Pride Newsletter- Issue 3

PRIDE 2022 ISSUE 3 X

WHAT’S INSIDE KEY POINTS OF PRIDE HISTORY TO AMPLIFY WHAT IS CONVERSION THERAPY? STORY TIME WITH YOUNG LIVES VS CANCER LGBTQIA+ INFLUENCERS WE LOVE INTRO TO OUR EDUCATIONAL SPEAKER SHOWS AND MOVIES TO WATCH

A note from the team...

We hope you've been enjoying our PRIDE initiatives so far!

Before we move on to the exciting content, we appreciate that the couple of weeks we have had no choice but to change a few dates around owing to the heat and train strikes. We're SO sorry about that, because we were just as excited as you were!

We won't be abandoning our plans, but we do have new dates to share!

PRIDE Summer Party: 4th August (RSVP here) Drag Masterclass: 7th of July (we're still taking attendees if you are up for it!)

Heartstopper Drinks: We're doing an extra showing on the 14th of July.

One date that hasn't changed is our wonderful guest speaker, Jude who will be joining us in the boardroom on the 28th of June for a Lunch & Learn.

We'll have refreshments available in the office too!

Key Moments in Pride History When was the first pride parade?

The first pride parade was known as the 'Christopher Street Liberation Day March' in it's time and took place on 28th June 1970 in New York. Gay activist groups held this to recall the events of Stonewall one year prior. In Stonewall’s wake, thousands of LGBTQ+ people took to the street to demand their civil rights. The march’s route covered about 50 blocks and drew just a few thousand participants. This lead the path for the decades of activism that would follow.

When was the first pride parade in the UK? Pride in London will return this year and commemorates the 50th anniversary of the UK's first Pride march which took place on 1st July 1972. The UK's first Pride march began in Hyde Park and ended in Trafalgar Square. Organised by members of the Gay Liberation Front (GLF), it was held in response to the Stonewall Riots and had an attendance of circa 700 people. 50 years later, it is estimated that 1.5 million LGBTQ+ visitors and allies attend Pride in London.

Two pioneering transgender activists, Marsha P. Johnson, left, and Sylvia Rivera, holding sign, at the Christopher Street Liberation Day march in 1973

Key moments through history...

Gay Pride march on Cockspur Street, 1974

1988 - A law called Section 28 was introduced which meant that teachers were not allowed to 'promote' gay relationships in schools.

2000 - A law was changed which allowed gay, bisexual and transgender people to be in the armed forces.

2002 - A law was changed to allow same sex couples (and also unmarried couples) to adopt children.

2000 in Scotland and 2003 in England and Wales - The ban on 'promoting' homosexuality in schools (Section 28) was overturned.

2004 - This year marked the start of civil partnerships for same sex couples. This meant that they had similar rights to people who were married, but civil partnerships are not exactly the same as marriage.

2004/5 - The Gender Recognition Act came into effect (April 2005) allowing the legal changing of gender among other things.

2008 - It became illegal to encourage homophobic hatred.

2013 - Gay marriage was made legal in England and Wales, and later in Scotland. In Northern Ireland, gay marriage became legal in 2019.

Conversion Therapy What is conversion therapy?

The British Psychological Society (BPS) states that conversion therapy (also known as "reparative therapy" or "gay cure therapy") tries to change someone's sexual orientation or gender identity. In practice, it means trying to stop or suppress someone from being gay, or from living as a different gender to their sex recorded at birth. It can include talking therapies and prayer, but more extreme forms can include exorcism, physical violence and food deprivation.

How common is conversion therapy?

About 5% of the 108,000 people who responded to the government's UK-wide LGBT Survey in 2018 said they had been offered some form of conversion therapy, while 2% had undergone it. Those from an ethnic minority background were twice as likely to be affected. About 10% of Christian respondents and 20% of Muslims said they had undergone or been offered conversion therapy, compared to 6% with no religion. The figure was higher among transgender respondents. Almost one in 10 trans men said they had been offered conversion therapy, and one in 25 said they had undergone it. It is important to note that the survey did not define what it meant by conversion therapy, and did not ask when it had happened, or whether it was in the UK. What policies are in place to ban conversion therapy in the UK? IIn April 2022, the UK government said it would ban conversion therapy for gay, lesbian and bisexual people in England and Wales, but not for transgender people. The British Medical Association have stated that they are horrified that the government has backtracked on its commitments, stating that everyone deserves to be protected from the damage of conversion therapy. The exclusion of trans people was decried by celebrities, activists and some politicians, pride in London tweeted that the organization was devastated by the government’s decision and that “this will only result in further abuse and pain for trans communities.” This only highlights the importance of the Trans Rights protest that will be held on 9th of July, because whilst the T is ignored and alienated by these laws there is no LGBTQIA+ community, after all without the trans people that put there lives on the line, there would be no pride.

Young Lives Vs Cancer

Our Social and Charity team have been working with Young Lives Vs Cancer, who were kind enough to share this inspiring story about how they were able to support Hannah and Nikki with their family during the most difficult challenge they faced.

Hannah and Nikki are mums to Arlo, who was diagnosed with cancer just a day after his first birthday. Here, Nikki shares their family’s story.

“In November 2019 Arlo got poorly. We put it down to teething, but all of a sudden he got a rash on his bottom. We took him straight to the doctors who told us he was constipated and that’s why he wasn’t feeling too great and they sent us away giving us tips how to help. Later that night Arlo was taken to hospital where we were given more meds and creams.

Days past and Arlo was no better. He was sick all the time and was just ‘out of it’. We noticed his nappies weren’t wet and he was dehydrated, so again we rushed to hospital for an overnight stay and the next day were discharged with gastroenteritis.

A few more days had passed and we were doing everything to make Arlo comfortable and well, he always had a smile on his face throughout all the pain. It was his first birthday party, we had family over, and that night he was rushed again to hospital because he was just limp.

Young Lives Vs Cancer We got to the hospital and we are so glad we did. The next day I got a phone call from the doctor asking for myself to come in.

His other mammy was with Arlo and I asked why, they explained that they were trying to keep Arlo alive but his potassium levels were dangerously high and about to send him into heart failure. He was given a catheter as he still hadn’t had a wee and his little body was holding two litres of urine.

This lead Arlo to have double kidney failure.

We were transferred to the RVI hospital in Newcastle for scans. The next day we were told a day after his first birthday, 4.12.19, Arlo had cancer.

The next few days were full of biopsies and scans and plans what to do and they came to the conclusion that Arlo was going to have nine rounds of chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery.

As a mama in a lesbian couple I was scared that I wasn’t going to be treated like a mam to Arlo as Hannah is Arlo’s birth mother. I am not on the birth certificate as we had a private donor. I was scared I wasn’t going be treated like Arlo’s mum, but the RVI hospital in Newcastle didn’t make me feel left out. I was able to sign paper work, make choices with Arlo’s treatment, was involved just like any parent. I was Arlo’s mum."

To continue reading Hannah and Nikkis story: CLICK HERE

Our Favourite LGBTQIA+ Shows to Watch Right Now!

LGBTQIA+ Influencers we LOVE!

Jamie Windust (they/them) is a writer, editor, model, and public speaker. They made headlines in 2018 for calling out the staff of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald for "Misogyny, homophobia, transphobia everywhere", and in 2019 for petitioning the UK Parliament for genderneutral passport options. @jamie_windust

Max Hovey (he/him) is an influencer, student, blogger, content creator, and mental health and queer activist.

When he first began using Instagram, he developed an unhealthy relationship with it. His personal insecurities lead him to use the platform as a means for validation, with little regard for the content of what he was posting. Max now stands for everything right in the world body positivity, and aboloshing insecurities. We truly admire Max, and urge you to check out his work at www.happysmiley.co.uk @max_hovey

LGBTQIA+ Influencers we LOVE! Deni Todorovic (they/them) is a vocal activist for queer rights and human rights and pushes the narrative forward around topics of gender, sexuality, politics, race and equality.

They are a respected voice within the industry, advocating for inclusivity and inclusive language. Deni identifies as non-binary and presents themself as a neutral combination of gender expression, of which they affectionately call ‘The Space In Between’.

Penelope Gwen (she/her) is a 22 @stylebydeni year old British Make Up Artist, Model and Instagram Influencer.

She is well known for her outstanding make up skills, creative flare and edgy personal style. She has built an impressive portfolio along with an extremely loyal fan base over her 5 years on Instagram. We thought being a tribe of beauty lovers, it was only right for us to share! @pennold

More PRIDE Treats!

With so many amazing LGBTQIA+ brands stocked on-site, we wanted to support them by treating everyone at Cult Beauty to an extra 10% discount over payday!

The extra discount is valid from midnight on the 29th of June and Valid until midnight on the 3rd of July - plenty of time to get stocked up! The code is: CBXPRIDE *Please note that this code will apply a 50% discount during this time for the below brands only, and the regular 40% will apply to all other brands.

Too Faced about-face Malin + Goetz Boy Smells Peace Out Makeup By Mario Patrick Ta Allies of Skin

Byoma Tan-Luxe Kevin Aucoin Selfless By Hyram Jordan Samuel Mara Beauty Isle of Paradise Good Light

To learn a little bit more about our gorgeous, gorgeous LGBTQIA+ founded and owned brands check out our pride blog.

NEW PARTY DATE We sent an email earlier this month about our summer party date having to be moved due to train/tube strikes.

So, here's another RSVP form!

Please make sure you complete this so we can ensure there is enough food and drink to go around!

RSVP HERE The party will remain the same and there will still be prizes up for grabs so make sure you have your outfits planned in advance! Think every colour on the rainbow, LGBTQIA+ icons and anything amazing your imagination comes up with! It is a celebration after all, so as dressy as you can get! Keep eyes peeled for our next edition where we'll be sharing some PRIDE outfit inspo to get the creative juices flowing.

Our concierge team will still be doing PRIDE eye looks on the day for a donation - we'll be sharing a new sheet to book your slot soon!

Our Guest Speaker Name Jude Guaitamacchi Pronouns they/them Who are they?

Jude is a Trans, Non-binary Public Speaker, Consultant and Model.

Instagram: @becomingjude

As seen in Vogue, Jude was the first non-binary person to represent Harrods for their H beauty campaign, with the tagline “My beauty is being myself’ Jude continues to strive to be the role model they needed growing up.

Jude is not only paving the way for trans and non-binary representation in the world of fashion & beauty but is also championing trans equality in schools and businesses across the UK and Europe. Jude will be delivering the first ever TEDx talk on the topic in May 2022.

They went onto to train with DREDUK as a PSHE educator. They built a freelance career, working with education teams and charities across the country. They work internationally delivering a range of workshops including Trans & LGBTQIA+ Awareness, Addiction & Substance Misuse, Self-Esteem, Eating Disorders, Body Image, Peer Pressure and Bullying. They have been featured in Vogue Italia, BBC News Beat, BBCthree, Vice, The Independent, Cosmopolitan, Pink News, Refinery29 and more.

When: 28th June 1pm-2pm Where: HQ Boardroom/Zoom What: More Than Just A Rainbow and Life Beyond The Binary Links: https://www.becomingjude.com/

Lastly a huge shout out and thank you to our PRIDE panelists: (L-R) Gordon, Olivia, Ryan, Lisa (host) and Shiva for speaking so passionately and openly with us last week.

You touched on some truly important topics and gave everyone something to think about!