By Sally Jane Black
In an effort to destroy the heroic history of the Stonewall rebellion on its 50th anniversary, the city rolled out New Orleans Pride with floats sponsored by corporations like G.E. (one of the world’s largest arms dealers), Walmart (currently funding the attacks on reproductive rights), Walgreens (with a policy of allowing their pharmacists to refuse to serve LGBTQ patients), and Shell (9th largest polluter in the world). They celebrated the police and the U.S. military, rather than the fight against capitalist patriarchy that is the root of LGBTQ oppression. They partied while currently LGBTQ access to housing, education, healthcare, homeless shelters, public bathrooms, and jobs are all under attack.
“Many of the corporate sponsors of Pride, including Shell, have contributed to the destruction of traditional homelands and the ways of life of Louisiana’s coastal indigenous communities, while police have always targeted and harassed us,” said local indigenous activist George, who spoke at the protest.
“As a two-spirit indigenous person it was vital for me to march against the involvement of these groups in Pride. Queerness is an essential part of Native culture, and we should be free to celebrate that without the presence of those of who have colonized and oppressed us.”
The Take Back Pride March of LGBTQ people and allies from around the city stood up against the appropriation of the struggle. The marchers spoke out against the ongoing murders of trans women of color in and out of police and ICE custody, against the attacks on LGBTQ rights, and against the other attacks on workers in New Orleans. At the core of their demands was a reclamation of Pride from the hands of those who have turned it into nothing more than a platform for making money off the LGBTQ community. Marches to Take Back Pride from corporations and cops were held all over the south and the rest of the country.
While most participants in the parade were there to celebrate their identity, many were unaware that behind the scenes, the corporate sponsors of the parade work with the right wing forces to attack that identity.
So the New Orleans Workers Group sponsored a Take Back Pride March. As the New Orleans Pride parade approached, protesters, holding banners demanding cops and corporations out of Pride, stepped in the way of the massive truck carrying members of local law enforcement and Mayor Cantrell. Nearby, members of the city council were forced to wait in their cars as the parade ground to a halt. Leaflets explaining corporate ties were given out to parade goers.
As the police proved when they swarmed the protesters, their purpose at the parade was not LGBTQ liberation but to protect rich politicians and the major tourist attraction that is New Orleans Pride. They were there to protect property over people, including the white supremacist statues that are so prominent in the French Quarter.
Organizers of Take Back Pride vowed to continue this struggle.