Hull Pride: City looks back at 21 years of championing and celebrating LGBT rights

What seemed to be a minor incident in Greenwich Village, in the heart of New York, escalated into something that, with time, reverberated around the world – and its effects are still being felt today.

Except that they have transformed from a determined protest and response to alarming police over- reaction, into an international force for good, and an indication of progress. A small pebble can have many ripples.

The facts are quite simple. Most of the gay bars in the Big Apple were owned or operated by the Mafia. When the police raided them (as they did, frequently), they were not only trying to intimidate the clientele, but they were also sending a message to the Mob, that they were the people in charge, and not the gangsters. It was, they thought, a rather clever “two birds with one stone” tactic. Intimidate and molest the clients and annoy the criminals. But this time, they were very, very wrong.

They had also picked the wrong bar, for on that humid midsummer night, what the lads in blue thought would be a routine rough-up of the customers and staff escalated into a full-time riot.

There is only one known photograph that records that first morning of disturbance – taken by a freelance photographer called Joseph Ambrosini – and it is evidence of the moment that gay people decided to stand their ground, and to fight back against persistent police provocation. A group of young men are shown as they push back against uniformed officers. Moments before, they had been listening to music, enjoying a drink, and socialising. The bar they had chosen to meet in that night was The Stonewall Inn.

The ”Stonewall riots” saw the police lose control of the situation over several nights, and within just a few days, the Village community was organising itself into specific activist groups, all demanding the right to live openly and freely, and without stigma. Sexual orientation, they said – loudly – should not be a reason for intimidation or discrimination. By anyone.

A year after the revolt, the first gay pride marches took place in cities across the USA, including Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Formalised gay rights organisations were set up, and there was more than a whiff of militancy in the air. The idea spread to other countries, and very slowly international society was restructured. Of course, there are still some regimes where to be gay is not tolerated – at best – and the battle for equal rights is still to be fully won.

The NYC raids did not stop overnight, but they certainly struck a match under a dry-as-tinder bonfire that is still burning very brightly today. The beacon is still lit, and it shines powerfully into the darkness of intolerance. Naturally enough, the first Pride in the UK was in London, but other major cities and venues were not so far behind. And this year Hull is proud to be staging its 21st Pride celebration. In a glorious twist of fate – and an indication of how times have changed – Humberside Police are actually one of the many sponsors of Pride in Hull.

Their NYC predecessors of half a century ago were virulently against any sort of gay solidarity; innovative Humberside are now joining in the celebrations. Alongside them, also as sponsors, are nearly two dozen “big names” from East Yorkshire, as varied as Hull Trains, Smith and Nephew and Unison.

Hull Pride – which like so many other events have been mothballed for the last two years – is back on July 30. It takes place in West Park, next to the MFM Stadium, and the place will be jumping after a carnival-like parade.

Fifty thousand people from all sorts of backgrounds attend and it is one of the biggest of its kind in the North. It will feature – among many other names and celebrities – Keith Duffy (Boyzone) and Brian McFadden (Westlife) plus Trinity Taylor, one of the more exuberant performers from RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Both before and after the event, there are no less than seven gay-friendly venues across Hull who will be welcoming visitors and regulars, and they include Fuel, Star, and The Oak Vaults.

Whatever your inclination, relaxed drink or upbeat disco, you’ll find it there for you. The steering team of Hull Pride (it is a registered charity, and dependent on sponsorships and donations) are only seven-strong, and chaired by Jamie Lewis. They come from all sorts of backgrounds – Jamie is involved in telecommunications, while his colleague Andy Train (who is creative director) has been a nurse, and is now involved in several freelance projects, including being a street entertainer. And Andy can remember going to Hull’s very first Pride, all those twenty-one years ago.

“It was great fun”, he recalls, “but a little bit ‘worthy’ in those days, with a lot of trestle tables piled high with advice leaflets, lots of boards and photographs. We had really good time, but I’m not quite sure, with hindsight, that anyone really quite knew what they were doing. We had to find a purpose, and a momentum, and that has built over the years.”

Another of the team, Cat Bradshaw, can reassure the crowds of today that “it’s not just getting out there and having a whale of a time, its about giving support – or advice – when and where it is needed. We are trying to be all-inclusive, and there will be trained teams who will give back-up or referrals or confidential counselling if it is required. You can come to Pride alone, and make friends – who knows, you may find your life-long partner – you can come with your mates, you can come as a family. Just come, turn up, and enjoy the atmosphere.”

Andy recalls the days when “a lot of people simply could not be themselves, and had to hide some of their character. I was one of them. I remember vividly going to a Pride event in Manchester with a very good friend of mine, and loving every moment of it. But at the same time, I hated myself, because, back then, I was a married man, and to my shame I took off my wedding ring as we crossed over the Pennines. There are still some people today who won’t go to a local Pride, because they may get ‘found out’. So they might, for example, be from West Yorkshire, and come all the way over to us, where they can be more comfortable, and relaxed. But yes, we are indeed a very long way from ‘the bad old days’.

“There are some who can recall a time when police would take photographs of vehicle number plates – cars parked in the vicinity of a gay club or bar, and then track down the addresses, and make a surprise visit to a home, where the driver was humiliated. Appalling behaviour. The days of being a person of two halves, one face for work and another for leisure, are not entirely gone. But wow, what progress we’ve all made and the future looks better and better. We got back our sense of self-worth. Those Stonewall people released a gay genie who will never be put back in the bottle.”