Colchester Green Party members, along with many other groups and fabulous people, took part in Colchester’s first ever Pride march on August 13th, which set off from outside the Mercury Theatre and finished up at Firstsite, where the annual Colchester Pride Festival then took place in Berryfields. Colchester Green Party’s stall attracted much interest during the day and we are proud to have been part of this fantastic event supporting the LGBTIQA+ community. 2022 marks the 50th anniversary of the first UK Pride march in London 1972, when 200-500 people, including members of the Gay Liberation Front, marched from Hyde Park to Trafalgar Square on 28th June. Green Councillor Mark Goacher, who volunteered for Colchester Gay Switchboard (now The Outhouse) for over 20 years states:

“Colchester Pride is a fantastic event and it is important for political groups like Colchester Green Party to show support for the LGBTIQA+ community. The first ever Colchester Pride march was a joyous event and people were cheering the marchers and having a great time. Some of the banners on the march were making the point that all conversion therapy should be banned, including that directed against the Trans community, and yes it should. When I first came to Colchester 30 years ago I can remember Colchester Gay Switchboard’s float at Colchester Carnival getting booed so it is fantastic to see how far we have moved forward since then.”