Sadiq Khan urged to reform “corporate and commercial” Pride in London

An open letter from 14 leading members of the LGBTQ+ community demanding Pride in London reform has been sent to the Mayor of London.

The letter, sent on 18 October, includes nine demands for change with the goal of a successful 50th anniversary Pride event being delivered in 2022.

Peter Tatchell, an LGBTQ+ rights activist and director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, is one of the letter’s signatories who helped organise the UK’s first Pride march in 1972 and has marched in every Pride London parade since that year.

He said: “We are urging the Mayor to take action, given that Pride in London is no longer abiding by its contract and has lost the trust and confidence of much of the LGBTIQ community. I hope the Mayor will meet us.

“Our nine demands are a bid to fix the problems with Pride in London. They are a compilation of concerns expressed by a wide cross section of the LGBTIQ community.

“We do not claim to have all the answers. We see this letter as a catalyst for change. I hope it will generate a much-needed debate within our community about who runs Pride, how it is run and Pride’s future character and direction. We welcome others contributing ideas.

“The successful ‘Reclaim Pride’ march on 24 July shows there is a yearning for change, in particular for a truly inclusive community-based Pride and a Pride that is both a celebration and a protest for LGBTIQ human rights.”

The letter’s nine demands range from “an inquiry into the allegations of racism and bullying” to scrapping the wristband requirement.

Its signatories include current and former organisers of Pride in London and its Community Advisory Board.

“We the undersigned believe that the Mayor of London’s office should act now to demand the removal of the current board of directors of London LGBTIQ Community Pride CIC (Pride in London or PiL) and their replacement by a new team representative of, and accountable to, the whole LGBTIQ community,” the letter reads.

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