thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--My First Pride: Billy Porter, Courtney Act, Munroe Bergdorf And Other Stars Share Their Inaugural Pr

My First Pride: Billy Porter, Courtney Act, Munroe Bergdorf And Other Stars Share Their Inaugural Pride Experiences

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For obvious reasons, Pride is going to look a little different in 2020 compared to other years.
But just because for most of us the celebrations will be confined to our own homes, that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be able to fly our rainbow flags any less proudly than usual.
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To mark the occasion, we spoke to a host of LGBTQ celebrities about their first time attending a Pride celebration, which proved that no one’s experience is ever really the same as anyone else’s...
RuPaul’s Drag Race finalist and Celebrity Big Brother winner
Joseph Sinclair
“My first Pride was Sydney Mardi Gras. What was so amazing about it was that I was a young queer person, who’d only really fraternised in venues with people of a similar age, similar background, similar story, and when I went along to Mardi Gras it was this massive celebration of people. I think in my local gay bar I got one colour of the rainbow, and when I went to Mardi Gras it was the whole rainbow.
“I just remember being there among leather daddies and butch dykes and lipstick lesbians and trans people and people in wheelchairs and indigenous queer people, and I vividly remember that being the take-away, the diversity that I got to experience. For me, Pride is about the coming together of all of the facets of the community and celebrating at one time.”
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TV presenter and journalist
Anna Richardson
“My first Pride was in 1996, in London, and I would have been 26. I was living with my boyfriend at the time, but I’ve always been very much a part of the LGBTQI community. I’ve always had a lot of gay friends, and within my family there’s always been a lot of close associations within the community as well, so it’s always been something really close to my heart.
“A group of my lesbian friends came down from the Midlands to do the march, and I was like ‘I’m coming with you’. So we marched through London together. It was amazing, and I think that year we ended up on Clapham Common, where there was a big sort of music festival. I seem to remember ending up there, I was quite trollied at the time.
“I always say to people I don’t label myself, I’ve always had relationships with men, and I’ve had fling-ettes with women, and now I live with a woman. We’ve been together for the last seven years. But I’m just me. And you love who you love, and that’s what’s important for me. Basically, shame kills. So for me, if you can go out and go out on a parade of celebration and remove stigma and shame, then that’s what it’s all about.”
Pose actor and Broadway performer
Billy Porter
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“It was 1989, and I was spending the summer in New York. I was in a production of Joseph And The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, and the chorus boys invited me to Pride. I was 19, I didn’t really know… [what Pride was about]. I showed up in front of St Patrick’s, where it used to start back then – and it started there because it was a political march, and it meant something that we started in front of that church.
“I arrived a little bit late, the parade was beginning to move, my friend from the show saw me, grabbed me, threw a t-shirt over my head that said ‘Silence = Death’, and we started walking down Fifth Avenue chanting ‘Act Up, fight AIDS’. So that was my first Pride, and I was immediately an activist.
“And I’m so grateful that that was the time that I entered that space, because the importance of what we are seeing now, the galvanisation of people, who have come together in outrage... I have to tell you, for the last three and a half years, I was concerned that we as an entire society had been desensitised to the images that we see.
“One of the greatest tools of the civil rights movement as well as the LGBTQ and AIDS crisis movement was how they used the media to get their message, and it was because of the imagery that changed the public’s perception and created empathy. And I have been – within the last decade or more – really discouraged because, you know, social media has, up until this point, I feel, created a space where activism… people thought activism was largely about tweeting. Largely about having social media fights with people. And not getting out into the streets.
“Change doesn’t happen until the people put their bodies on the line. And the unfortunate part about that is that there will be blood. There has always been blood. It’s disingenuous to think that anything, any significant change happens, without a fight.
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“America was built on slavery, this country was stolen from the indigenous people who were already here. Nothing changes until the people put their bodies on the line. We are putting our bodies on the line again. We are going out and marching en masse every day in the middle of a pandemic. Something has shifted. And in the last few weeks I have felt very inspired and encouraged, because it’s the kids who have to lead.
“The civil rights movement – they were all in their twenties, you know? They were young people. And it’s the young people who have to take up the mantle. So now, in this moment, the kids understand that this government is trying to take their basic, normal, human rights away. And they’re engaged. And that gives me hope.”
Singer-songwriter
Steve Jennings via Getty Images
“I think I was 16. It was in Helsinki, in my home country, and it was a pretty small Pride, but it was just something new that felt very free and very safe. After that, I think I’ve been to Pride every year, wherever I am in the world. And they’re all very different. In Finland, it’s more about the small community – it’s getting bigger, but it’s still very small compared to LA. There are no big stars coming to perform, it’s more about ‘let’s meet at the park and have a great time with friends’, where in LA it’s a festival, it’s huge.
“They’re totally different experiences, but I love both of them, and I hope it continues to get bigger and bigger, because I think Pride should be celebrated.”
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Doctor and This Morning’s medical expert
David M. Benett via Getty Images
“My first proper Pride was London Pride, about five or six years ago now. I’d never been to a Pride before that, and I got to be part of ITV’s Pride bus, so I was in the actual parade. And it was just an amazing time.
“To see the reaction of the millions of people in the crowd as the parade went through, there was no experience like it. I don’t use this term lightly, but it was magical, it felt like I was floating on air… weirdly, I’ve never felt love quite like that. Just between ourselves, that we are all in the parade together, but also from the public, it was amazing. And it was the first of many more.”
Radio 1 DJ
David M. Benett via Getty Images
“I don’t remember a specific first time, but I do remember Manchester being my first experience of Pride, and feeling so accepted and so encouraged to be myself. Manchester Pride for me is like my home Pride, even though I’ve been lucky enough to go to a few around the UK, that’s the one that means home to me.”
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RuPaul’s Drag Race UK winner
Ben Mak
“I was probably about 19. It was either Manchester or Liverpool, but whichever it was, it was amazing. You know, you can walk down Canal Street and feel like you’re at home, and it’s a safe space, but I think Pride is something that, until you’ve experienced it, you’ll never understand what it actually is.
“You know, you’re in a sea of people who are just like you, or they’re supporting you. It’s just an amazing day to have a ball, have a drink and have some good entertainment – and show everyone that we’re here and we’re proud.”
Strictly Come Dancing judge
Dave J Hogan via Getty Images
“The first time I went to Pride I couldn’t believe how many people there were, that were of my persuasion. Mardi Gras in Australia was the first time I’d ever seen a collection of people together waving rainbow flags, and it made me feel fantastic because it gave us a sense of freedom, and a right to belong. And that was way back, I was going to those back in the early 80s. So it was amazing actually, especially at the time that AIDS had come out, and that was a huge drama back in the early 80s.
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“And it’s a great name for it, Pride, because it does make you feel proud. It’s amazing that because of all those marches, because of all the demonstrations, because of people being openly gay and out and proud, we’re able to get married and we’re able to live what I’d call, in inverted commas, ‘normal’ lives. And be part of a community rather than being disapproved of and ostracised.”
Model and activist
Luke Nugent
“My first Pride was Brighton Pride, actually. I’d just moved to Brighton for university, I was 19, and I had no idea what Pride really was at that point. I’m a bit of a country bumpkin, I grew up in the Essex countryside in the middle of nowhere, and I had absolutely no exposure to anything gay, really, apart from in magazines.
“So when I moved to Brighton, it was very much everything all at once. And the first Pride I went to, it was like the veil was pulled back and I realised the community is really big. And that just made me feel really excited about being LGBT.
“When I was growing up in the 90s, things were extremely homophobic, so to have that place that felt extremely safe with lots of other LGBT people just felt like an amazing opportunity to be myself and embrace everything that the community is about. I had no idea what to expect, but I remember calling my mum at the end of it – obviously I’d had a little bit to drink – but I was just like ‘mum, it’s so amazing!’.”
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Years & Years frontman
zz/KGC-138/STAR MAX/IPx
“The first Pride I ever went to was in 2008 or 2009, and it was in London and I went to Soho square. And I was really terrified, because I wasn’t really properly out and there were all these half-naked men dancing and I didn’t know where to look.
“I just remember being blown away by how exciting and glamorous it was and how Soho Square was just like the craziest, wildest place in the world to me at that time.”
Singer-songwriter
Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP
“The first Pride event I actually went to was Madrid Pride. I played a show there, so I kind of jumped in at the deep end – it was ridiculous, playing in front of 40,000 people in the middle of Madrid. It was absolutely mental, me and my bandmate Louis – everyone in my band is gay, that’s not even on purpose, it just kind of happened like that – we were so buzzed that we were in Madrid playing a show for Pride. It was fantastic, so warm and so fun.
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“But my guitar broke halfway through the set so I couldn’t play Daughter. Thirty seconds went by where I was playing my guitar, and that’s a long time when you’re on stage, so in the end I just said ‘fuck it I can’t waste any more time’, so I did it acapella. And the crowd was so nice – I was so scared, but they all put their phones in their air and helped me through the song, it was the best first Pride experience ever.”
RuPaul’s Drag Race winner, activist and star of We’re Here
Bob The Drag Queen Jacob Ritts
“I was in high school, and my mom took me to Pride in Atlanta – my mom is queer as well – and it was really interesting, because I wasn’t out, but I was at Pride, and so it was kind of a secret joy. I was looking at all of these people who I thought were basically doing something I could never do, that’s what it felt like. It felt like I was looking into a mirror, but the mirror was foggy. Like I could never get to the other side. But it was also really an inspiration as well.
“And then my first Pride post-coming out, I think it was in Atlanta again, and that was me and my friends from college, we went to the parade and the festivities in general… but that one was messy, I was a college kid, that one was very messy. It was fun, but it was… messy.”
X Factor finalist and Eurovision singer
HOLLIE ADAMS/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
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“I think it was around 2012 or 2013, and it was in Helsinki. At that time Helsinki Pride was still quite little, we had maybe 10,000 people participating and marching, and I was already a well-known singer in Finland, but I wasn’t out yet. So for me, it was a bit nerve-racking and exciting to be marching there, and not be out.
“And it’s so funny, because it has changed so much. In 2012, it was still only almost LGBT people who were marching, and nowadays, everybody is marching. Last year, there were 100,000 people marching in Helsinki, so it has grown so much, in such a small amount of time.”
Musician and internet personality
Karwai Tang via Getty Images
“I remember going to Pride in Dallas, Texas. I stumbled upon it accidentally, and I remember at first being really scared and fearful for our safety, because I was so afraid that someone was going to get a gun and attack people. But then I started feeling very free. It was the first time I remember feeling like no one was ever going to judge me.
“I was 16 years old, so it was the closest thing I’d ever felt that could be compared to a gay club, and it was such an awesome feeling. And now I love looking out at Pride events when I’m performing as an artist, seeing all the children there in strollers holding Pride flags. It gives me so much hope and sometimes makes me emotional, because it shows me that we’re heading in the right direction. Sometimes in this chaotic and crazy and scary world that we live in, we forget that even though we’re making baby steps, I feel like making a lot of baby steps in the direction that we need to go towards the right side of history. And that makes me feel very confident and be able to breathe a sigh of relief for my future children and future grandchildren.”
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Author
Eivind-Hansen
“My first Pride would have been Brighton Pride 2004, and I had just moved down. I grew up in West Yorkshire and then went to university in Bangor, North Wales, which at that time didn’t have a Pride. The university barely had an LGBT society – in fact they added the ‘T’ while I was there, and it caused great, great scandal – but when I moved to Brighton it was like ‘oh my gosh, it’s going to be Pride weekend’. And everybody was treating it like Christmas. Like ‘oh my god, are you ready for Pride?’. And I was like, ‘I don’t really get it, what are you talking about?’.
“But from that year on, me and my friends in Brighton have always met at around the same spot in Brighton to watch the parade, sometimes we might do a bit of fancy dress or have a theme. And at that time, things were free, you’d follow the parade down to the park, and it was just the most amazing day out. It’s become a slightly different beast now, but we still go and watch the parade in the same spot every year.”
Model and singer
Getty Images
“The first time I went to Pride, I was 18 or 19, and I remember being happy to be out there with my friends, but also afraid, because I came from a very conservative background and what I was taught about the LGBT community was negative, and there are still things that I’m dealing with to this day.
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“It was New York City, I remember walking around, there was this huge Pride parade, and I could see everyone free and happy and celebrating, and we walked by a group of religious folks holding up signs saying, you know, ‘homos go to hell’ or whatever the case might be. And it felt like a darkness came over me. And I had to go home. So that’s what happened the first time.
“When this stuff is put into your head at a young age – that who you are is wrong – you question that a lot. And it took me a while to really say ‘you know what, this is who I am, your beliefs are your beliefs and that’s fine, but I’m going to live my life and I need to find happiness for myself’. So I did return the following year, and I had a fantastic time.
“Since then I’ve participated in Prides, I’ve marched in them, been on floats, and had a great time every single time. And since I’ve come out as a trans man, I’ve also had the opportunity to attend Prides in different states, and meet so many different people, and had the chance to perform, it’s been fantastic.
“So, the first time around was not too great... [but] following that, I was just like ‘F that, I’m going to go out and have a good time and be free to be me’.”
Singer-songwriter
V. Tony Hauser
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“The first real official Pride I went to was in New York, around the early 1990s, and it was pretty dramatic. I was with some friends, and we went down to the piers, which at that time were very decadent, it was kind of the Paris Is Burning period, and it was very exciting.
“And I think at one point, when the fireworks went off on the Hudson river, I pierced my ear with like a safety pin or something, as a kind of emblem of that evening. It was a lot of fun.”
Singer-songwriter
Charlie Cummings
“I think I must have been 15 or so, I went with a bunch of my friends, and I remember just being so blown away by the sense of community. I think I just felt very uplifted, I felt part of something, and it was a really beautiful time. And the weather was amazing, as well, and I remember making lots of friends, it was lovely.
“And I remember the outfits, they were amazing, I remember feeling very underdressed, and just everyone being so kind and open to each other and people giving me compliments, getting into conversations in the middle of the street, it was beautiful.”
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Singer-songwriter
Atlantic Records
“My first time at Pride was in LA, and I had to be around 21. It was nuts, it just felt like one big party, honestly. I ended up going with a few friends of mine, and we linked up with even more friends when we got there, and it was just an incredible vibe, because you’re surrounded by all of these people that are celebrating themselves, or their loved ones, or just strangers that they’re admiring for being so confident in who they are.
“And during Pride last year, I was travelling a lot, so I kept running into it. I was in New York, and then I went from New York to London where it was their Pride, so I was like, ‘OK, I’m here for it, I’m in the right place at the right time’.”
TV personality
Ken McKay/ITV/Shutterstock
“Oh god, I was at what was probably one of the first Prides in London. Zipper was a tiny shop in Camden Town that sold books, it was like Circus Of Books in LA, and we were on the Zipper float. We were all on it, there was me, [fellow drag queen] Regina [Fong] – Regina had just broken her leg, pissed coming out of Ally Pally – and I’d just come back from the Philippines... There’s a photo of us from that day, actually, and I’ve got tiny skin-tight little shorts on, and a mass of curly hair and a t-shirt. Reg is in an Air Force sort of jumpsuit to hide his plaster on his leg, and we’re all hanging pissed onto this float.
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“And it wasn’t a big Pride. It wasn’t like what it is now. And there was loads of abuse, as you went through the streets. Loads of abuse. There was no cheering or waving of rainbow flags, it was ‘fuck off you queers’, and the coppers snarling. And we snarled back, you can imagine, can’t you? It was good fun!
“But drag was never allowed at Pride. Me and Dave Lynne, I think we were the first… we were treated like pariahs, and I remember saying to Dave, ‘I’m going to kick off here, because who the hell has been raising thousands of pounds in pubs for the AIDS hospices and AIDS wards? The drag queens’. We used to do three or four benefits a week. Unpaid. Just to raise money, because those were the days when there was nothing in the hospitals, you know? And yet, we were still [not allowed]. That was a really bad period, I thought.
“So I remember when I first did the Pride, and thinking ‘Jesus, talk about fourth class citizen, here’. The American drag queens would come over and get on the mainstage, because they were sexy, from America. But the English ones, we worked in the tents. It was ages before they let Regina Fong on the mainstage, which I used to go mad over. I used to say ‘she’s so popular in the pubs, you don’t get it, do you?’.
“The last Pride I went to was the Amsterdam one last year. And that was smashing! I remember I was going back to who I was staying with, and I walked past the Amstel Tavern, where we used to work a million years ago. And then, a load of English guys came running out, shouting ‘stay and have a drink’, and I said ‘I’m goin’ home’. Anyway, five o’clock in the morning, I turned up, out of my mind. So that was fabulous.”
RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars finalist, actor and star of We’re Here
Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
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“My first time attending Pride, I had just moved to Dallas for college, and coming from my small town to being in a big city, I remember looking around and feeling like I actually belonged. It was so foreign to me, but such a beautiful reality.
“I was 18, and it was my first time seeing so many couples holding hands, kissing, living their lives out, and people around celebrating them. And us as a community. It was beautiful.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--Queer Politicians Make History Around The World

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Queer Politicians Make History Around The World
With every election, politics is getting more and more diverse.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--'Hire Better': BAME People On How To Fix The Broken Film And TV Industry

Little Britain, Fawlty Towers and Gone With The Wind were taken off streaming platforms for featuring racially insensitive content alongside a range of other former hits.
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But prominent Black, Asian and minority ethnic critics have stressed that TV executives never consulted them about the removal of the shows. And that has instigated a fresh debate around the merits and pitfalls of censoring old content.
The debate is age-old. Gone With The Wind was criticised by Black people for how it romanticised slavery as early as its release date in 1939, but the film ultimately became entrenched as an American classic. Its treatment is symbolic of how institutionalised racism has historically been excused by Hollywood when a film becomes a success.
Gone With The Wind has been a focus of the criticism over Black representation in classic film and TV. Silver Screen Collection via Getty Images
While films like Gone With The Wind feel racist and outdated, prominent Black voices largely agree that simply deleting shows isn’t the right way forward, may even be patronising, and misses the point of the Black Lives Matter movement entirely.
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Fluctuating messaging by TV executives suggests their initial actions to remove content may have been impulsive rather than the result of thoughtful conversations.
For example, the Fawlty Towers episode that was pulled by UKTV will now be reinstated with a message at the beginning signalling to viewers that the show contains content that feels outdated and that some may find offensive.
Amid the floundering, the question remains: should streaming platforms delete shows in light of continuing debates around equality?
The message from most culture experts HuffPost UK spoke with, those deeply embedded within the equality movement, is that removing these shows doesn’t help and isn’t the answer.
They say this is a movement to end systematic racism and fear that decisions to remove certain shows are made by privileged white people who don’t understand – or make any effort to understand – Black issues.
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They suspect a lack of diversity in media organisations has meant that BAME communities weren’t consulted about the decision to pull the shows – and that rather than their removal being a genuine attempt at promoting messages of equality and diversity, it is representative of media executives covering their backs.
Fawlty Towers was removed, then reinstated, from UKTV BBC
“I don’t know a single Black person who’s said: ‘Stop Fawlty Towers,’” the activist and writer Musa Okwonga tells HuffPost UK. Musa refers to the debate around cancelling TV shows as “an invented controversy”.
“It’s a non-issue,” he urges HuffPost UK. “It’s not real. No one’s having this conversation. Literally no one I’ve heard from has said: ‘Get rid of classic British comedy.’ No one’s said that. The thing we’ve said is: ‘Oh yeah, actually I never really found it that funny,’ but that’s the one person who’s actually watched or heard that show.”
Prominent actors, comedians and writers echo Musa’s fear that streaming platform executives and TV commissioners have missed the point.
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“What good will it do if we can no longer see Matt Lucas in blackface and Farage is still able to spread fear and hatred?” asks comedian Njambi McGrath, the winner of Hackney Empire New Act of the Year 2019 and author of Through The Leopard’s Gaze, a novel about racism and identity.
“If anything, simply deleting any apparently problematic programming feels like a slap in the face,” adds Ginnia Cheng, a comedian working with the BBC’s Writersroom sessions, designed to help the broadcaster produce more diverse content.
“Did the networks always know there was a problem with those programmes, but didn’t care enough to do anything about them? Or did they only just yesterday discover this thing called racism?”
At its broadest, the message is that executives have searched for a quick fix to a problem that will require significant heavy lifting to overcome. Homogeneously white boardrooms represent their lack of diversity in commissioning non-diverse programming, and until the breadth of British society is reflected at decision-making level, the white experience will feel centred at the expense of BAME cultural experiences.
So for change to permeate through to our TV and film offerings, we first need to diversify the workplace. Musa Okwonga’s message is “hire better, it’s not rocket science,” and he blames wilful ignorance for the lack of diversity.
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“It sounds cynical but a lot of this is quite wilful” - Writer Musa Okwonga
“Everyone who’s a producer or a commissioning editor is in their 40s or 50s, so you’ve got enough of a network by that point to ask for talent,” says Musa. “Everyone knows this – it sounds cynical but a lot of this is quite wilful.”
He relates the challenge of diversifying media offices to “looking for new flatmates.”
He urges: “It’s stressful, looking and searching – that diversity is work. It’s like moving house, and that’s stressful for a lot of people on a human level. But it means you don’t get situations like this.”
Njambi offers her method of diversifying as simply “treating all the applicants the same, looking at talent and creativity and not being drawn to the same Oxbridge pale males types”.
Another option for currently non-diverse teams is to hire consultants from BAME communities.
“If they were to engage with and consult us then we would advise them how to move forward in ways that are meaningful that will build trust and loyalty among their minority audiences rather than resentment and anger,” says Dr Deborah Gabriel, an academic specialising in race, gender, culture, media and communication.
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“The ultimate aim should be that Black people that are artistically portrayed in programmes don’t fall into the usual, go-to negative stereotype of a Black person – such as thugs or a criminal” - Sheryl Miller
Greater racial diversity within scriptwriters, producers and commissioners is not only more representative, but will naturally produce higher quality television shows and movies that draw on a range of different life experiences.
“The ultimate aim should be that Black people that are artistically portrayed in programmes don’t fall into the usual, go-to negative stereotype of a Black person – such as thugs or a criminal, or angry Black women and ‘sassy’ best friends,” argues diversity and inclusion specialist Sheryl Miller, author of Smashing Stereotypes – How To Get Ahead When You’re The Only _____ In The Room.
She calls for “fairer and more positive representation of Black people that subvert the tired, inaccurate and discriminatory stereotypes” and cites Love Island and Bo Selecta as two more problematic modern incarnations of stereotypical race representation on TV.
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I May Destroy You's Michaela Coel BBC/VARIOUS ARTISTS LTD AND FALKNA/LAURA RADFORD
The show uses lighting particularly suited to Black skin and presents an encouragingly three-dimensional Black lead in Coel’s Arabella, a date rape survivor who has made a success as a popular writer but struggles to manage the fallout of her hedonistic lifestyle.
It also introduces themes such as adultification, the process of young Black women and children being treated as more adult than their white counterparts, forced into stressful work and home life situations that should be managed by adults.
“Black women in dramas often serve to prop up main characters or become aspirational and advisory figures that save the day. Seeing a character who is eager to please and in a vulnerable state breaks down the ‘strong’ narrative forced onto Black women from childhood,” writes Chanté.
Sheryl Miller believes that more authentically diverse BAME voices exist on social media than they do on TV, and recommends white commissioners spend more of their time here, farming for ideas for their commissions.
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“Social media is a great barometer for what is popular because people ‘vote’ with their viewing time,” she explains.
“Black and Asian influencers like Patricia Bright in the UK, Jackie Aina in the US, Chloe Ting in Australia and Thuy Le in the UK are the types of individuals who are not represented in any shape or form in mainstream media – yet they are social media stars, and their content is far richer and more encompassing in nature than many of their white counterparts who tend to stick to the usual editorial peg of ‘beauty, boyfriends, ring and a bump.’”
The broad message is that executives should look to make progressive changes in their future commissioning rather than tinker with old content – although there is a small but strongly-formed network of individuals that disagree. They would rather executives “start” their commitment to equality and diversity by making a more literal commitment now: by deleting historically problematic shows from platforms.
“Outdated, racist and sexist messages that are harmful to the groups they portray should clearly be removed because they reinforce the notion of ‘supremacy’ and ‘less than’ – especially when those that are ‘less than’ are being ridiculed,” says Sheryl Miller.
Sheryl Miller believes historical racist content should be removed from platforms HuffPost UK
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She adds: “It’s only funny when the joke is not being made at your expense. Even shows made by Black Brits, such as The Real McCoy, which poke fun at African culture (as well as Caribbean culture) requires reviewing, in my opinion; the material rides off the back of discrimination that exists within the Black community, and has led to many young Africans feeling embarrassed by their culture and pretending to be Jamaican (‘Ja-fake-an’).”
Regardless of what becomes of the legacies of heritage content, their existence has instigated a greater debate about the perhaps more important question: what the future of British comedy and drama looks like in a new age of political activism.
“These shows have always been problematic and have always been challenged – it’s just that broadcasters were not willing to listen before.” surmises Dr Deborah Gabriel. “Now there is a public consciousness about the many levels on which racism pervades society including TV, there is an opportunity to dismantle it.”
The UK’s BAME communities and their allies are waiting – some patiently, some furiously – to find out what happens next.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--My Pride Anthems: Tayla Parx

My Pride Anthems: Tayla Parx

The coronavirus pandemic has changed everything, and that includes how we’re all celebrating Pride in 2020.
With huge public gatherings out of the question, we’re asking a range of LGBTQ celebrities and allies for their personal Pride anthems, to help us all get into the Pride spirit from lockdown.
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At some point in the last three years, you’ve definitely bopped to one of Tayla Parx’s hits, even without realising it.
Tayla Parx Joey James
In addition to her own music career (and seriously, pop fans should familiarise yourself with her solo songs now, if you aren’t already acquainted with her output), Tayla has penned huge tunes for music icons like Christina Aguilera, Janelle Monáe and, most notably, Ariana Grande, co-writing number one hits like 7 Rings and Thank U, Next.
As part of our My Pride Anthems series, Tayla told us about some of her favourite Pride bangers, including tunes from Lizzo and Frank Ocean...
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Lizzo – Truth Hurts
“I think that we’ve all had that moment, right? Whether it’s unrequited love or whether it’s an ex. Truth Hurts is such an empowering song, and I think that growing up queer and Black… we need to hear these types of songs, and I love that there are more artists, including some of the others that I’m going to name, [that are doing that].
This was a big song lyrically for me, like, I had just gone through a break-up, if you will, and I needed to hear that. And Lizzo is a homie, too. I just really respect what she does, and her craft. And so, when we went on tour together, it was the absolutely perfect combination, because we both sing about similar things in regards to loving yourself and being who you are. Those things are prevalent throughout both of our music.”
Frank Ocean – Chanel
“I love this song, line for line. Frank starts off the song like ‘my guy pretty like a girl and he got five stories to tell’, and that was something that I could relate to, when I’m dating guys, that makes sense. When I’m dating girls, on the other hand, [I relate to] when he says ‘I see both sides like Chanel’.
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“I loved that he was explaining different gender norms and saying, you know, he was exploring outside of himself, but also in his partners. The fact he was saying ‘I’m down to explore and to break these different gender norms’. I love Frank Ocean as an artist, I respect anybody who is able to put big concepts into a package of incredible music. The fact that you can take a serious topic like that, and still make it feel really good and relatable to a generation, that’s just powerful in itself, it’s incredible writing. And I think a massive reason why it reaches us is because of the fact it’s done so effortlessly.”
Unknown Mortal Orchestra – Multi-Love
“This song is funky, it’s a little Tame Impala-ish, it’s a little throwback-ish, it’s a little futuristic, you’ve just gotta check it out, it’s really dope.
“This is another artist that does exactly what Frank Ocean does, and they touch on a lot of serious topics. This song explores the boundaries within a relationship and how sometimes, one person has to lose out in the end, if you end up breaking up. And it was always just important for me to not limit my ideas of love to society’s ideas as to what’s acceptable and what’s quote-unquote ‘normal’, and in this song, he talks about that. This song is from 2015 and I still listen to it at least once a week.”
Tyler, The Creator and Frank Ocean – Where This Flower Blooms
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“The entire Flower Boy album is something that, like, I think the storyline was so relatable. I think anybody who – for instance, me, I’m bi and, sometimes it was unrequited love of a girl, and sometimes it was of a guy, and sometimes it was ‘we have to keep this a secret’, and sometimes… he touched on every single thing that I think most queer kids have gone through at one point or another, you know?
“To be able to hear it in such a fresh way, and from a fresh perspective… I just kind of played that album on loop, because I was also hearing a story that wasn’t necessarily my own, but it was so cool, the way that he was able to put it into music. Whether you’re a girl or a boy, however, you identify, whether you’re them or they, you can understand what that emotion is that he’s singing about, and I love that, I love when any artist can do that.
“I think the whole project stands out, it’s the storyline [of the entire album] that really, really drew me in. But if I have to choose just one song… let’s do Where The Flower Blooms.”
Vampire Weekend and Steve Lacy – Sunflower
“I knew Steve Lacy first as an instrumentalist, with The Internet, and it’s funny, because most of the artists I’ve chosen have been in each other’s career, in some way, they all come from that Tyler, The Creator, Frank Ocean world, because they grew up together. But they do completely different types of music, which is a fun experience, just as a listener.
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“Steve Lacy did this record with Vampire Weekend, and I love it. When I was on tour with Anderson .Paak, I was just playing it every day, and I literally went around to each member of the band, and I was like ‘can you please teach me your part of Sunflower?’. So I went to the guitarist, and then Anderson taught me the drum pattern – which was so hard, by the way – and then the same thing with the pianist, everything. And they loved the song, too, so that was the first time that I was ever, like, ‘I need to learn how to play this on almost every instrument’.”
We’ll be adding each celebrity’s song choices to our bumper My Pride Anthems playlist each day. Take a listen below:
Tayla Parx’s new album Coping Mechanisms is scheduled for release later this year. Watch the music video for Dance Alone below:


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--'You Just Want To Make Them Proud': My Parents, Allyship And Me

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Allyship is at the heart of Pride – and when you think of allies, parents are often overlooked. Not every queer person has a great relationship with their mum or dad. In fact, in some cases, parents aren’t allies at all, but for others, that family support has been a lifeline when they needed it most.
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This Pride month, we’re celebrating allyship in all its diverse forms. Here, HuffPost UK speaks to eight people, all with differing stories about what being an ally means to them and their families.
While some found coming out to their parents easy – and continue to have a strong bond – others have had to seek strength elsewhere.
‘I keep my sexuality a secret from my family... because I love them with all my heart’
Ray*, London, 26.
frantic00 via Getty Images
“Being a gay man in a Muslim Indian family has been the biggest obstacle in my life. A lot of the time, I feel like I’m the only one in the Muslim community to feel this way. I grew up in south east London. I never knew my biological father, so it was with my mum and my older step-brother. My social life and family life have been two completely different worlds – both of which I’ve had to adapt to.
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“With my family, I’m a straight man who doesn’t say much and does whatever it takes to keep them content. I keep them at a distance because my biggest fear is to lose them. I fear destroying their reputation from them finding out my truth.
“Life has never been easy for my mother – from dealing with abusive husbands, having a car accident meaning she could no longer walk properly, losing her dream job, becoming a widow, then developing an abundance of underlying health issues. It’s been one thing after the next.
“Her religion and culture is something she holds greatly, I believe it’s a sense of comfort and strength for her. I feel a growing sense of guilt for not telling her who I really am. It makes me feel anxious and somewhat depressed.
“Being a gay man in a Muslim, Indian family has been the biggest obstacle in my life.”
“I wouldn’t be able to freely continue to be myself without having the right people in my life to keep me going, though.
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“The first person I came out to was my best friend at school; he and his family took me under their wing and are my biggest allies to this day. They became the parents who allowed me to grow. The more friendships I gained in my life from then on, the more I started to build a family of my choosing – one who accepted me for me. I feel blessed to even have one ally, let alone a network of people.
“The reason I keep my sexuality a secret from my family – still now – is because I love them with all my heart. I hope one day I’ll have the courage to come out to them. But for now, I’m happy learning more about myself.
‘My mum told me she didn’t care if I was straight, gay, bi, whatever – as long as I was happy’
Fabian Castellani, London, 28.
HuffPost UK Fabian
“I first started dating a guy when I was 23. We were together for eight months, but I never told my parents. The guy kept pressuring me to tell my mum every time I went home to see her. In the end, it was too much. I ended things.
“A week later, he found my mum on Facebook and messaged her, outing me. Rather than being upset or angry, she told him I was right to get rid of him if that was his response to the break-up. I had no idea this was happening until she called me, asking who Jake was. She told me what happened and said didn’t care if I was straight, gay, bi, whatever – as long as I was happy.
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“A similar story happened with my dad. He called me up one afternoon to rant about his then-girlfriend going through my social media channels. She was under the impression my dad and I had been clubbing together and he’d been getting with other women – and then she stumbled across my ‘interested in’ section. Apparently she questioned him over and over. He told her he didn’t care about my sexuality and it shouldn’t be any of her business.
“I sometimes still struggle with the fact that my parents are so supportive.” - Fabian
“My experiences were the same for most queer people when they come out or are forced out: sheer panic, like the world had been dragged from under my feet, then worry, wondering if they would accept it or not. And then, finally, relief.
“My mum and dad are both incredible people. They’ve also been extremely supportive of my brother, Vince, who is currently transitioning. I think sometimes I actually struggle with the fact my parents are so supportive.
“I guess there’s a little internalised homophobia in there; something that tells me I’m not ‘normal’, if that makes sense. We all try to be unapologetically ourselves, but often, for those of us that live that truth in our daily lives, there’s a weird feeling when you speak to your parents. You just want to make them proud.”
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‘I was lucky enough to have a mum who had recently come out in her 30s’
Whitney Simon, London, 28.
HuffPost UK Whitney
“When I came out at 16, I was lucky to have a mum who had recently come out in her 30s, only a couple years earlier. Despite my terrible reaction when I found out – I was still reeling from finding out about her divorce to my dad – my mum was an absolute legend when, months later, I came out to her.
“Since then, we’ve truly become best friends, embracing our queer identity, celebrating Pride together, swapping our rainbow clothes, supporting each other during both our weddings. She ended up marrying a woman she met online in 2014, and they have a three-year-old son together. I married my long-term girlfriend in 2017.
“I know how lucky I am to have my mum as my best friend.” - Whitney
“My mum ended up pulling me aside, once, telling me, ‘I hope you know I would love you even if you were straight’. It was the most hilarious / sweetest thing I’d ever heard, but only made me further realise how lucky I was to have her.
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“She is my best friend, an ultimate ally, and overall support system. We’re both each other’s biggest and gayest cheerleaders and it’s pretty epic.”
‘My parents are the strongest allies I’ve got’
Jack Dick, Leicester, 29.
HuffPost UK Jack
“I was pretty confident that when I came out to my family, it was going to be widely accepted as we have gay relatives already. But I think because of pressures from the media and from listening to others’ experiences, part of me felt that if and when I did come out, I could lose everything.
“When I went to university, I grew some balls to do it. But living away from home, the only way I could muster up telling my mum was by text. I thought it’d give her time to think about what I’d said and how to respond.
“I explained to her how my ‘friend’ who was staying from uni was my boyfriend and I was gay. She rang me a few minutes later and was absolutely fine with it, saying she’d always known. But she was worried how my dad would react (he’s quite old-school), so told me to let her speak to him.
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“I thought if I text, it’d give her time to think about what I had said and how to respond.” - Jack
“My relationship with my dad wasn’t the best when I was younger and when I came out, it put further strain on it. For a good few years, we barely spoke while I was at university. When I was home, we didn’t speak much at all. He worked away a lot – I just assumed he wasn’t bothered as long as it wasn’t mentioned. “Four years on from this, and me and my parents have a stronger connection than ever. They’re probably just as close, if not even closer, with my fiancée. I look back now and question myself. Did I create these pressures because I was so worried? Or was it a case of blind ignorance? “Knowing my parents as an adult and knowing now I can ring my dad or my mum to talk about anything, I’m pretty sure my fears about coming out was just my anxiety around what I was lead to believe would happen. My parents are the strongest allies I’ve got, and I know both of them would jump to the defence of anyone – and not just their son – who comes under the LGBT+ umbrella.” ‘Nobody cared as much as my fear told me they would’
Rose*, London, 29.
HuffPost UK Rose
“I knew I wasn’t heterosexual from around the age of 12, but struggled to accept it properly until my early 20s. I came out to my family – my mum, brother and sister – in my mid-20s. I told each of them separately, months apart, but I didn’t tell any of them face-to-face.
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“My mum was first, as I felt sure nothing would change between us. Even though I knew her as a compassionate and non-judgmental person, a small part of me worried that having a LGBTQ+ child might be one step too far for her.
“It turned out I had nothing to worry about. After texting her, ‘I have something to tell you... I think I might be gay,’ she immediately called me to tell me I didn’t need to worry about being honest about who I was. She told me I’d drunkenly called her a year ago to come out, but had never mentioned it again. She knew the conversation had to be re-initiated by me, so she’d been waiting for that.
“She told me I'd actually drunkenly called her a year ago to come out, but never mentioned it again.” - Rose
“I remember the relief of finally telling my mum. Having her love and acceptance gave me the strength I needed to start being more honest with people. Now, I wonder why it took me so long and why I believed any of my family might react negatively. “Since coming out to my family, I’ve been able to be more open about who I am. There’s been no big announcements or declarations, but in everyday life, I’m able to assert that I’m not straight and talk openly when people ask questions. “If I come up against anything that makes me question who I am, the love and understanding my family have shown me is the only acceptance I need. I’m aware that I’m one of the lucky members of the LGBTQ+ community, and my mum was the ally I needed from the moment I told her – both times!” ‘Even when it was against her faith, my mum still picked me’ Bella Snowden, Baltimore, US, 31.
Bella Snowden Bella
“Growing up Black in Baltimore, in the US, there was no room for being queer. Like most trans kids, I thought I was gay first – even though, deep down, I knew I was a girl the whole time.
“My mum didn’t take it well when I came out at 15. I did it over the phone while she was at work, so I didn’t know how upset she was until she got home. She and my dad yelled at me, telling me I needed to get my life right. The only help I had was my brother who, at the time, was closeted and stood up for me even though he was scared.
“I left home after that and spent time over friends’ houses – sleeping on floors and staying out till 3am. Aged 15 and newly queer, the world wasn’t kind to me.
“As time went on, my mum started to come around. With every new phone call we would talk more, and she started meeting my friends. My brother came out 10 years later and thankfully he had a better experience than me.
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“Now I’m 30 – we still can’t really talk about sex, but I’m not in a rush for that anyway! The last six years have been extremely hard. My mum has been sick – she has Parkinson’s disease and dementia – so my brother and I are back in Baltimore.
“I came out as trans this year, but with how my mum’s brain works, she’s not going to understand that. She might die never really knowing me as her daughter. But she’s my mum – and even when it was against her faith, she still picked me. I will love her forever.”
‘My dad walked me down the aisle. It was the result of years of us working hard to understand each other’
Wahaj Mahmood-Brown, Bishop’s Stortford, 34.
HuffPost UK Wedding
“In an attempt to gain acceptance from my dad when I came out, I perhaps didn’t take the time to understand him. In reality, he needed me to accept him as much as I needed him to accept me.
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“My dad didn’t get it at first, none of my family did. It took a lot of work over a few years to show them that gay people are no different, we want all the same things in life. We’re as boring as everyone else!
“Once he saw me with a partner and saw what a gay relationship looks like, my dad got used to the idea. When he walked me down the aisle without hesitation, it was the result of years of both of us working hard to understand each other.”
‘I wouldn’t call them allies, but not enemies either’
Niall*, London, 25.
nito100 via Getty Images
“I was brought up in a fairly liberal Irish Catholic household, and knew I was gay from around 13 years old. I came out to my parents over the phone, after living a secret life for four years at university. I regret the way it happened – I’d had a few beers, then rang my mum. The secret was killing me: I had a boyfriend!
“That Christmas, we had a discussion in the living room with my eldest sister, which didn’t go well. It was the first time I’d seen my mum and dad since telling them, and I knew something was off. Conversations between us were short, the hugs felt lighter.
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“To this day, my private life is a taboo subject with little interest. I’ve never been asked by my family what it was like to grow up knowing who I was, but not presenting it. Aside from my close family, no one else knows. Mum and dad say it will ‘upset and hurt family’ and ‘granny is close to dying’. I’m not sure they’re wrong.
“I wouldn’t call them allies, but not enemies either. I’m doing my part, educating them bit by bit, without overloading them. The rationale for their prejudice is slowly being interrogated and their image of the ‘gay man’ is slowly evolving. In London I am out and proud. Back home, only my close family know for now.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--Lady Phyll On 15 Years Of UK Black Pride: 'Something Here Is Unstoppable'

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It is the early 2000s. You are a Black, queer woman in the UK faced with a rise in racism, sexism, homophobia and Islamophobia. What do you do?
If you are Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, you respond by creating Black Pride – a place where the intersections between being Black and LGBTQ+ can be celebrated.
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Fast forward to 2020, in a time when conversations about George Floyd, Black Lives Matter and indeed Black Trans Lives Matter are coming to the fore, and the need is as palpable as when the event was created.
Known as Lady Phyll, the co-founder of UK Black Pride is also the executive director of LGBTQ+ human rights organisation Kaleidoscope International Trust and – she proudly tells me – the mother of a beautiful 25-year-old daughter.
This is the second time I’ve interviewed Lady Phyll, the first being on the BAFTA red carpet in 2018. It was in the wake of the Me Too movement and stars had opted to bring activists as their dates. Andrea Riseborough had brought Lady Phyll as her plus one.
“When you are silent in situations of injustice it means you’ve chosen the side of the oppressor,” Phyll told me, and I never forgot it.
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Reuters Lady Phyll and Andrea Riseborough at the 2018 BAFTAs
Today Phyll talks to me via Zoom, sitting in front of a velvet cushioned wall that contrasts with her leopard print top. Her warm face is framed by large glasses. We both talk about our heightened emotions: there’s a pandemic, Pride as usual is cancelled and the Black Lives Matter (BLM) marches are heavy on our conscience. We are both Black, queer and politically aware.
This time, she tells me: “It’s OK not to be OK.”
Amnesty International UK and Stonewall are among the organisations taking part in “pride inside” to mark 2020′s UK Black Pride without breaking social distancing rules.
“It means that we’re able to have activities which will be on our digital platforms,” Phyll says. “We’ll be doing this from inside our home, or inside friends’ and family’s homes.”
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Coronavirus is a setback for UK Black Pride after a successful 2019, when more than 10,000 guests joined the celebration in Haggerston Park, east London.
But the event had humble beginnings: on its first outing in 2005 there were just 200 people, a gathering Lady Phyll says was born out of a need to counter the growing tide of the far-right.
“In 2004, we were seeing such a rise in the BNP, the NF [National Front] and the rhetoric and the hate that was being spouted out about racism, sexism, and Islamophobia,” she says.
“And I think for our Black communities, we were like: ‘We need to respond to this.’ Just because we are also part of the LGBT community it doesn’t mean we have to stay silent.”
The first glimmer of what UK Black Pride would actually look like came about when Lady Phyll was one of the women running Black Lesbians In The UK and had organised a weekender in Southend-on-Sea for the organisation.
“I said: ‘This feels like the start of something. It feels like Black Pride.’
“My friends started laughing and said: ‘Here you go again, you know – they’re going to kill you in this country. There would never be a Black Pride.’
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“I just turned around and said: ‘Watch this space.’”
But it wasn’t easy. The 15-year journey has seen a constant need to justify the existence of a Black Pride as well as other obstacles.
“The challenges that we have seen is also racism within our own LGBT+ community,” says Phyll.
“When UK Black Pride started, we did not get the same level of attention and funding from organisations because they didn’t want to touch us.”
This changed from 2010 to 2019, when people started to get behind the movement, more people wanted to volunteer and corporate organisations started to approach UK Black Pride.
“When you see growth in numbers, you also see strength,” says Phyll.
“And when you look and stand on that stage and you see thousands and thousands of people in all their different colours and complexions you realise that something here has been created that is unstoppable.
“That is unapologetic.
“That is beautiful.
“And that is for us and it’s by us.”
Getty Images UK Black Pride in Haggerston Park on July 7, 2019
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Unlike when we met in 2018, today we are talking in a time that is a “Black people too” moment. Around the world marchers are taking to the streets after the death of George Floyd, a Black man killed by a white police officer.
“Right now we are not seeing all lives disproportionately impacted – from Covid to police brutality to murders to poverty to inequalities,” says Phyll.
“We are seeing Black lives which are disproportionately impacted, so it means that we have to take a stand.
“If it takes protesting on the streets up and down, because of the police brutality that we’re seeing on our Black and brown lives, then so be it.
“If it takes calling out whiteness and calling out white fragility, calling out white supremacy where we see it, then that needs to be done.”
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--I'm Autistic. Lockdown Has Been Sensory Torture

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Should lockdown be easy for autistic people? We’re not too keen on crowded spaces, busy commutes and greetings with hugs after all, right? My daily life before coronavirus was already very low key, and I assumed staying at home for weeks would be effortless. I was wrong.
My autistic sensory systems are highly tuned to detail, suspended in a state of constant alertness, and can become overwhelmed very easily if there is too much input all at once. The changing dynamics of my immediate neighbourhood during lockdown is impacting upon my senses in ways I hadn’t anticipated.
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As more households remain at home, new noises quickly stack upon one another to create a cacophony of auditory pain like no other before. I flit between wanting to cry and wanting to scream. Maintaining any internal equilibrium is requiring herculean effort.
The bustle of lockdown is brutal: I can hear every detail of sound from the hum of the electricity charging my phone to the conversations people are conducting three doors down to the spontaneous eruptions of music and almost constant whirr of DIY. By 2pm every day, at least three households seem to be simultaneously maintaining their gardens. Pressure cleaners and lawnmowers unify as one, their vibrations reverberating like a thousand angry wasps inside my head.
“The throb of drum and bass pulsates through the base of my temples, causing the left side of my face to physically twitch in response. It hurts.”
NKTN via Getty Images Young woman using computer while sitting on sofa at home
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In the evening, neighbours appear to compete for musical dominance, with several households ratcheting up the volume to ensure theirs is the loudest. The throb of drum and bass pulsates through the base of my temples, causing the left side of my face to physically twitch in response. It hurts.
I am able to cope (just about), by drifting inside myself and blocking the loudest parts out. Normally, I reduce music – at least, the music that I do not like – to a series of repetitive patterns, that I then relegate to the outer stratosphere of my being where I can shut it out.
But life is never predictable. In lockdown, people want to flick through every radio setting or Spotify playlist, switching tracks multiple times before resting upon their preference. These snippets of sound deliver jolts of panic to my already frayed nervous system, placing me in a semi-permanent state of over alertness – waiting for the next attack. My chest is tight for the majority of the day, which causes only more worry – not just the existential worry of navigating through a global pandemic, but the more immediate worry of getting to the end of my day without succumbing to a full blown panic attack.
Motivating myself to cook, clean and work is much harder as my energy levels have been so depleted by processing this additional noise. My body is just not fully rested, irrespective of how much rest I have; I stumble when I am walking and I drop the cutlery when I am eating.
And while Bank Holidays long weekends and fine weather have brought joy for most, for me they bring a relentless increase in neighbourhood noise. My windows and doors are now permanently closed and I’m struggling to open my blinds – when one sense becomes overloaded, the others quickly follow, and I cannot currently bear to look out of my front window for the visual clutter of extra litter and stationary cars. Only my own back garden brings some relief (and I recognise my privilege at having access to one) but even this sanctuary is invaded by the cigarette smoke snaking over the dividing fences.
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“As the days in lockdown have multiplied, so too has the sensory onslaught – the processing of this additional sound has drained so much of my daily energy that I am becoming lethargic and rapidly losing my ability to speak coherently.”
In usual circumstances I would escape to my places of solitude, my local inner-city park – but this too has been transformed into a hub of over-activity. The central path has been commandeered by beautiful people feigning exercise in lycra. Navigating this throng is complex – few people seem to be adhering to social distancing rules. Physical exercise is central to maintaining my sanity, and if I don’t exercise enough, I find my body feels as if it is floating away in agitation. For me, as an autistic person, I need exercise to regulate my whole being – I require a higher level of proprioceptive input in order for my body to feel ‘normal’ but the anxiety at being too close to others renders the activity futile for me. To suddenly be unable to meet these most basic of bodily needs, is incredibly frustrating.
And yes, I have experimented with going at different times in order to offset this newly acquired auditory burden, but not without consequence: the sudden change to my usual, daily schedule only makes me feel more lost.
As the days in lockdown have multiplied, so too has the sensory onslaught – the processing of this additional sound has drained so much of my daily energy that I am becoming lethargic and rapidly losing my ability to speak coherently. Social media has become a portal of stress where I am having to work twice as hard as usual, to interact. I feel as if I am existing only within the confines of my own mind.
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The one thing I do have though – thanks to spending my life navigating a world not adaptive enough to autistic minds – is resilience. And I know this resilience that will see me through to the post-lockdown world, whenever that comes. I just hope a greater understanding of neurodiversity will make it through too.
Alice Running is a writer and autism advocate


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--Black Trans Lives Matter Rally Draws Crowds To Central London

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Trans people and allies gathered in central London on Saturday to join a Black Trans Lives Matter protest.
Demonstrators marched from Wellington Arch to Downing Street in memory of Black trans lives lost, to celebrate the Black trans community and to protest against potential changes to the Gender Recognition Act.
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Earlier in June, leaked plans showed the government planning to abandon reforms to the Gender Recognition Act – which campaigners say will cause a disproportionate amount of damage to the lives of Black trans women.
The leak, first reported in the Sunday Times, stated that ministers have “ditched” plans to allow trans people to change their birth certificates without a medical diagnosis.
Currently under the Gender Recognition Act (GRA), trans people must undergo a long process in order to change their birth certificates. For this reason, many do not and instead rely on the protection of the Equality Act 2010.
Amnesty International said the U-turn would “send a chilling message that the UK is a hostile place for trans people” and send the nation plummeting down the LGBTQ equality rankings.
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London says black trans lives matter 😭🏳⚧ pic.twitter.com/2KG5kcnJHf — National Student Pride (@studentpride) June 27, 2020
The Sunday Times also reported that ministers plan to announce a ban on “gay cure” therapies, in what was described as an attempt to placate LGBTQ campaigners.
At the same time, the government was said to be preparing to set out new safeguards to “protect” female-only spaces, including refuges and public toilets.
“To announce these changes during a Black Lives Matter movement shows a deep lack of understanding of intersectionality and the role these changes will have in the continued oppression of Black trans women, who are one of the most at-risk groups in society,” said organisers beforehand in a call-out for people to join the protest.
The march, supported by LDNBLM and London Trans+ Pride, was organised for International Pride Day. The main Pride event in London was postponed due to coronavirus, however demonstrators still turned out for the Black Trans Lives Matter march.
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very powerful moment at London’s Black trans lives matter protest: a minute of silence, with fists in the air, in memory of the gay victims of the terrorist attack in Reading ✊🏿🏳🌈 pic.twitter.com/LgM6LpQQdM — Louis Staples (@LouisStaples) June 27, 2020
Many protesters were seen wearing face masks and carrying signs that read “silence is violence” and “support your sisters, not just your cis-ters”.
Chants on the day included, “We will not be silenced”; “Black gay lives matter”; “Black queer lives matter”; “Black bi lives matter” and “Pan and Queer”.
One of the participants leading the chants, Abigail, 20, said the march went “really well” and “showed the idea of unity”.
“Unity is very important in activism and that all Black lives matter including Black lives that are queer and that don’t conform to what society tells us to conform to,” she told HuffPost UK.
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Supplied
“There was a strange sense of the Pride march that would have been happening today as the parade walked through Piccadilly Circus,” another participant, 30, told HuffPost UK.
“While the crowd was definitely queer, the atmosphere felt sombre – except when those leading the chanting occasionally broke to laugh and get a breath, and the whole crowd cheered.
“I couldn’t see the back of the parade and I’m 6ft 2. It stretched the length of Piccadilly from Hyde Park to beyond the Ritz.”
Chants on the day included, “We will not be silenced”; “Black gay lives matter”; “Black queer lives matter”; “Black bi lives matter” and “Pan and Queer”. Supplied
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Earlier in June, tens of thousands of people marched across US cities in support of Black trans people, following the killings of two Black trans women in the space of 24 hours.
On June 9, Dominique “Rem’mie” Fells, a Black transgender woman was killed in Philadelphia and 25-year-old Riah Milton, also Black and trans, was shot dead in Ohio.
Rallies in Brookyn, Chicago, Boston and San Antonio saw people rallying to campaign for the rights of Black trans people - a group that is particularly at risk of violence and of being killed.
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“Black trans women already experience more violence than any other oppressed queer identity,” the organisers of Black Trans Lives Matter in London said. “91% of victims in US trans murders in 2019 were Black trans women.”
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“If the UK government is allowed to pass the proposed transphobic changes to the GRA and trans rights, transphobic violence and murder will undoubtedly increase.”


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--Masks Could Become Illegal In North Carolina (Again) Under KKK-Inspired Law

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North Carolina lawmakers attempted in the early hours of Friday morning to undermine the Democratic governor’s announcement that face coverings would be required in public to stem the spread of coronavirus.
Since the 1950s, North Carolina has banned mask-wearing in public, a law aimed at members of the Ku Klux Klan. That law ran up against guidelines to keep people safe from the coronavirus, and earlier this year, the state voted to exempt citizens from the law until Aug. 1. But when Democratic lawmakers attempted to extend that exemption, Republicans blocked the effort at around 2 a.m., despite an increased number of cases in the state.
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Democrats say that North Carolina Republicans are invoking the law in an effort to undermine Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s face mask mandate, set to go into effect on Friday.
“They are totally out of touch with the problems facing their state, engaged in needless partisan battles while their constituents are looking for real leadership during this crisis,” Jessica Post, Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee president, said in a statement on Friday.
Republicans insisted they weren’t trying to force people to forgo masks to protect themselves and others from the coronavirus, but rather want to avoid them being mandated.
“We’re trying to work out that middle ground to where individuals can feel free to wear masks and can feel free of penalties and of being forced to wear masks,” Republican state Sen. Ralph Hise said at 3 a.m. Friday.
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If the exemption expires on Aug. 1, though, it would make mask-wearing illegal for people attempting to keep themselves safe from the virus, including the elderly, immunocompromised people, and Black people who are at both a higher risk of contracting it and also of being targeted by law enforcement.
Face masks have become an increasingly politicised issue, despite being recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and despite overwhelming (and nonpartisan) consensus that wearing a mask is the right call. One survey showed that nearly 80% of Americans said they worry that other people’s failure to use masks and practice social distancing would worsen the spread of the coronavirus ― an opinion held by 64% of Republicans and 93% of Democrats surveyed.
Protesters pressuring North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) to reopen the state amid the coronavirus pandemic in Raleigh on May 12, 2020. Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Still, lawmakers across the country who have instituted face mask mandates have encountered extreme hostility. A lawmaker in Arizona came under fire this week for repeatedly saying “I can’t breathe” ― the dying words of George Floyd and Eric Garner, two Black men killed by police ― at an anti-face mask rally in Scottsdale. In an off-the-rails public forum in Palm Beach County, Florida, residents told commissioners that they would be “punished by God” and are “obeying the devil’s laws” for requiring face masks. In Orange County, California, anti-mask protesters interrupted a press conference about the importance of wearing face coverings.
In North Carolina, the KKK law is just the latest attempt to undermine public health precautions in the state. On Wednesday, Republican lawmakers tried and failed to garner enough support in the General Assembly to reopen bars and gyms. On Thursday, gubernatorial candidate Lieutenant Gov. Dan Forest (R) announced plans to sue Cooper over executive orders meant to combat the coronavirus outbreak in the state.
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The editorial board of the Raleigh-based News & Observer called Forest’s letter to Cooper “a 60-yard Hail Mary with a 30-yard arm.” Cooper, whose handling of the virus has garnered overwhelming support in the state, defended himself against GOP criticism.
“Tying the hands of public health officials in times of pandemic is dangerous, especially when case counts and hospitalisations are rising,” he said on Wednesday.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--Reading Attack Suspect Charged With Murder

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A man has been charged with three counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder in the Reading stabbing attack on June 20, police said.
Khairi Saadallah, 25, was arrested following the fatal stabbing of friends James Furlong, 36, Joe Ritchie-Bennett, 39, and David Wails, 49, in Forbury Gardens in Reading’s town centre. Several others were injured in the attack.
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He has been charged with three counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder, Thames Valley Police said.
He is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates Court on June 29.
The charge comes as the family of one of the three men killed praised police for their “remarkable bravery” ahead of a vigil in memory of the victims.
Reading Borough Council is to hold a vigil at 7pm on Saturday in memory of the friends, marking a week since the deadly attack.
Furlong’s family said: “We would like to start by thanking the police for their ongoing help, including their remarkable bravery. They have been a pillar of support.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--L'Oreal To Remove Words Like 'Whitening' From Its Skincare Products

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L’Oreal has announced it will remove words like “whitening” from its skincare products, a move that comes amid global anti-racism protests sparked by the death of George Floyd in the United States.
The French cosmetics company - the largest in the world - said in a statement on Saturday that it “has decided to remove the words ‘white/whitening’, ‘fair/fairness’, ‘light/lightening’ from all its skin evening products”.
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The move follows a similar one by the Indian and Bangladeshi arms of Unilever on Thursday, who said it would rename its locally marketed “Fair & Lovely” skin-lightening cream.
Earlier in June, L’Oreal faced criticism after tweeting that it “stands in solidarity with the Black community and against injustice of any kind. Speaking out is worth it”.
The social media post drew a negative response from people who claimed the company’s business model and advertising has long focused on white consumers.
Munroe Bergdof - who was L’Oreal UK’s first openly transgender model - accused the company of hypocrisy for having fired her in 2017 for decrying “the racial violence of white people”.
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Several companies including L’Oreal and Uniliver have come under recent fire for skin-lightening products in the wake of growing support for the Black Lives Matter movement.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--Hundreds Join Protests To Mark The First Anniversary Of Shukri Abdi's Death

Crowds gathered in Manchester to mark the anniversary of Shukri Abdi's death. Ilyas Nagdee
Hundreds of people have joined protests across the UK on the first anniversary of 12-year-old Shukri Abdi’s death.
Chants of ‘no justice, no peace’ were heard during the demonstrations, which took place in several major cities including Manchester, London and Bristol. Protests are also set to take place in Los Angeles and Toronto later on Saturday.
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Shukri, a Somalian refugee, drowned in the River Irwell on June 27, 2019, and her mother told an inquest, which has since been adjourned, she believed her daughter was with two girls who were not friends at the time.
The inquest into her death, opened in February and focused largely on events on the day of her death, The Guardian reported. No date has yet been set for its resumption.
Her death has become the focus of renewed attention in the wake of George Floyd’s killing by police in the US, and the ensuing Black Lives Matter protests which have since echoed around the world.
Shukri Abdi Change.org
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Shukri’s picture and name have repeatedly been at the forefront of protests in the UK, with protesters calling for further investigation into her death.
In the days after her death Greater Manchester Police said it was treating what happened as a “tragic incident” and did not believe there were any suspicious circumstances, but Shukri’s family have since raised serious concerns about the way her death was investigated.
When asked by the BBC’s Victoria Derbyshire if she believes the police force treated her differently because they are institutionally racist, her mother Zamzam Ture replied ‘yes’.
It was announced in August 2019 that the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) had begun an investigation following a complaint about police actions following her death.
Manchester’s mayor Andy Burnham said earlier in June that he would ‘look into’ Shukri’s case, telling BBC Asian Network that he had received 6,000 emails about her death and the subsequent handling of the incident.
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Shukri’s family have repeatedly raised concerns of bullying prior to her death, with her aunt telling The Guardian that the situation had become so severe that teachers had on occasion brought her home from school themselves amid fears for her safety.
Her family also branded an investigation carried out by Broad Oak sports college in Bury, where Shukri went to school, as a “whitewash”.
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The family were asked to go to the police station to receive the internal report into bullying at the school, where requests for Shukri’s mother to have a translator were denied, leaving her in tears and causing the family to leave the station in protest.
The inquest into her death is not examining allegations of bullying.
Ahead of Saturday’s protests a family spokesperson said: “The family would like to thank everybody that is joining the demonstrations this weekend.
“It is heartening to know people all across the world are joining the call for Justice for Shukri Abdi.
“We ask you all to keep Shukri and her family in your prayers as we continue the struggle to get answers.”
One protest organiser from Manchester told HuffPost UK that the quest for answers had united many young people, particularly those from the UK’s Somali community, who had been affected by the news her death.
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Idris Sheikh, 25, said: “This was someone from my community, I grew up in Manchester and have lived here my whole life. To read and find out what happened to Shukri, and the whole tragedy around her case, I think moved everyone in our community.
“I think people from the younger generation are starting to find their voice, starting to become more visible in terms of changing the narrative of the Somali community and our marginalisation.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-27--UK Records 100 More Coronavirus Deaths In 24 Hours, Bringing Total To 43,514

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Members of the clinical staff wearing Personal Protective Equipment PPE care for a patient with coronavirus in the intensive care unit at the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge. ASSOCIATED PRESS
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The number of people who have died across the UK after testing positive for coronavirus has risen to 43,514 – an increase of 100 over 24 hours.
The figures cover the period up to 5pm on Friday, but the true number of deaths may be significantly different. Here’s a quick primer on what all the different numbers mean and how to understand them.
Meanwhile, the government has not published the number of people who have been tested for coronavirus for several weeks.
The figure for the number of people tested has been “temporarily paused to ensure consistent reporting” across all methods of testing.
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thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-28--More Than 10m Covid-19 Cases Have Now Been Confirmed Worldwide

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More than 10m people have now tested positive for Covid-19 worldwide, experts in the US have confirmed.
A tally of global cases compiled by Johns Hopkins University reached the milestone on Sunday, after India and Russia added thousands of new cases.
The UK has so far confirmed 310,250 cases.
The US has confirmed a quarter of all cases, logging more than 2.5m infections – by far the most in the world. Globally, the Hopkins tally has reported nearly 500,000 deaths.
While Hopkins reports only confirmed coronavirus cases, experts believe the true number of people who have been infected could be as much as 10 times that figure, given that so many people cannot get tested or may have had the virus without showing any symptoms.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-28--Beyoncé Releases Trailer For New Visual Album Black Is King

Beyoncé has unveiled a trailer for a new visual album, which will debut on Disney+ next month.
Black Is King has been written, directed and executive produced by the star and is based on the music of her soundtrack album The Lion King: The Gift.
Beyoncé in the Black Is King trailer Disney+
The album was released last year in conjunction with the photorealistic re-make of the animated Disney classic, in which she voiced Nala.
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Beyoncé debuted a one minute clip trailing her new visual album on her official website on Sunday.
Black Is King is described as a “celebratory memoir for the world on the Black experience”, and will “reimagine the lessons of The Lion King for today’s young kings and queens in search of their own crowns”, a statement said.
The visual album will debut on Disney+ Disney+
It continued: “The voyages of Black families, throughout time, are honoured in a tale about a young king’s transcendent journey through betrayal, love and self-identity.
“His ancestors help guide him toward his destiny, and with his father’s teachings and guidance from his childhood love, he earns the virtues needed to reclaim his home and throne.
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“These timeless lessons are revealed and reflected through Black voices of today, now sitting in their own power.
“Black Is King is an affirmation of a grand purpose, with lush visuals that celebrate Black resilience and culture. The film highlights the beauty of tradition and Black excellence.”
Black Is King will be released on 31 July Disney+
Songs are set to include My Power, Mood 4 Eva, and Brown Skin Girl.
The film will star the album’s featured artists and some special guest appearances, including Childish Gambino, Kendrick Lamar, Pharrell, and Beyoncé’s husband Jay-Z and daughter Blue Ivy Carter.
Black Is King will premiere globally on Disney+ on 31 July.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-28--UK Could Face 'Very Nasty Rebound' Of Coronavirus In Autumn Or Winter, Scientific Adviser Warns

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There could be a “very nasty rebound” of coronavirus in autumn or winter if the country does not use the next few months to prepare, a scientist advising the government has warned.
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Infectious diseases expert Sir Jeremy Farrar said that it was “reasonable” to begin opening up but warned the country is on a “knife edge” as it prepares to lift many lockdown restrictions next week.
Farrar, who sits on the government’s scientific advisory group for emergencies (Sage), said people should remain “really cautious” around indoor venues, including pubs and restaurants which open on July 4.
And he said the government’s test, trace and isolate system must be “fully functional by the beginning of September” with people using and trusting it, so the country can get on top of outbreaks.
As officials consider imposing a local lockdown to combat an outbreak in Leicester, the Wellcome Trust director told BBC One’s Andrew Marr Show: “I would predict, I would guess, that we will start to see a few increases in cases towards the end of June or the first week of July.
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“We’re on a knife edge, it’s very precarious the situation, particularly in England at the moment, and I would anticipate we would see an increase in new cases over the coming weeks.”
We will see a "very nasty rebound" of #Covid_19 in the winter months if we don’t have "core national infrastructures" in place says Director of the Wellcome Trust Professor Sir Jeremy Farrar#Marr https://t.co/MYnWyJSDWC pic.twitter.com/0OiK6KqbNx — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) June 28, 2020
Asked when the country may see a second spike in coronavirus, he said: “We’re seeing second spikes now in continental Europe, in Germany, and I think we will see rebounds.
“It will be in certain situations, we’ve had outbreaks in meat packing factories across the continent and indeed in the UK.
“I think a true second wave will come in the winter months, in October, November.”
Farrar argued that the next three months were “absolutely critical” in the fight against coronavirus in the UK.
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The Wellcome Trust director said: “Come the winter, come the reopening of schools, which is absolutely critical, we can anticipate to see rebounds and second waves.”
Asked if that meant more people losing their lives, he said: “It could do. There’s no doubt that nurses, doctors, people in hospitals, have become better at treating patients with Covid.
“We’ve learnt a huge amount about the disease and we’re better at treating it today. The mortality rates have come down over the six months.
“But it is still a very, very nasty infection.
“You’ve got to move faster than the epidemic, you’ve got to move ahead of the pandemic.
“Once you get behind it, you have exponential growth, you lose track of it and that’s what happened across Europe, particularly in the UK, in March and April of this year.
“We got behind it, we were too slow and, as a result, the epidemic took off and we weren’t able to control it.”
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Home secretary Priti Patel meanwhile encouraged drinkers to go to pubs next weekend but remember to follow social distancing guidelines.
#Marr: What's your advice for people going to pubs?
Home Secretary Priti Patel: "I would say go, be responsible, follow the guidance… practise social distancing," adding that we have to "enjoy ourselves in a responsible way" https://t.co/esHNEgEKbD pic.twitter.com/AGqZXh27jp — BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) June 28, 2020
She told Marr: “In terms of people going, I would say go, be responsible, follow the guidance.
“Practice social distancing, follow the hygiene as well - washing hands and all the hygiene methods are so important.
“But I come back to my point that we are living with the virus right now.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-28--Man Dies After Being Shot At US Protest Against Police Killing Of Breonna Taylor

A man has been shot and killed at a US demonstration against the death of Breonna Taylor.
A crowd had gathered in Louisville, Kentucky, to protest the death of Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, who was shot eight times by officers who burst into her Louisville home using a no-knock warrant during a March 13 narcotics investigation. No drugs were found at her home.
Louisville Metro police said in a statement that there were reports of shots fired in Jefferson Square Park about 9pm on Saturday, adding that the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department had tried to resuscitate a man who later died.
Another shooting victim was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said.
Video from the scene, posted to social media, appeared to show a man calmly opening fire into a camp which had been set up in the park, sending those in the area scrambling for cover.
Footage also showed one man bleeding on the floor, surrounded by frantic protesters who urged bystanders to call emergency services.
Police said officers cleared the park and were “trying to gather as much information as possible in order to identify all who were involved in the incident,” the statement said.
No information about arrests, possible suspects and the victims’ identities and ages was immediately released.


thehuffingtonpostuk--2020-06-28--Leicester Facing UK's First Local Lockdown After Coronavirus Surge, Priti Patel Confirms

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Leicester could become the first city to face a local lockdown following a surge in coronavirus cases, Priti Patel has confirmed.
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The home secretary said there was “support going into” the Midlands city to address a flare up after 658 new cases were recorded in the area in the two weeks to June 16.
HuffPost UK understands that health secretary Matt Hancock, national and local health officials are monitoring the spread of Covid-19 in Leicester and are preparing to make a decision on whether some form of lockdown is needed within days.
There are also concerns that the outbreak in Leicester could cause a flare-up in the much bigger city of Birmingham, which as a regional hub could have wider consequences for the spread of the virus in the country.
Home secretary Priti Patel TOLGA AKMEN via Getty Images
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Asked if Leicester was facing a local lockdown, Patel told BBC One’s Andrew Marr Show: “That is correct.
“We’ve seen flare ups across the country already in recent weeks, just over the last three or four weeks in particular.
“There was the example of a flare up in one particular hospital over infection control.
“That is why we have a new mechanism, a joint biosecurity centre which is very much geared up - it’s been developed to address local flare ups.”
Asked again if there would be a lockdown, she said: “There will be support going into Leicester and in fact the health secretary was in touch with many of us over the weekend explaining some of the measures - the support on testing, resources that have gone to the local authority as well.
“Because with local flare ups it’s right that we have a localised solution in terms of infection control, social distancing, testing and many of the tools that are actually within the Public Health England space that will come together to control the virus and to stop the spread, so obviously we can get on top of the infection.”
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Shoppers queue outside Primark in Leicester on June 15, the first day of opening since the national lockdown was imposed in March EMPICS Entertainment
The government has sent mobile testing centres to Leicester and local Public Health England (PHE) officials are assessing the spread of the disease in the city.
Hancock is also understood to be analysing whether new regulations or legislation are required to impose a local lockdown, as current laws mainly relate to imposing national lockdowns.
Previously local lockdowns have involved closing things like hospitals, GP surgeries or care homes if that is where infections are flaring up but there are concerns that Leicester’s uptick is happening in the wider community.
Early indications suggest that the rise in cases follows an outbreak in food processing plants in the area, which is what happened in Germany.
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Across the UK there have been seven outbreaks at food processing centres in recent days, which experts say are vulnerable due to the cold indoor environment which makes it easier for the virus to spread.
But there are also concerns that the disease is spreading in larger intergenerational households in Leicester, which has a large Asian community, and epidemiological research is being done to understand the outbreak.
Hancock and officials are expected to decide what kind of lockdown is required within the next week or so, with a return to the full stay-at-home early lockdown measures under consideration.
The health secretary is also understood to be keen to ensure any measures are locally-led.
A department for health and social care spokesperson said: “We are supporting the council and local partners in Leicester to help prevent further transmission of the virus. We have deployed four mobile testing sites and made thousands of home testing kits available, to ensure anyone in the area who needs a test can get one.
“NHS Test and Trace will contact anyone testing positive to help them identify their recent contacts, and advise who may have been near to someone with the virus to stay at home to prevent the spread.
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“We urge the people of Leicester to continue to practice social distancing, wash their hands regularly, get tested immediately if they have symptoms and follow the advice they receive if contacted by NHS Test and Trace.