No Police at Pride (NPP) say they are pleased that Victoria Police have been forced to withdraw from the Midsumma Festival’s Pride March attributing the development to years of sustained community action, organising and pressure.
The group say pride should be welcoming for all, but for years police involvement has excluded many
community members with experiences of police violence.
Last week the festival announced it would be trialing a new set of rules for the parade which they described as a trauma informed approach. While groups like the police and defence forces would still be welcome to participate they’d been asked to march out of uniform.
Victorian police baulked at the proposal and withdrew from the event, with a spokesperson saying for many LGBTIQA+ police officers they uniform allows them to show their authentic selves.
They criticsed the decision from the Midsumma board describing it as “a backwards step for inclusion, especially for our LGBTIQA+ employees who simply want to celebrate being their authentic selves.”
Heiro Badge, No Police at Pride Organiser said the decision from police was a victory for the campaign.
“Community consensus is clear: Queer people cannot safely interact with Victoria Police officers without risk of violence, as the police brutality at Pride 2024 demonstrated. This historic victory is only one small step toward ensuring the wellbeing of Queer people.” Badge said.
“Victoria Police’s reasoning—that they couldn’t possibly march out of uniform—shows that this was never about community but was, in fact, a public relations exercise that we made more trouble than it’s worth.”
Fellow organiser Frank Gafa said the 2025 parade would now be safer without the police marching.
“Pride march 2025 is now a safer and more accessible event for many in our community. This is a defining moment for Queer people in Naarm and a true showing of how solidarity between us can achieve real change.” Gafa said.
“For years there has been growing voices against police involvement in Pride not just in Naarm but around the world. Continued violence perpetrated by the police against our communities has shown that Pride can’t be safe while they march, this is the only just outcome to work towards safer and more inclusive spaces for everyone.”
The 2025 march will be the event’s 30th anniversary, it’s scheduled to take place on 2nd February.
