Heledd Muir-McCann, Cardiff West Socialist Party
I had the privilege of attending the Cardiff Trans Pride parade on 16 September. Socialist Party members from Cardiff East and West, as well as Swansea, were present to express solidarity. Compared to the non-committal façade of support in Cardiff’s annual Pride festival “Pride Cymru”, this group was much livelier and more devoted to enacting actual systemic change. Around 200 people, most of whom were there with friends, were dressed in vibrant colours and gleefully waved homemade banners.
In a time of heightened moral panic against our community, recklessly encouraged by the Tories to distract from their capitalist system’s abject failure, it was a breath of fresh air to hear demands for meaningful change.
Services
Most of it related to trans issues, such as commissioning a gender identity service for trans children and adolescents, but some demands had a wider scope; some included the Senedd (Welsh parliament) to provide shelter for all homeless people like they did in the pandemic, and opposing the encroachment of ‘pink capitalism’ in Pride Cymru. Of this, the organisers opposed a welcoming of police presence that “launders the image of South Wales Police”, and thus sterilises their sordid record of abuse against racial, sexual and gender minorities.
There was huge anger expressed about being scapegoated for capitalist failings, with more and more people making demands for wider societal reform. Increasing numbers of workers are developing a class consciousness. It came as no surprise that the members of the march, both trans people and others, were receptive to the Socialist Party’s LGBTQ+ charter, with most of our copies sold.
