Pride is just as important 50 years since it began – here’s how we’re marking it

‘Homophobia no longer exists in the UK’.

At some stage, most LGBTQ people have heard those words uttered by their heterosexual friends. Sadly, this is not true.

That’s why, this month Metro.co.uk is working harder than ever to mark a historic milestone: the 50th anniversary of Pride.

From real life stories and news reports to celebrity takeovers and non-stop nostalgia, we hope to enlighten, titillate and entertain you with a vast array of content that will make you think, make you cry, make you angry and make you proud.

I’m gay, married to Michael and we’re going through the adoption process. I’m hugely grateful for the battles that have been fought so that I can write that sentence.

It shows what a long way we have come that a mainstream publication like Metro.co.uk and Metro newspaper are willing to dedicate a month to Pride, and for that we would like to thank our editors Deborah Arthurs and Ted Young for providing such a platform.

Metro.co.uk is already synonymous with giving a voice to the voiceless. Our content has always been courageous, when it comes to championing issues that matter to our readers, especially those from the LGBTQ community.

So for those already familiar with our brand it will come as no surprise that we are going to pull out all the stops over the next four weeks.

And, of course, we will do it fabulously.

Monday June 6 we will royally kick of Pride month with a week-long Guest Editor Takeover, when the likes of Rob Rinder, Nicola Adams, Peter Tatchell, John Waite, Anna Richardson, Kimberly Hart-Simpson and Dr Ranj will be joining the Metro.co.uk crew to not only share their stories, but also cover issues that are important to them.

We’ll also have the amazing Tia Kofi, The Vivienne and Lawrence Chaney taking over our social channels for a day, which certainly shouldn’t be missed.

However, for all the fun that goes hand in hand with Pride, there’s also the serious side – and we won’t be shying away from that either.

As part of a month-long celebration of Pride we have teamed up with Kyiv Pride who we will be raising money for throughout June.

Spokesperson Lenny Emson told Metro his organisation is working to help the community ‘survive’ the crisis.

He warned the West must understand that is ‘not just a war for Ukraine, it is a war for human rights’.

And closer to home – a new study from Stonewall revealed just under one in 10 people feel ‘disgust’ towards LGBTQ people. Much better than it was 30 years ago, but still not something we’re willing to accept lying down.

That’s why we still need to fight for the rights of the LGBTQ community, and why we will keep raising awareness of the issues that impact their lives. Now, and every day.

Despite all the progress that has been made in the UK, there is a lot more that needs to be done.

We also need to be there for our international LGBTQ brothers and sisters and show them that we stand in solidarity with them.

Kyiv Pride had 100 people on their first Pride march 10 years ago – More than 1,000 turned out to protest against them.

Last year, 7,000 people marched in support of Pride with just 250 against.

It’s a positive sign, but just like in Britain, there is still a lot of ignorance, prejudice and violence against LGBTQ people.

That’s why I will be marching with Kyiv Pride at Warsaw Pride

So while we celebrate Pride month, it’s also a time for us to consider and learn – and we hope our content over the coming weeks reflects that.