A report has been released today showing that the clear majority of Sydney’s LGBTQIA+ community does not want police marching at Pride events – particularly the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (SGLMG).
Earlier this year, pressure was placed on SGLMG after a largely negative report was released about the NSW Police‘s “aggressive and intense” policing at Mardi Gras, as well as the community’s heartbreak after former NSW Police Senior Constable Beau Lamarre-Condon was charged with the murder of Jesse Baird and his boyfriend Luke Davies in February this year.
After pressure from community groups like Pride in Protest, SGLMG agreed to seek community consultation on the issue of cops attending Mardi Gras and LGBTQIA+ events.
The result of this community consultation was released today, and shows a clear majority of LGBTQIA+ people in NSW do not agree with police participating in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.
54% of the respondents to the survey said they believed the police should not march in Mardi Gras.
The Board of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras will now put a motion to the membership of SGLMG at the 2024 AGM in December, to stop police floats participating in the parade.
Luc Velez, who is a Pride in Protest Member and SGLMG Board Director, (although speaking in a personal capacity rather than as a spokesperson of the SGLMG Board), says, “the qualitative and quantitative results of the consultation are clear – our community doesn’t want the police to march”.
“The community town halls heard story after story about how queer people feel unsafe around police. People spoke about police using slurs, of them not taking sexual assault victim-survivors seriously because they were queer, and of police deliberately misgendering and deadnaming people in custody.
“Mardi Gras strives to be an inclusive space but allowing police in has led to the exclusion of countless victims of police violence, people impacted by Blak deaths in custody, and many sex workers, activists, people who use drugs, and queer and trans people.
“This year must be the year Mardi Gras chooses to prioritise the inclusion of victims of police violence, over the institution responsible for ongoing harm to our community,” he says.
In a statement to Star Observer, Mardi Gras said,
“The consultation was something the community asked for and the SGLMG Board facilitated a safe space for the community to have open discussions on this important topic. The resulting report and AGM motion reflect those community discussions.
“The Board encourages everyone to take the time to read the report and come to the AGM informed. We understand this is a difficult issue, and people feel strongly on both sides, but it’s essential that we continue to engage in respectful and thoughtful conversations as we move forward.”
You can read the full report here.