Why I Left Pride

Last month I resigned as Director of Communications at Pride in London.

I’ve volunteered at Pride for seven years, working my way up the organisation until I was managing the incredibly talented volunteers in the communications team. I’d often work upwards of 20 hours a week for Pride during the evenings and at weekends, fitting my volunteering around my day job.

Organising in the pride movement was important to me. Pride in London is one of the most visible LGBT+ organisations in the country. It gives LGBT+ people a vital platform and a space to be themselves.

However, I’m saddened to say that I’ve lost all confidence in the leadership’s ability to successfully address the adversities faced by our multi-faceted communities.

As custodians of the pride movement we must be willing to disrupt the cycle of discrimination faced by LGBT+ communities. To be clear, that means we must be prepared to not only state our values but uphold them when it matters.

Within the leadership, there is an unfortunate reluctance to accept that the liberation of LGBT+ people must be coupled with the fight against sexism, ableism, racism and other forms of unacceptable discrimination. This reluctance has been evident through a series of decisions taken by Pride in London’s leadership. These decisions are detrimental to all our communities but in particular to Black LGBT+ people.

I’ve also personally witnessed the leadership’s insistence on ignoring Black voices in our communities and amongst our own volunteers when they speak up and speak out. I cannot and will not condone Pride in London’s insistence on finding reasons to look the other way.

During my time at Pride, alongside many other people of colour, I have challenged the organisation’s endemic lack of diversity and inclusion. Pride’s lack of commitment to diversity has shown itself in countless ways.

As custodians, the organisation has a responsibility to protect communities and not to cause harm to those within it. When any group that wishes to march in the parade applies or associates with the pride movement, it must be unequivocally clear that their actions cannot be evidenced as having an overwhelmingly negative effect on any parts of our communities, irrespective of goodwill or other commendable work.

It’s an unavoidable truth that allowing any organisation to take part in the parade, provides an endorsement for an organisation that values all LGBT+ people.

In the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests and George Floyd’s death, I found it hurtful and infuriating that Pride was prepared to publicly commit to anti-racism but to date is unable to evidence any meaningful action.

Many Black volunteers have spoken out against Pride’s lack of diversity. Many Black volunteers have also left, unable or unwilling to keep fighting within an organisation where they didn’t feel their voices were valued, respected or heard.

It cannot be right, that Black voices continue to experience indifference to their plight and more often than not, a hostile environment.

Fighting racism isn’t easy. Just look at the backlash received by ITV, the National Trust, Barnado’s and Sainsbury’s last year, but it is the right thing to do.

As one of the most senior Black volunteers at Pride, I felt it was incumbent on me to make sure that the most marginalised communities were represented in our work. Calling on an organisation to take us, Black communities and our humanity seriously was exasperating and in the end, I had to prioritise my own mental health and wellbeing.

I personally led our work developing policy that ensured our partnerships and associations were viewed through an intersectional lens, claiming that the organisation can only move forward if it fights for everyone in its communities. Pride signed a Queers against Racism pledge stating it would be “active in politically supporting Black liberation movements, communities, organisations, activists and initiatives regardless of whether they are LGBTQIA+ specific because we must fight for the liberation of all”.

But policies and pledges are meaningless if they are just words and are not backed by action.

Pride has shown that it is capable of acting quickly. When a magazine associated with the organisation published a transphobic article, within hours, the board issued a swift, unequivocal condemnation. I am disappointed that Pride are unable to respond to racism with the same vim.

The continued defensiveness of the Board leadership, their slow speed of progress and their unwillingness to be a true force for change are just some of the frustrations that led to me leaving the organisation. I believe that Pride can change. Since I arrived in 2013, there have been some changes in policy and culture, but harmful behaviours remain commonplace, despite countless opportunities to reform and show genuine support. It remains apparent that some within the organisation just don’t want to change, despite stating otherwise.

Many organisations have been inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement as a catalyst for change – for thinking how they can do things differently for their Black beneficiaries. If there was ever going to be a moment for renewed energy and excitement in listening to Black LGBT+ voices, it should be now.

With this in mind, I believe it is time to interrogate the model of delivery for the pride movement but in the meantime new leadership is needed to see through a vision for a Pride in London that better serves all parts of our LGBT+ communities.

Change is needed. And if not now, when?