notice.