Pride in our communities

MindOut is immensely proud of Pride. As a ‘mental health’ event, what could be finer than a celebration of our lives, our difference, our contributions to the world, to Brighton & Hove, to each other. It’s a chance to show off, to get together, to be creative, to learn, to share and to belong.

This may help make clear why MindOut has cared to get involved in debates about how Pride celebrations can be as inclusive as possible, which means including those of us who have less access to disposable income.

By having to charge for entry to the park, the issue of whether each of us can afford to go creates a division between those for whom the price of a ticket is well within their means and those for whom it’s out of the question.

If you have a relatively good income, an affordable home, your food bills and utility bills are taken care of regularly, not so much debt you can’t handle, then buying a ticket for Pride probably doesn’t present any problem at all. Those of us who are comfortable money-wise may well spend far more than the cost of a Pride ticket on all sorts of social, leisure, recreational pursuits daily.

If you are unable to find work or unable to work then you may be living on approximately £70 a week, or £56 if you are aged under 25.

These amounts are to cover food, fuel, transport, clothing etc. It’s too hard to live on that for any length of time, no-one would want to try it.

This year we tried to ensure that some people in Brighton & Hove’s LGBT communities who live on next to nothing had the opportunity to go to the Pride park festival. This is despite the fact that the Pride CIC has to make sure it covers costs and sells enough higher price tickets, no mean feat.

There is no perfect way to make sure everyone who needs an affordable ticket gets one.

With the support of Pride and the LGBT community groups and organisations we hope to get the tickets Pride has released to as many people as we can.

None of this would matter if Pride was any other festival or any other show, and of course not everyone can afford to go to everything they would like to. The reason it matters is because of what Pride symbolises, because it has a history, because of the politics of LGBT community development, because to feel included is good for your mental health and because too many of us are at risk of feeling the opposite, too many of us are socially isolated.

MindOut would like to thank everyone who has helped make this happen, especially the Pride organisers. You have made Pride a more accessible, equal event, you have made sure that some of the disadvantaged people in our communities can participate, you have made sure that some of the people who are particularly socially isolated can chose to join in. That makes us proud of Pride.