I should start by owning up that I haven't been to a pride festival myself... yet. I'm really looking forward to going but in the meantime, my colleague Chloe Brant helped me with this article to give their perspective on what a pride festival means to the LQBTQ+ community and our thoughts on the meaning for society as a whole. 

For those who don't know, Manchester Pride is an annual pride festival, parade and event held in Manchester city centre over the bank holiday weekend on 26 to 29 August 2022. It's a four-day extravaganza of a wide variety of events with something for everyone, including the Manchester Pride Parade, celebrating the LGBTQ+ community with a march through the Mancunian streets to the cheers of tens of thousands of supporters. 

The Manchester Pride Festival organisers call it a 'party as a protest'. Yes, it's a party (and an awesome one I hear!) but it's so much more than that. There's a human rights forum, which brings together prominent activists and thought-leaders to discuss the challenges that continue to face LGBTQ+ people today, and what we as individuals can do to bring about political and social change. There's a candlelit vigil to remember those affected by HIV/AIDS and persecuted. The vigil is the culmination of the whole event, giving an opportunity to stand together in a united front to recognise the challenges faced by the LGBTQ+ community, even still today. Here in the UK, the LGBTQ+ youth community are increasingly experiencing bullying, self-harm and a rise in anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes.

As an Equality Diversity and Inclusion group at Anthony Collins Solicitors, we wanted to mark the event and talk about the wider meaning, beyond the party side many people might think of first. This isn't a closed event for one group - it's something everyone can take part in and learn from to be a truly inclusive society. As a firm, we did a mini pride event of our own a few weeks ago. In true lawyer style we went competitive with a quiz. The round on LGBTQ+ celebrities, colourful flags, bunting and a buzz around the whole room made it a great event for everyone. Maybe try hosting your own mini pride event in your workplace?

All the details about the Manchester Pride events are here, including the link to buy tickets for the Gay Village Party. The rest of the events are free.

Enjoy!