When Pride organizers need to rediscover the political roots of the LGBTQIA struggle?
Christopher Street West (CSW), organizer of L.A. Pride, is no longer helming the #BlackLivesMatter march it earlier scheduled on June 14 after it was alleged to be collaborating with police.
As earlier reported, an uprising has been happening in the US now, in protest of America’s long history of systemic racial injustice. This was again highlighted by the May 25 death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man who – after being suspected of passing a fake $20 bill – died in Minneapolis, Minnesota after a white police officer, Derek Chauvin, kneeled on his neck for over eight minutes. Three other officers were involved; and none of them revived Floyd even when he was already motionless and had no pulse. Floyd was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.
CSW, which initially canceled all in-person events due to Covid-19, announced it will hold a march to “peacefully assemble a protest in solidarity with the Black community.” This was supposed to be a reawakening of the L.A. Pride – started right after the Stonewall uprising in New York City in 1969 – which is, nowadays, more known for its festivals/parties than for being very political.
But the scheduled “march” in solidarity for #BlackLivesMatter organized in lieu of the L.A. Pride parade/festival/party was eventually slammed as a “collaboration” with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), considered tone deaf considering that the uprising happening in the US right now is a protest against police brutality.
In dropping out of the march, CSW explained its decision via a statement. “We recognize systemic racism, implicit bias and privilege permeates this country, and this includes the history of our organization. We hope to see progress and start with change from within.”
The scheduled event is pushing through on June 14, and will now be known as the All Black Lives Matter march.
