Mardi Gras march takes over Sydney

Fabian Robertson covers the energy, politics and personality of the unofficial pride march. 

Approximately 3000 paraded down Oxford Street this afternoon in an unofficial Mardi Gras march that straddled the line between celebration and protest. Participants followed the route of the 1978 Mardi Gras march and echoed its legacy with sweeping demands for social justice.

The march was given the go-ahead by NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard on Friday, who granted an exemption from Covid-19 guidelines. Hazzard’s last-minute decision overruled NSW Police’s attempt to shut down the march and was lauded by event organisers, Pride in Protest.

“The police will not stand in the way of our community,” the group said in a public Facebook post.  

 Jenny Leong, Greens MP for Newtown, kicked off the march in Taylor Square as the first of a series of speakers who addressed intersectional issues of discrimination, racism and wealth inequality.

 “We will stand with First Nations People and follow your lead until there is justice,” she said.

Leong went on to condemn Mark Latham’s religious freedom bill which has come under scrutiny for attacking the rights of the LGBTQI+ community and has instead been branded the ‘religious discrimination bill’.

“To the likes of One Nation and the bigoted MPs that sit in the same chamber that I have to sit in … we say fuck off, Mark Latham, fuck off,” she said.

 Although not yet passed, the Bill would allow substantial discrimination against the LGBTQIA+ community, threaten access to medical services and undermine the rights of individuals in schools and the workplace. For example, it would be legal for a teacher to tell a disabled child that their disability is a trial imposed by God, while a religious school may expel a student for losing faith in that religion.

 Leong also criticised the government’s mandatory and indefinite detention of asylum seekers, a practice that has been internationally censured for its abuse of human rights.

“There is no pride in detention,” she said.

The Chair of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Group, Rosa, advocated for racial justice and the decriminalisation of sex work. Rosa thanked members of The Scarlett Alliance in attendance, who displayed red umbrellas in support of sex worker rights.

Rosa was followed by Mark Gillespie, a protestor from the original Mardi Gras march of 1978. The 1978 march became notorious for police brutality against peaceful protestors and the unlawful arrest and public outing of 53 participants.

“Our protest in the 1970s was fuelled by the desire for justice. And have we got that justice today?” he said.

“Where is the justice for the women of Australia?” Gillespie said, in reference to accusations of sexual assault against Christian Porter and a thus far unnamed Liberal staffer.

April Holcombe of Community Action for Rainbow Rights also rallied in condemnation of the Liberal government.

“Gay Liberals aren’t our supporters. You’re either for the system or for tearing down the system,” she said.

April went on to criticise the corporatisation of Mardi Gras at the official parade happening at the SCG tonight.

“The parade will have floats from ANZ and Westpac, corporations who have earnt billions from exploiting people and the planet,” she said.

Instead, April celebrated the activist origins of Mardi Gras and emphasised the importance of protest in achieving social justice and protecting fundamental freedoms.

“You’re either for control and oppression, or for liberation,” she said.  

The march went ahead despite heavy police presence, who lined both sides of Oxford street and into Hyde Park. Some officers were on horseback, while others wore bullet-proof vests. Pulp did not witness any violent incidents or police intervention.

The official Mardi Gras parade began at 6pm tonight and can be viewed live on SBS.