Glasgow Greens and Rainbow Greens criticise Glasgow Pride organisers and urge participants to stand in solidarity with Palestine

July 16, 2024

The Scottish Greens will always fight for LGBTQ+ people, but that won’t stop us from supporting Palestine or fighting the climate crisis.

At this Saturday’s Pride march, the Glasgow Green Party and Rainbow Greens have decided not to march in a “Green Bloc” during the processions organised by Glasgow Pride Limited, but are calling on our members and supporters present to show solidarity with the people of Palestine and march as part of the “No pride in genocide: Radical Block‘.

We have taken this decision in light of reports from corporate sponsors of Glasgow’s Pride Limited and concerns that they may have interests and investments that make them complicit in the State of Israel’s ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people, as well as sponsors who are accelerating the climate crisis.

Last week, the Glasgow Greens committee contacted Glasgow’s Pride Limited to ask about its sponsors (who at this point had not yet been published) to ask whether any of them had potential complicity in Israel’s continued breach of international law or in accelerating the climate crisis. We regret to say that Glasgow’s Pride Limited’s response was shockingly hostile and deeply offensive.

In their response to our question, Glasgow’s Pride Limited accused the Glasgow Greens of supporting “a nation where the LGBTQIA+ community is criminalised” and stated that they would be contacting Police Scotland. This involves an offensive trope that holds Palestinian people, including their LGBTQ+ community, accountable for discriminatory laws imposed by a government they last had the opportunity to vote for 18 years ago, and implies that genocide is an acceptable punishment for this. We believe this to be a racist double standard that is not applied to any other people in the world.

Our full correspondence with Glasgow’s Pride Limited is published below.

We condemn the sponsorship of Pride by any corporation complicit in genocide or causing the climate crisis and we stand together No pride in Glasgow genocide by calling on Glasgow’s Pride to allow community participation in decision-making about its sponsorship and partnership policies.

Glasgow Green committee member and LGBTQ+ activist Ellie Gomersall said:

“Pride is, first and foremost, a protest and this must always be remembered, even as we rightly celebrate how far our community has come in our struggle for liberation.

As we continue to fight for our human rights, we must stand in solidarity with all those around the world who are fighting for theirs. There is no conflict between advocating for a free Palestine and celebrating our queer identities – for Glasgow’s Pride Ltd. to suggest this is disappointing and offensive.

The Scottish Greens will always fight for LGBTQ+ people, but that won’t stop us from standing up for Palestine or fighting the climate crisis. Pride should be about liberation for all, not a celebration of corporations putting a rainbow on their logo.”

Rainbow Greens co-organisers Simon Jay and Bex Glen said:

“The current corporate sponsorship of Glasgow Pride deprives many participants of the right to march, protest and celebrate as they choose.

Pride is a protest. We will protest so that trans children are not forcibly detransitioned by the state; we will show pride in the LGBT people of Palestine.

The fight for trans rights is a fight for civil rights. Let’s educate ourselves and others to love and protect our trans brothers, sisters, and siblings during these dark times. Let’s take this opportunity to network and organize with our community.

When we celebrate Pride, we are celebrating that we are still here and we can still organize, fight and strive for a better future.”

There is no pride in genocide, nor pride in a dead planet.

Yours sincerely,

Glasgow Greens and Rainbow Greens