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Comment on NSW Police face fresh calls to be banned from Mardi Gras

Pride in Protest has consistently campaigned for the exclusion of NSW Police from the parade citing a culture of homophobia within the force and an adversarial attitude towards unsolved gay hate deaths.

Far be it from me to have any say in this matter, but I don’t believe the cops who want to march are the same cops exhibiting homophobia and disdain for gay hate deaths. I would think that encouraging more engagement with the community would do more good than excluding people.

“It’s a bit hypocritical to ban them from marching if you’re going to rely on them, as everybody does for major events, for security.”

I think this is a fair point.

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zero_gravitas@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago

I don’t believe the cops who want to march are the same cops exhibiting homophobia and disdain for gay hate deaths.

Sure, but if they’re in uniform they’re representing that institution as a whole. Marching in uniform, in formation, with guns, no less.

“It’s a bit hypocritical to ban them from marching if you’re going to rely on them, as everybody does for major events, for security.”

I think that’s legally mandated. If there were any other option available I’m sure Pride In Protest would be pushing for that too.

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pupbiru@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago
pride is a protest. it’s not a zoo - we aren’t here to be a spectacle, we aren’t here to be a tourist attraction for the state or federal governments

we are here to fight for our rights and equality - which we still don’t have, despite some of the white picket fence crowd trying to say that since we have marriage it’s over

police are the tool by which the majority oppresses the minority. as a symbol, police marching at mardi gras changes what it is - from a protest to an event - to a zoo for their amusement… their involvement is approval from the majority that what we’re doing is sanitised enough, is “ordinary” enough in their eyes

are there queer police? of course! can they be proud of themselves, and of their job? again, of course! but when they represent the police force, in uniform, they represent a group whose purpose is directly against the protest that is the whole point of the event

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- Eyekaytee@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago
  
  we are here to fight for our rights and equality - which we still don’t have
  
  What rights don’t you have?
  
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  - Nath@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago
    Let’s be reasonable, here. I don’t understand why half the community wanted to exclude gay cops but I can absolutely see that queer people face oppression just for existing.
    
    Yes, we have come a long way since the 1970s when Pride started. But hate of queer people hasn’t gone away. It’s up to everyone to recognize that and fight against it whenever loonies start to stir it up in our communities.
    
    My examples are in Perth, because I’m in Perth. I’m sure this happens everywhere in Australia, though.
    
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    Eyekaytee@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago
    i’ll admit i don’t like the drag queen storytime, just doesn’t sit right with me
    
    tbf i probably wouldn’t like tradie storytime or ceo storytime either, just seems…suspicious…but at the same time parents are more than welcome to just not go, not sure where the issue is
    
    the teenagers attacking gays is just maddening, i wonder where they are getting it from
    
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Taleya@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago
nah. I don’t see them sooking for a float at moomba or the grand final parade.

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- Nath@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago
  Why would NSW police have anything do to with these Melbourne parades? 😃
  
  I have never seen an AFL parade, I just assumed it was all about footballers. Are there floats and stuff about non AFL stuff?
  In WA, there’s a game each year connected somehow with WA Police. I’ve seen all the police recruiting banners and police community stalls around Optus stadium when I’ve attended games.
  
  As to Moomba, have you forgotten Gentle Gendarme? The Victorian Police have a long history of being a part of the parade.
  
  As I said: I have zero connection to the Sydney pride festival. So I have no strong opinion on what the organisers do/decide. But your response has highlighted the point I was making: I frequently see comments online that view police everywhere as one massive edifice all being the same thing. The replies that comment received follow that pattern. Police officers aren’t all one thing any more than all [religion members / political party members / sports team members / coworkers / pick your analogy] are all one thing. By excluding the cops who are queer/allies because of the actions of some other cops, you essentially tell them they’ll be tainted with that brush no matter what they do and they shouldn’t bother trying to improve things from the inside because it’ll never matter. I just think that’s sad.
  
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  - Taleya@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago
    
    I have never seen an AFL parade, I just assumed it was all about footballers.
    
    buddy, wait until you hear what Pride is about…
    
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    Nath@aussie.zone ⁨1⁩ ⁨week⁩ ago
    
    buddy, wait until you hear what Pride is about…
    
    To be fair, I’ve never seen a pride parade, either. The photo highlights look like a blast, though.
    
    No one’s saying “people who are police officers can’t march”. That’s a complete strawman.
    
    But they are saying they can’t march as police officers. How is that different to saying something like ‘gay people can be in the military, but they can’t be out’?
    
    Being a cop isn’t like being an IT worker. I go home, I’m off the clock. A cop is a cop everywhere they go. ‘You can march, but you have to hide who you are’ looks like a different sort of oppression to me.
    
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