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WIDATW: Brighton Pride
Aug. 9th, 2010 11:38 amAnything that makes me get up at 0530 on a Saturday has got to be something worth doing. And it so was.
In Brighton for 9:30 and at the meeting point for 9:45, a drawn out period of "hurry up and wait" followed as the parade amassed. Me and![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
miss_amaranth were marching with the Sussex LGBTQ group, closely (and mingled in with) the Socialist Workers. I have a rant against them (particularly their attitude to/at Pride) brewing but I will leave it be for now.
The march could only be described as intense. The heat wasn't helping, but with such a huge number of people, but with none of the wide open spaces afforded to somewhere like London, the overall effect was much more in-your-face. There was also a lot of revelry in the parade that left me feeling more than a little uncomfortable.
We covered what felt like a very large distance (probably 2 miles) and the whole city was involved - rainbow flags everywhere, even the shops, was a sight I haven't seen anywhere else. The park itself was crazy busy and the Bi Meet at the stall was excellent, something I really think we should consider doing again at some of the other prides.
We spent the rest of the day hanging out withsunflower_29 and finally got a lift home to Jess' aunt's about 10pm where we promptly went splat. Sunday was dedicated to recovering before heading home.
Brighton has left me with some mixed feelings - much more so than the other prides I've attended. What's odd is where they lie. I loved that the whole city seemed to be involved, rainbow flags everywhere and streets closed for the whole day was amazing. The actual parade and festival though left a somewhat bitter taste.
The parade seemed badly managed, it was far too long. I was very glad I'd brought a big bottle of water with me or we would have had to bail early. It was also massively overpriced, £45 for volunteer groups is messed up. Then to have the nerve to bug people constantly for donations is just testament that someone, somewhere, is making far too much money from this.
One of the big things I noticed at the festival was that for a lot of people this was a piss-up and nothing more. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it's meant to be a party but, I don't know, I just didn't like the atmosphere there. I do avoid music festivals for this reason though so maybe that has something to do with it. There was a good community village though (I'm looking at you, London) and the Bi Stall was excellent. It seems they were the only ones who came prepared for the wind though!
There were also some major organisational concerns. Food sellers were heavily overcharging (£3 for a small box of chips) and there wasn't a single extra bin provided. The mess was horrific by the time we left and still looked awful from the quick glimpse I caught on the train home as it passed the park. Why there weren't skips dotted around (like at Oxford), I don't know.
This post is coming across far too negative. The Pride was amazing, with the whole city getting involved and seeing so many people out-and-proud both in the parade and in the crowd. I'm going next year, undoubtedly and the whole weekend was a blast.
Very much looking forward to the much more sedate plans we have this weekend though. Ice cream, anyone? *grin*
In Brighton for 9:30 and at the meeting point for 9:45, a drawn out period of "hurry up and wait" followed as the parade amassed. Me and
miss_amaranth were marching with the Sussex LGBTQ group, closely (and mingled in with) the Socialist Workers. I have a rant against them (particularly their attitude to/at Pride) brewing but I will leave it be for now.The march could only be described as intense. The heat wasn't helping, but with such a huge number of people, but with none of the wide open spaces afforded to somewhere like London, the overall effect was much more in-your-face. There was also a lot of revelry in the parade that left me feeling more than a little uncomfortable.
We covered what felt like a very large distance (probably 2 miles) and the whole city was involved - rainbow flags everywhere, even the shops, was a sight I haven't seen anywhere else. The park itself was crazy busy and the Bi Meet at the stall was excellent, something I really think we should consider doing again at some of the other prides.
We spent the rest of the day hanging out with
sunflower_29 and finally got a lift home to Jess' aunt's about 10pm where we promptly went splat. Sunday was dedicated to recovering before heading home.Brighton has left me with some mixed feelings - much more so than the other prides I've attended. What's odd is where they lie. I loved that the whole city seemed to be involved, rainbow flags everywhere and streets closed for the whole day was amazing. The actual parade and festival though left a somewhat bitter taste.
The parade seemed badly managed, it was far too long. I was very glad I'd brought a big bottle of water with me or we would have had to bail early. It was also massively overpriced, £45 for volunteer groups is messed up. Then to have the nerve to bug people constantly for donations is just testament that someone, somewhere, is making far too much money from this.
One of the big things I noticed at the festival was that for a lot of people this was a piss-up and nothing more. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it's meant to be a party but, I don't know, I just didn't like the atmosphere there. I do avoid music festivals for this reason though so maybe that has something to do with it. There was a good community village though (I'm looking at you, London) and the Bi Stall was excellent. It seems they were the only ones who came prepared for the wind though!
There were also some major organisational concerns. Food sellers were heavily overcharging (£3 for a small box of chips) and there wasn't a single extra bin provided. The mess was horrific by the time we left and still looked awful from the quick glimpse I caught on the train home as it passed the park. Why there weren't skips dotted around (like at Oxford), I don't know.
This post is coming across far too negative. The Pride was amazing, with the whole city getting involved and seeing so many people out-and-proud both in the parade and in the crowd. I'm going next year, undoubtedly and the whole weekend was a blast.
Very much looking forward to the much more sedate plans we have this weekend though. Ice cream, anyone? *grin*
