June Angus, West London Socialist Party
Tens of thousands of LGBTQ+ people and their allies marched through central London in a record show of solidarity at Trans Pride on 27 July.
The atmosphere was mixed. On the one hand, the Tories and their crusade against transgender people suffered a historic defeat in July’s general election. So the event felt more celebratory than it has been in recent years.
2023’s calendar was marked with vigils and remembrances of violence against the trans community, particularly following the murder of 16-year-old Brianna Ghey. Many trans people we spoke to at those events felt hopeless in the face of increasing hostility against them. This year was noticeably more optimistic.
Nonetheless, Keir Starmer’s Labour government has so far not proven that it is committed to LGBTQ+ rights, and this was also reflected in the attitude of attendees. Many placards were directed at Wes Streeting, Labour’s new health secretary, who has made the Tories’ temporary ban on puberty blockers permanent, or at Keir Starmer, who has faced criticism for his comments about trans women.
The event was also under threat from the far right, who descended on central London on the same afternoon. Although this did not interfere with Trans Pride in the main, it still highlighted the vulnerability of trans people. One steward was attacked, which served as a reminder that there is still a lot of work to be done in ensuring trans people’s rights and safety on the streets.
Trans Pride served as a great opportunity for us to put across our ideas. We spoke to many attendees who agreed that there is a clear need for a mass political movement that will fight to enshrine the rights of trans people, and to combat hate.
The Socialist Party says that we need immediate full protection of LGBTQ+ rights, but that we also need fully funded provisions and public services, as an effective way of combating the ideas of the far right.
We must continue to fight for LGBTQ+ rights under the new Labour government. And, as part of that, we also must ensure we are fighting with the goal of achieving a socialist system, under democratic control of the working classes, that can meet everyone’s needs.
