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London Trans+ Pride

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London Trans+ Pride
a large group of protestors with signs, many holding the trans pride flag
Trans+, 2023
FrequencyAnnually
Inaugurated14 September 2019 (2019-09-14)
Previous event26 July 2025 (2025-07-26)
Attendance100,000+[1]

London Trans+ Pride is a pride march advocating transgender rights held in London, England, United Kingdom.

History

[edit]

London Trans+ Pride was co-founded in 2019 by a collective group of trans+ people including Lucia Blayke and Finn Love, inspired by Trans Pride Brighton.[2] It was founded in part due to a rising climate of transphobia in the UK and across the world, as well as in response to an anti-transgender protest controversy that occurred at the Pride in London march in 2018, where eight anti-trans activists took the lead of the march without authorisation.[3][4][5] The event was originally scheduled to take place in Hackney, East London but was moved to central London and has remained there in subsequent years.[6] The 2019 march was held in September and saw attendance of around 1500 people.[7][8]

The 2020 march saw attendance of 4000 people, with a number of COVID-19 safety measures put in place by the organisers, and called for legal recognition of non-binary identities and a ban on intersex genital mutilation.[9] It also included a memorial to Elie Che, a prominent transgender London activist and performer who died in August of that year.[10]

The 2021 march was held in June, and included calls for a ban on conversion therapy, greater access to healthcare for trans people, and a ban on intersex genital mutilation.[11] The event included speeches by Munroe Bergdorf, Ki Griffin, Bimini Bon-Boulash, Abigail Thorn, and Kai-Isaiah Jamal.[12][13]

The 2022 march was held in July, with attendance of over 20,000 people.[14][15] The event called to "celebrate the memory of trans lives taken and uphold the next generation of trans revolutionaries," and included speeches by Yasmin Finney and Charlie Craggs.[16][17] Abigail Thorn said at the event that "legally and politically", trans people in the country "are not allowed to control our own lives".

In 2023, it was estimated 25,000 to 35,000 people attended the march.[18] The organisers emphasised the event was still a protest in what was called the "biggest ever" call for trans rights in the UK.[19]

In 2024, at least 55,000 to 60,000 people attended the march, motivated in part by the British government’s recently enacted ban on puberty blockers, making it the biggest trans pride march in the world.[20][21]

On 26 July 2025, more than 100,000 people attended the march, surpassing the previous year's event as the biggest trans pride march in the world.[22]

Since 2019, London Trans+ Pride has been run by a volunteer organising committee which includes EM Williams, Sweatmother, Ren Mars, Lewis G. Burton as well as many who have wished to remain anonymous.[23][24] In addition to the yearly protest, London Trans+ Pride march, they also hold additional events for trans advocacy including a takeover of the NOMAD stage at Glastonbury Festival in 2022, 2023 and 2024.[25]

Attendance by year

[edit]
Year Date Approximate turnout Notes / significance
2019 14 September 2019 ~1,500 First-ever march; founded in response to anti‑trans protest at Pride in London [26]
2020 September 2020 ~4,000 Held under COVID‑19 restrictions, with memorial to Elie Che [27]
2021 26 June 2021 ≳7,500 Speeches by Munroe Bergdorf, Ki Griffin, Bimini Bon‑Boulash, Abigail Thorn; protest framing [28]
2022 9 July 2022 ≳20,000 Major growth amid escalating legal/political backlash :contentReference[oaicite:4]{index=4} [29]
2023 8 July 2023 ~25,000 (up to 35,000) BBC reported ~25 K; other sources cited up to 35 K; still emphasised as protest [30]
2024 27 July 2024 ~55,000–60,000 Record-breaking; largest trans pride march globally at the time [31]
2025 26 July 2025 ≳100,000 New global record; theme “Existence & Resistance”; response to UK Supreme Court ruling on legal definition of “woman” [32]

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ Clinton, Jane (26 July 2025). "Tens of thousands of people take to streets for London Trans+ Pride 2025". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  2. ^ Abraham, Amelia (2019-05-15). "If London needs a separate Trans Pride, what does that say about LGBT solidarity?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  3. ^ "If London needs a separate Trans Pride, what does that say about LGBT solidarity? | Amelia Abraham". TheGuardian.com. 15 May 2019.
  4. ^ "London Trans Pride is the 'one day we're not outcasts'". BBC News. 14 September 2019.
  5. ^ "Here's everything you need to know about London's first Trans+ Pride". 14 August 2019.
  6. ^ "London to host its first Transgender Pride festival this year". The Independent. 2019-04-26. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  7. ^ "London's first Trans Pride support 'overwhelming'". BBC News. 14 September 2019.
  8. ^ "We Asked People at London's First Trans Pride Why the Event Needed to Happen".
  9. ^ "Protesters march in second London Trans+ Pride". NBC News. 14 September 2020.
  10. ^ "London's second-ever Trans Pride to go ahead this weekend, amid looming fears over police and arrests". 11 September 2020.
  11. ^ "This Year's London Trans Pride Will March Against Rising Tide of Hate in the U.K." 26 April 2021.
  12. ^ "Thousands of Protesters Turned Out for London Trans+ Pride 2021".
  13. ^ "Thousands line the streets for London Trans+ Pride 2021". 28 June 2021.
  14. ^ "London's Trans Pride – in pictures". The Guardian. 11 July 2022.
  15. ^ "Meet the people marching in London's Trans Pride". Independent.co.uk. 9 July 2022.
  16. ^ "'We Deserve Better!' Thousands March for London Trans Pride After 'Actively Damaging Year'". 11 July 2022.
  17. ^ "London Trans+ Pride to return with urgent protest against 'deliberate' Tory attacks". 11 April 2022.
  18. ^ "Over 25,000 People Marched for Trans Rights This Weekend in London". Them. 2023-07-10. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  19. ^ Davis, Barney (2023-07-08). "Trans+ Pride 2023: Thousands march through rain demanding Trans rights". Evening Standard. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  20. ^ Smoke, Ben (29 July 2024). "London Trans+ Pride is breaking records". Huck Magazine. Retrieved 21 August 2024.
  21. ^ "90 Life-Affirming Photos From The Trans+ Pride March In London". Vogue UK.
  22. ^ Clinton, Jane (26 July 2025). "Tens of thousands of people take to streets for London Trans+ Pride 2025". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 July 2025.
  23. ^ Maheshwari-Aplin, Prishita (2022-07-08). "London Trans+ Pride Organisers On Why Showing Up Is More Important Than Ever - BRICKS Magazine". bricksmagazine.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  24. ^ "Why Trans Pride is more important than ever". Huck. 2023-07-07. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  25. ^ Hunt, El (2022-07-02). "Glastonbury does Trans Pride: "We're bringing a queer and trans takeover to the field"". The Forty-Five. Retrieved 2024-04-30.
  26. ^ https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-49700743
  27. ^ https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2020/09/11/london-trans-pride-protest-elie-che-gender-recognition-act-non-binary/
  28. ^ https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb/london-trans-pride-2021
  29. ^ https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/gallery/2022/jul/11/londons-trans-pride-in-pictures>
  30. ^ https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/trans-pride-2023-trafalgar-square-lgbtq-rights-human-b1093107.html
  31. ^ https://www.huckmag.com/article/london-trans-pride-is-breaking-records-puberty-blockers-labour-nadia-whittome-wes-streeting-mermaids-not-a-phase
  32. ^ https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/jul/26/tens-of-thousands-of-people-take-to-streets-for-london-trans-pride-2025
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