Stonewall, Black Pride urge Pride organisers to reject blackface acts
By Ross Semple
Stonewall and UK Black Pride have condemned the booking of blackface performers at Pride celebrations in the UK.
In an open letter signed by Peter Tatchell, Juno Dawson, and Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, UK Black Pride wrote: “Blackface is a form of racism that dehumanises Black people turning them into objects that can be ‘performed’. It is a modern form of minstrelsy and has no place at Pride.
The letter continues: “As we are coming into Pride season, a time of year where we should be celebrating our diversity, this ongoing issue continues to be an embarrassing stain on the LGBTQIA+ community.”
The outcry comes in response to Durham Pride’s booking of Leanne Harper, a Beyoncé tribute act who performs in blackface.
Durham Pride subsequently dropped Harper’s performance, but only after refusing to address the issue for several days and blocking those on Twitter who asked them about it.
“We have come to the decision not to include this performance in Durham Pride 2017,” they said in a statement. “We have recognised that we need to learn from this and ensure we hear from the BME community and strive to make Durham Pride as inclusive and welcoming to everyone in the county.”
They added that accounts criticising their original decision to hire Harper were “wrongly blocked”.
Stonewall are calling for a greater understanding from those who organise pride events: “There is a dangerous lack of understanding and a need for education here. This perfectly demonstrates why LGBT POC [people of colour] so often feel that there’s no seat at the table for them in the wider LGBT community.
“We must all learn better how to recognise our privileges and be allies to LGBT people who are marginalised or experience discrimination based on other factors. We must champion their specific rights to equality and inclusion.”
Stonewall’s statement reiterated that blackface is “always unacceptable and is a degrading and hurtful form of racism, regardless of the performer’s intent.”
Stonewall is calling for this Pride season to make “all LGBT people feel proud,” ensuring that “no one feels left out or excluded.”
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