From top: PSNI officers during last year’s Belfast Pride March; Belfast Pride founder P A Maglochlainn
‘Some Old Queen‘ writes:
Belfast was a surreal place in the eighties because security meant the city centre was closed at night and the only way in or out was through turnstiles.
On the far side of this eerily empty dark zone was ‘Carpenters’, the original safe space where down an alleyway and after being vetted through a peephole, gay people socialised.
‘Carpenters’ was a very different world for the likes of me, people happy with what they were, if only for a few hours.
The most bizarre scene I ever witnessed was in that club, of British soldiers pushing their way through a dance floor but in true form, people just kept dancing.
‘Carpenters’ did not have a permit to sell alcohol so you didn’t need a gaydar as you just followed those carrying off-licence bags. I am not sure if they ever applied, but the chances of the Northern Irish Gay Rights Association (NIGRA) getting a license in those days was zero anyways.
The first Belfast Pride arrived in 1991 and took the opposite route of now, onto Royal Avenue at City Hall then down towards the Art College.
For reasons known only to the RUC, they refused to clear a path so we were forced to walk through a crowd who were not gay friendly, and that is putting it mildly.
There was no stage or entertainment at the other end but the original trailblazer, P.A. MagLochlainn, stood up on a bench and shouted “see you next year”.
And he did, and every other year until his passing. You will see reference to the late P.A. in this year’s Belfast Pride, in the form of bishops on motorised scooters, his trademark in the latter years.
One important point to make and I know this from personal experience is that that Jeff Dudgeon, P.A. MagLochlainn and rest of NIGRA may have had their differences but they were resolutely non sectarian and that ethos has carried through to this very day.
LGBT+ communities worldwide are renowned for their diversity but there was an added dimension in NI. Some people had a very hard time back then, not just for being gay but also because they mixed with ‘the other side’.
Nowadays, while people may be active in the mainstream, there is a solid understanding that tribalism will never attract Belfast LGBT+ business and on an individual level it is slapped down pretty quick. That is the legacy of NIGRA.
The Rev. Ian Paisley’s career was largely based on the premise that the ROI was a Roman Catholic priest riddled state and for the most part he was right.
But, what he opposed is long gone and its replacement is now the yardstick by which NI is measured.
I won’t dwell on the offensive and hurtful comments made over the years but would someone from the DUP now stand up and explain how they are behaving any differently to the Roman Catholic Church of fifty years ago?
Please explain why your reactionary highhandedness takes precedence over other people’s right to marry. At the very least, make a public statement addressing your own LGBT+ members because as you know; they do exist. The clock is ticking, and it is most defiantly a countdown.
The amount of people demanding reform within NI is growing and LGBT+ is front centre. The number of advocates at Belfast Pride multiples each year, especially among those who have no fear of being mistaken as gay and, the amount of younger is now quite extraordinary.
Pride attracts large numbers of people into the city, generates a lot of much needed revenue and gives an optic into the real soul of Belfast that no tax funded tourist agency possibly could.
But, NI LGBT+ is still fighting for rights, still demanding to be heard, still second class citizens. The only part of UK and Ireland where gay people cannot be married is to the absolute shame of NI.
Sixty thousand people at Dublin Pride, can you beat that Belfast? I hope so, I really do.
Book now, trivago, airbnb, misterbnb, phone a friend, phone a stranger even. In your heart just make a decision in to be there, and you will.
The times they are a changin so come join us at this big smiley protest, be part of history, dress to express, wear comfortable shoes. We have strength in numbers, generosity of spirit and we have fierce unicorns…. they’re called drag queens.
Some Old Queen is a Broadsheet commenter.
Belfast Pride, August 4, starts 1pm Custom House Quay, Belfast .