Words by Smiley Team
Pride in London celebrated its 50th anniversary this year, led by LGBT+ veterans from the Gay Liberation Front. These seasoned campaigners have witnessed Pride evolve from a small march in 1972 to a national celebration attended by more than a million people.
As they marched, the veterans chanted slogans from the original event: “Two, four, six, eight, gay is just as good as straight. Three, five, seven, nine, Lesbians are mighty fine!” They also called out: “We're here, we're queer and we’ll never disappear!”
Walking among them, the campaigner, Peter Tatchell, relished the festive atmosphere. He tells Smiley News: “For the entire length of the march, we were cheered and applauded every inch of the way.”
This warm reception from the crowds may be commonplace at Pride today. But for Peter and the other veterans, it was a different case when they started campaigning.
“In 1972, we were backpedalling to overcome the internalised homophobia of many LGBT+ people,” he explains. “They believed we were sick, sinful, abnormal, and unnatural. That's one of the reasons why so few people turned up - they didn't feel good about themselves.”
