Tens of thousands take to streets during London’s annual Pride march

The streets of the capital were fit to burst earlier today as thousands came out to participate in London’s annual Pride parade. 

Organisers of the event, which this year carries the theme #WeAreEverywhere, say they aim to ‘raise awareness of LGBTQ+ issues and advocate for the freedoms that will enable everyone to live their lives on equal footing’.

The celebrations were kicked off at noon on Saturday by London Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan and his wife, Saadiya Khan, who were accompanied by London Assembly Conservative chairman Andrew Boff, himself a gay man. 

Participants in the march were treated to free musical acts and cold soft drinks.

Alena Firestone, 21, from Washington DC, said: ‘I’ve been to pride marches in DC and Philadelphia, and I saw that they were doing one in London so I wanted to see what it was all about.

‘In Washington, you march within the parade. But here, by standing on the side, you get a better feel for it.’

Among the groups represented in the parade were Tesco workers and Ishigaki Ju-Jitsu, the UK’s biggest LGBTQ+ martial arts club. 

Also present were Queers For Palestine, who chanted ‘there is no pride in genocide’ as they marched down Piccadilly. 

A small group of just seven men and one women attended a counter-protest against the event, held in a fenced off section adjacent to the route of the parade. 

They were accompanied by several police officers to avoid potential clashes with participants.

One of the counter-protesters, a middle-aged man, attempted to address the parade by means of a loudspeaker. He was, however, ridiculed by passing marchers. 

A Pride participant was seen holding a cardboard cut-out of Jesus next to the counter-protesters, with a sign saying ‘I’m sorry about them’ and an arrow pointing toward the fenced-off group.

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