There are few demonstrations more joyful to take part in than Pride. Rainbows, glitter, confetti, a central message that is one of love makes it’s difficult for a march about local taxation to live up to. Nevertheless, the seriousness of what Pride stands for never entirely disappears under the sparkles.
‘Pride was always a protest’ has been a necessary message at celebratory LGBTQ+ events – a reminder of the radical origins of Pride amongst the increasingly corporate co-opting of the equality movement.
Pride was born in a bar and so was never likely to grow up to be well behaved. The Stonewall riots ignited on 28 June 1969 when police raided the Stonewall Inn, a New York gay bar, brutally beating and arresting customers, who then fought back hard. Gay men, lesbians, trans people and their allies all played their part in three nights of protest and unrest, out of which came the Gay Liberation Front, and a march for gay rights on the anniversary of the riots became the first Pride event.
A decision to commemorate it a year later set in place the beginnings of a movement that has seen Pride marches take place all over the world.
In Scotland, where same-sex sexual activity between men was illegal until 1980, Pride was first marked in Edinburgh in 1988. Since then Pride events have blossomed across the country with marches held in towns as diverse as Hamilton and Stornoway, Oban and Elgin, Stranraer and in Shetland.
There have been protests around Pride events this year, but mostly these have been organised by LGBTQ+ people, and taken aim at corporate sponsorship, particularly around firms accused of supporting genocide in Palestine. In Grampian and Glasgow there has been opposition to the presence of climate polluters and to the increasing commercialisation of the event.
Worryingly however, this year’s Arran Pride went ahead in May after flags and banners along the route in Brodick were ripped down the night before and dumped on the beach Similarly, there have been fears for the future of Pride in Durham in England, where Reform took control of the local council. Fortunately, the event took place with organisers stating that the march will continue with or without council support. In Northern Ireland this year, Ballymena’s first ever Pride march was held on 28 June, in the face of the recent horrifying racist violence in the town.
Perhaps the place this year where we’ve most clearly seen both the need for Pride, and people’s vehement determination to defend it, is in Budapest. The far right government in Hungary, under the Prime Minister Viktor Orban, has banned gay marriage and adoption, whilst effectively banning discussion in schools of the existence of gay people.
This year Orban also outlawed Pride, but the city of Budapest decided it would not accept that attack on their freedom of assembly. An estimated 200,000-strong, Budapest Pride 2025 was bigger and braver than ever. However, there are fears that despite the massive success of the event, participants may still face repercussions.
In multiple countries in Europe, far right governments are now proposing measures which reverse freedoms for LGBTQ+ people. Pride may be not just a protest but a major battle front against repression and dictatorship. We wouldn’t expect to see corporate sponsors so keen to sign up for a float on that, so it pays to be clear from the outset – Pride is for people, not for profit.
Jo Harvie
Jo Harvie is a socialist of long standing who has lived abroad for several years before returning to Scotland and re-connecting with Socialists for Independence.