LGBTQI+ staff from Walthamstow Trades Hall write about the first Trans Pride that is set to hit E17 on Friday 26th July
Waltham Forest has a rich LGBTIQ+ heritage. It was home to an active local Campaign for Homosexual Equality (CHE) chapter in the 1970s, East London Out Project’s Family Pride in the 90s, the UK’s first Gay Sports Festival (with an opening ceremony headlined by Bucks Fizz, remember?).
The election of the borough’s first openly gay mayor (Richard Sweden, in 2012), and Waltham Forest’s first Pride Festival in 2018 are just some of the queer milestones marking Waltham Forest’s rainbow path.
Now, Stovians can proudly add to this storied list the borough’s very first Trans Pride event, an historic celebration to be hosted by the Walthamstow Trades Hall on Friday 26th July.
Organised by LGBTIQ+ members and staff of the Trades Hall to celebrate and support the LGBTIQ+ community, the event will run from 5pm to 1am and feature placard and banner making workshops led by local trans artist Mister K, LGBTIQ+ themed book stalls, table-top roleplaying games (TTRPG), art and clothing from queer designers, and more.
After 7.30pm the party will begin (open to over 16s only), hosted by a variety of drag, cabaret, burlesque and queer performers. It will be hosted by the incredible Cyro, with performances from acts like Liv Wynter, Smashlyn Monroe, Chiyo, Shakona Fire, and DJ Gawd X to keep things hyped up post-midnight.
All proceeds from ticket sales will go toward The Outside Project, who provide much-needed safety and support to the queer community, offering shelter and refuge to those facing danger, domestic abuse, homelessness and discrimination.
The organisers and the artists see Trans Pride not just as a celebration, but a timely and necessary protest. Recent years in the UK have seen a truly alarming rise in transphobia.
The rights of trans people are being rapidly eroded. Access to gender affirming care is increasingly difficult, and trans people’s open participation in social, sporting, professional, and educational spaces is under enormous threat.
14 years of Conservative government has seen a rise in moral panic over trans identities, and shortly before he became prime minister Keir Starmer announced that he would not teach “gender ideology” in schools if elected; a policy some journalists and activists have compared to Margaret Thatcher’s notorious Section 28, which prohibited the “promotion of homosexuality”.
Artist Liv Wynter, who will be performing at the event, said, “As a working-class Queer person who grew up eating bacon bites in working men’s clubs, seeing Trans flags hanging at the Trades Hall has always been an emotional and grounding experience for me.
I am extremely excited to be performing at the first ever Walthamstow Trans Pride, and to be fundraising for The Outside Project. From healthcare to housing to education, the government continues to let us down and we must rely on our community to support each other. As moral panic around our identities rises, I believe local Trans Prides will be beacons of hope this year”.
They stress the importance of that word, ‘local’, adding: “Queer people are turning to their local Prides to find a sense of community not adorned with Coca Cola logos.”
The origins are humble, but growth has been rapid. The event’s organisers first held a drop-in cupcake-decorating workshop on Trans Day of Visibility in 2022. Turnout was modest, but organisers found that young Trans people from as far afield as Kent had travelled, by hook and crook, to share a safe, sociable space.
The importance of local trans events was clear, and the decision was made to expand. 2023’s Trans Day of Visibility at the Trades was a raucous and proud affair. Now, the organisers make history, going bigger, better, and bolder to pioneer Walthamstow Trans Pride.
Come 26th July, the day before London Trans Pride, the Trades Hall will be awash in pink, white, and blue. The speakers will be pumping and the vibes will be high. With this event, Waltham Forest proudly establishes itself at the frontline in celebrating and fighting for the Trans community at this most crucial moment in history.
You can purchase a ticket for Trades Hall Trans Pride here
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