Friends celebrate London Pride 2015 in the sun

Friends joined London Pride 2015 on 27 June

Friends turned out in strength for London Pride on Saturday 27 June.

Central London Quakers were joined by members of a number of Meetings, including Glasgow, Golders Green, Kingston, Oxford, Richmond, Sutton, Watford, Westminster and Winchmore Hill. Before the parade, some twenty Friends gathered for a Meeting for Worship in Paddington Street Gardens.

Westminster Meeting House’s library was open for tea between three and six pm, welcoming a good number of marchers and passersby, Quaker Lesbian and Gay Fellowship (QLGF) member Roy Vickery told the Friend. ‘This continues a tradition which was started many years ago, and has become part of the Pride experience for marchers who seek tranquillity after the lengthy and often noisy parade’, he added.

London Link members marched alongside QLGF. Michael Wood explained that as they paraded Young Quakers handed out stickers featuring a ‘rainbow Q’, prompting ‘lots of cheering in support of Quakers’.

London Linker Nathan told the Friend: ‘The reason I came is in the name really. It’s about showing that Quakers and all the other groups are proud to accept and support people of all sexualities’.

Niamh, also parading with London Link, said: ‘I went to Pride to feel a bigger part of the huge and welcoming LGBTQ+ community, and being surrounded by so many allies and LGBTQ+ people made us feel a greater pride for who we are’.

The theme of this year’s march was ‘Pride Heroes’. Groups marching included Compassion in Care, whistleblowers from Yarl’s Wood detention centre, and supporters of Chelsea Manning, the United States army whistleblower.

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