On the 15th April the ProudWomen initiative was launched at a classy reception in Soho. A collaboration between Pride in London and Elysion Events, ProudWomen’s aim is to boost the visibility and involvement of women at Pride events in the capital. Historically, men have tended to be overrepresented at Pride.
The lesbian Directors of Elysion Events, Lauren Pett and Robin Kendall, have organised a sequence of fundraising events starting on April 30th with an exhilarating quiz hosted by the highly-regarded lesbian comics Jen Brister, Zoe Lyons and Rosie Wilby. That’s followed by a “Roaring Twenties”-themed charity party on June 20th and the much-anticipated first ever Official Pride Women’s After Party (June 28th).
“ProudWomen is a really exciting new development [that will] create new ways for women to get involved in Pride, to raise our visibility and voice across the campaigning and celebrations of the Pride Festival. It’s an important part of our commitment to being truly a community Pride with a global reach.”
Alison Hand, Director of Pride
Now something of an institution, Pride in London has been taking place since 1972. Research commissioned by the Mayor of London’s Office concluded that recent attendees to Pride rated their experience as highly as those people who came from all over the world to enjoy the 2012 Olympic Games.
In 2013 the Mayor of London appointed the London LGBT + Community Pride company to oversee Pride’s proceedings until 2017. Pride is mostly staffed by volunteers and any profits that are made are either ploughed back into the festival or given to various LGBT+ community ventures.
Pride London’s current patrons are Martina Navratilova, Sir Elton John, David Furnish and Sir Ian McKellen.
To find out more visit – twitter @ProudWomenUK or www.facebook.com/pages/PROUDWOMEN
Image source – Laura Dixon Photography