Pride
The spirit of 1972 lives in todays generation.
2022 is a landmark year forBritains LGBTQ+ communityas it marks 50 years of UK Pride.
But its also a significant year to look back at all of what the LGBTQ+ movement has achieved.
Tatchell points out that many young men were still treated as criminals for sleeping with other men.
The first Pride rally was deemed such a success that the GLF decided to make it an annual event.
“By the second or third Pride, we knew it was here to stay,” Tatchell recalls.
“So there was this real collective consciousness that we had to commemorate people we had lost.
We were also very angry and wanted to make people aware of what was happening because of HIV/AIDS.”
Titled Cardiff Mardi Gras, it was created after a spate of homophobic hate crimes in the city.
Cardiff Mardi Gras has also blossomed into an annual event, and was renamed Pride Cymru in 2014.
However, co-founder Sarah Savage says growing the event year-on-year has never really been an objective.
“What we do is a bit different from many other Pride festivals,” Savage explains.
Among the thousands who attended were Tatchell and Opoku-Gyimah.
“Nearly everyone’s doing this voluntarily.
We’re all from the LGBTQ+ community, and we’re all trying our best.”
Pride in London is a case in point.
Nevertheless, it remains a volunteer-led body run on a not-for-profit basis.
We aim to raise and allocate much more over the next decade."
