LGBTQ+ history: London's first Pride

In 1972, there were no corporate sponsors, no floats or parades, no MPs or coverage from the media. London's Pride in 1972 was an act of open defiance. A few hundred people showed up, marched from Trafalgar Square to Hyde Park and demanded an end to homophobia.

The history of London Pride

It was only a few years after the decriminalization of homosexuality in 1967, yet homosexuality was still considered a mental illness, lesbian mothers still had their children taken from them in the courts, and thousands of gay and bisexual men were still being arrested for consenting behavior. In 1972 they marched under a single, simple slogan: Gay is Good. Huffington Post reports a discussion with Human Rights campaigner, Peter Tatchell.

“We got mixed reactions from the public,” said Tatchell. “Some were hostile. Many were curious or bewildered. Most had never knowingly seen a gay person, let alone hundreds of queers marching to demand freedom. They just gawped.”

“We played camped-up versions of party games like spin the bottle and drop the hanky. I won one of the games and my prize was a kiss with a handsome French activist who had come over to London especially for our Pride celebrations. Kissing was more than good fun. In those days, same-sex kissing in public could get you arrested. Our kissing games were a gesture of defiance. The police kept us under surveillance, but they didn’t make any arrests. I guess there were just too many uppity queers for them to handle… Despite this intimidation, we were determined to have a fun time and make our point.”

London Pride has grown considerably since then, with recent years seeing over a million visitors to the city. It is important to remember the political roots from which it came, and the work that still needs to be done.

"Looking back over the last five decades, Pride has grown from a march with less than a thousand people to a march, rally and festival attended by hundreds of thousands of revelers. Since 1999, we've finally won many LGBTQ+ law reforms, like equalizing the age of consent, repealing Section 28, legal protection against discrimination and same-sex marriage.

“But the battle for equality isn't over yet. Nearly half of all LGBTQ+ pupils are bullied at school, there are hundreds of queer-bashing attacks every year and a quarter of the British public still believe that homosexuality is always or mostly wrong. This is why the campaign for our rights must continue," concluded Tatchell.