Greens march at Trans Pride 2019 to call for end to trans hate crime, following 43% rise in city.
Greens on Trans Pride March 2018
A recent report to the Council revealed trans hate crimes on the rise in Brighton & Hove.
Members of Brighton & Hove Green Party will join the Trans Pride March in Brighton tomorrow, Saturday July 20 which starts at The Marlborough at 11.30am.
Promoting equality and celebrating gender diversity, Trans Pride Brighton is now in its seventh year and the number of attendees has been growing year on year with over 2,500 people marching last year.
The Green Party will march in solidarity to demonstrate its continued support for trans people, and that Brighton & Hove will not tolerate messages of hate against the LGBT+ communities.
This follows a successful Green amendment for all councillors to have Trans Awareness Training, after a committee reported that trans hate crimes in the city are up 43%. Nationally, trans hate crime has also increased 81% in the last year.
Caroline Lucas MP for Brighton Pavilion will be speaking at the march, which ends with a festival in Brunswick Square.
Caroline Lucas MP
Ms Lucas said:“It’s inspiring to watch support for this incredibly important event continue to grow, as it heads into its seventh year, and I’m so proud that Brighton and Hove is home to the first ever trans pride in the UK.
“Trans Pride is about celebrating all that’s been achieved by the Trans community worldwide, celebrating diversity and – crucially – demanding real equality. The Green Party will continue to challenge stigma and do everything possible to eliminate discrimination so that everyone can live in dignity and safety.”
Cllr Hannah Clare
Councillor Hannah Clare, Deputy Convenor of the Green Group of councillors, who will be attending the march, added: “With hate crime on the rise both in the city and nationally, we are proud to show our strong support to trans people across Brighton and Hove.
“Trans people still face a totally unacceptable level of discrimination, prejudice and ignorance and there’s still a lot of work to do if we are to achieve equality for trans people. We need to improve access to medical services and strengthen hate crime laws to tackle harassment.”
“We remain fully committed to making trans equality a reality and with the trans community we will push together for a fairer future.”
Hove Town Hall flies the Trans Flag to celebrate Trans Pride Brighton 2019
Since Trans Pride Brighton and Hove commenced in 2013 organisers endeavour each year, to produce a bigger and better event with more variety and choice – this year is no different!
TRANS Pride Brighton and Hove (TPB&H 2019) have partnered with more people this year to bring something for everyone, including favourites such as the Film Night, the Park Event and the Afterparty. This year sees the return of the highly successful After-Gig – a punk night presenting some of the not-so-family-friendly bands that can’t be featured on the main stage at the Park Event as well as the introduction of a brand new punk, metal, rock DJ night to cater for those who have a taste for more alternative music.
This year’s focus has been on increasing the offerings to include several sports activities too. The programme features wheelchair basketball where you get to have a go at whizzing around a basketball court with Sussex Bears Wheelchair Basketball, the much-loved long-running Trans Swimming Evening and Beach Volleyball with Trans Can Sport.
2019 sees the return of the Sports Area at the Park Event, which this year features demonstrations from sports people, personal trainers and fitness groups from the trans communities.
For the first time ever, there is also a Trans Pride Fun Run. The very first fun run organised by and for people in the trans communities. You can choose to do 2.5km or the full 5km and because it’s a flat tarred route, the run is open to wheelchair users too.
After the Fun Run, you can pop along to the annual picnic to wind down, hang out and relax.
TPB&H 2019 remain true to their grassroots beginnings and committed to make sure that their main Park Event is always free and all their events remain affordable.
In order to balance these priorities against the ever-growing cost of staging the event, TPB&H 2019 have had to seek funding from outside of the community. The vast majority of funding this year has come from grants, with organisers being very selective and only accepting grants and sponsorships from ethical sources that have proven track records supporting TNBI communities. They also try and consider the environmental impact as well.
This year grants have been received from Brighton and Hove City Council – Sports England, specifically to support the sports events happening throughout the week – The National Lottery Community Fund, specifically to replace the ageing infrastructure, the Co Op Community Fund and Bupa Healthcare.
Disabled Toilets have been sponsored by UNISON while the stage and all its surrounding infrastructure this year has been sponsored by Unite South East Region LGBT in memory of Rianna who was a member of Unite South East Region LGBT.
Saturday, July 20 Trans Pride Brighton and Hove March Time: 11:30am – 1pm Place: Outside Marlborough Pub & Theatre, 4 Princes street, Brighton, BN2 1RD Tickets: Free
Gather at 11:30 am for the protest march from the Marlborough Pub in Brighton to the park event in Hove. Be surrounded by thousands of siblings and allies to show the world that trans people are visible and proud.
Trans Pride Brighton Park Event Time: 1pm – 6pm Where: Brunswick Square, Hove, BN3 1, United Kingdom Tickets: Free entry
TPB&H 2019 returns again this year to Brunswick Square, Hove with community and food stalls, a stage featuring trans bands, musicians and spoken word artists as well as a Sports in the Park programme:
♦ 1:15 pm Yoga
♦ 1:50pmEuropean Martial Arts
♦ 2:40 pm Circus
♦ 3:30 pm Creating long term change and return benefits
♦ 4:05 pm Upper Body Workout
♦ 4:40 pm Boxing and Kickboxing Taster Session
Trans Pride Brighton Official After-Party Traumfrau Time: Punk DIY Gig: 8pm–10:30 pm, Club and Performances 11pm – 3am Place: Envy, Charles St and Patterns, Marine Parade, Brighton BN2 1TA Tickets:Standard ticket: £8, Chaperone: £0, Pay it Forward: donation, Free ticket: people can claim a free ticket, no questions asked
Tramsfrauhosts the official Trans Pride afterparty where you can expect an extravaganza of the DIY Punk gig (8pm–10pm), followed by clubbing, dancing, live art, live performances, a community-led arts project and installation. The night spans three venues and will be epic!
Sunday, July 21 Fun Run Time: Registration opens 8:30am Run starts 9:30pm Where: The run starts close to The Lawns Café on Hove Lawns, BN3 2FR Tickets: £8 for a standard entry, £3 concession entry. email sports@transpridebrighton.org for a limited number of £0 concession entries.
TPB&H 2019 is hosting its first ever fun run. They say fun run but that’s just because it rhymes, they plan to have lots of fun. You don’t have to run, you can walk it if you prefer. The route is nice and flat and asphalt, so it’s fully accessible for people in wheelchairs. The course can be run either as 2½ km or 5 km. The fun run is open to all trans, non-binary, intersex people, friends, family and allies.
Trans Pride Picnic Time: 12:noon onwards Where:Loading Brighton, 11 Lower Promenade, Madiera Drive, BN2 1ET Brighton Tickets: Free
Wind down from a full-on week of activities on the beachfront at Loading, which serves food and drink, including veggie and vegan options with a good range of non-alcoholic drinks available too. There is outside seating and you’re within throwing distance of the sea for those who want to brave the pebble beach.
Accessibility Information: Wheelchair accessible, with an accessible and non-gendered toilets.
For more information about Trans Pride, click here:
Trans Flag flies from Hove Town Hall to celebrate Trans Pride 2019
Traumfrau join forces with Trans Pride Brighton to bring you the biggest, fiercest, and most diverse celebration yet to celebrate Trans Pride on Saturday, July 20!
THIS year with one ticket you can access three venues (Charles Street Tap, Envy and Patterns), for three different events!
The yearly DIY gig, with live bands, and alternative DJs, the afterparty with DJs and dancing, and a whole programme of performance and live art! All across two buildings. So you can float, be curious and check it all out!
For full lineup, tickets, bands, artists, and DJs, click here:
Event: Traumfrau – The Trans Pride Afterparty Festival!
Where: @Patterns, Envy, and Charles Street Tap on Marine Parade, Brighton
Since 2016 Brighton Gin has created a one-off, limited edition Pride label, with a proportion of each sale being donated to the Rainbow Fund each year.
THIS year, Brighton Gin has teamed up with Brighton based artist Hizze Fletcher-King to create a label to recognise the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots which mark the birth of the Gay Liberation Movement (GLM).
It features Marsha P. Johnson, LGBT activist of colour and self identified drag queen, who was a prominent figure in the 1969 Stonewall uprising, when New York police raided the Stonewall Inn and provoked the start of riots and demonstrations.
Cathy Katon
Brighton Gin’s founder, Kathy Caton said:“We’re proud to support our LGBT+ communities and give something back to the city which has taken us to its heart. And by featuring Marsha P. Johnson on the label, we hope people will ask more questions about who she was and the origins of the modern day LGBTQ movement.”
The label will be on a limited run of 500 bottles, each one capped off with a special gold wax top. A percentage of each bottle sold will go to the Rainbow Fund, the charity created as the legacy project for the Brighton AIDS Memorial in 2010 to give grants to LGBT/HIV organisations who deliver effective front line services to LGBT+ people in Brighton & Hove.
Hizze Fletcher-King
Label artist Hizze Fletcher-King said:“Women have continued to be erased from their historical importance and Marsha P Johnson stands for that. While we celebrate Pride and the 50th Anniversary of the Stonewall Riots let’s remember that ‘Pride is a Protest’ which seems to have been forgotten.”
Through their Community Spirit initiative, Brighton Gin has supported dozens of charities across the city and beyond and is proud of the impact they’ve been able to have locally and across the UK.
The limited edition collectible Brighton Pride bottle is available direct from Brighton Gin’s website at brightongin.com, and when they’re gone, they’re gone!
“Now they got two little nice statues in Chariot Park to remember the gay movement. How many people have died for these two little statues to be put in the park for them to recognise gay people? How many years has it taken people to realise that we are all brothers and sisters and human beings in the human race? I mean how many years does it take people to see that we’re all in this rat race together!”Marsha P. Johnson 1992
The third annual Disability Pride Brighton event attracted more than 3,000 people to the seafront in Hove last Sunday.
THE event, hosted on Hove Lawns on Sunday, July 14, was organised “to raise awareness of the diversity and value of disabled people with visible and invisible impairments or conditions” and was organised by a diverse committee of disabled people.
Jenny Skelton, Founder and Chair said the event “couldn’t have gone better.”
She said:“All the hard work paid off and it was a wonderfully inclusive event.
“We had so many comments from people about what a wonderful day they had, and that is why we do it.
“We want to celebrate our identities and feel less isolated in the city, as well as engage with non-disabled people.”
Disability Pride Brighton was the first Disability Pride in England attracting over 2,000 attendees to it’s inaugural event in July 2017, on New Road in central Brighton.
The 2019 event began with a short parade along the promenade from the i360 led by Unified Rhythm – a carnival band with over 80% disabled members.
The event was officially opened by Alison Lapper MBE; Brighton and Hove Mayor and MEP for South East England, Cllr Alexandra Phillips; Caroline Lucas MP; and Jenny Skelton, Chair of Disability Pride.
Speaking at the event, Alison Lapper MBE, said:“What I love about this event is it doesn’t matter what you look like or who you are, we are all just human beings who should be working together and looking after each other. This is about being proud of who you are and togetherness and I think that is really important.”
Disability Pride received support from some other well-known disabled people including Eddie Kidd OBE, who attended the event.
Throughout the day, there was live music, acts, performances, and speeches from disabled people; work from disabled artists; activities, and stalls from organisations who offer support to local people and families, friends, and carers who are part of this diverse community.
The event also has a volunteering programme so that more people with both visible and invisible impairments or conditions can get involved and help organise the event.
This was funded by People’s Health Trust with money raised through The Health Lottery in the South East.
Speaking about Disability Pride Brighton, local MP, Peter Kyle, said: “I’ve loved supporting this and see it grow over several years. It really shows what a few caring but passionate people can achieve. It’s a chance for the disability community to come together, to celebrate and socialise, and for people like me to meet and listen to as many people as possible.”
Photo: Perfectly Unique Photography
The idea for Disability Pride came from disabled Brighton mum, Jenny Skelton, who also has three adopted children with various disabilities, after one of her children suffered an incident of disability discrimination. Since the first year, the event has attracted 30% more people. .
To date, The Health Lottery has raised over £109 million to support local charities across England, Scotland and Wales. Next month, funds raised from ticket sales will go towards funding projects in the South East.
Labour and Conservative Councillors vote to maintain their parking perks. Time to set a positive example for the city and encourage public transport use, say Greens.
PROPOSALS that Councillors fully fund their own car parking passes have been rejected by Labour and Conservative Councillors.
Greens were calling on the council to abolish free parking for councillors in Norton Road and the Lanes as part of the budget in February 2019, a move supported at the time by Labour Councillors.
However, a request from Greens that a subsidy for councillor car parking be removed was voted down by Labour and Conservative Councillors during a meeting of Policy, Resources and Growth yesterday, Thursday, July 18.
A report going to the committee instead recommended that councillors receive a subsidy for car parking passes, with members making a small contribution towards the car park pass.
Cllr Hannah Clare
Councillor Hannah Clare, who proposed that councillors fund their own car park pass, said: “We recognise that Councillors will seek to use varied forms of transport to access meetings across the city. However councillors are supported in using public transport to do this. Providing discounted car parking passes disincentivises councillors from taking a more sustainable option – when we could be setting a positive example. Our residents will question why we are preserving dated parking perks.
“Where councillors do choose to drive, we asked that they pay for their own car parking in full. As we look to promote public transport use, this would be one way of demonstrating we recognise the need to shift away from car use. We are shocked Labour chose not to support this, given their backing of a climate emergency declaration and their previous support for public transport.”
Police appeal for witnesses after man was the victim of homophobic abuse and hit by a stone near the nudist beach at Hove.
THE 42-year-old victim had been on the nudist beach on Saturday June 29 at about 4.30pm when he went looking for a friend on the neighbouring non-nudist beach in Basin Road South while he was still naked.
A man shouted abuse at him and as the victim left to go back to the nudist side of the beach, the suspect picked up a stone and threw it at him, bruising his arm.
The suspect is described as white, bald, aged in his 50s and was wearing shorts and a white shirt. He was with a woman who is described as white with dark, shoulder-length hair aged in her late 40s or early 50s and was wearing shorts and a light blue top. They both cycled off but did not wear cycle helmets.
PC Adam Parris said:“The victim was shaken and scared by the attack. We would like to hear from anyone who witnessed the assault or recognises the description of the suspect. Please get in touch if you can help with our investigation.”
Anyone with information should report online or ring 101 quoting serial 1018 of 29/06.
Brighton & Hove City Council named as winner of the Best Report at the PARC (Parking Annual Report Awards by Councils) event, which was held at the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday, July 16. It is the third time the council has won the award.
THE annual PARC awards which are organised by PATROL (Parking and Traffic Regulations Outside London) recognises the local authorities who have published the best reports on their parking services, as part of their civil enforcement reporting.
The Best Report is judged on the overall presentation, how helpful it is to the local community, the policies, scheme design and the quality of the information provided.
PATROL congratulated the council on its award, saying it was reflective of a clearly presented and informative report across the board, with the inclusion of innovative projects, transparent performance data and detailed information on finances, including – crucially – how the surplus is used.
The award was received on behalf of the council by the Chair of the Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee, Councillor Anne Pissaridou, and City Transport officers Charles Field, Head of Parking Services and Paul Nicholls, Parking Strategy and Contracts Manager.
The council’s annual parking report offers an overview of parking in the city, highlighting new initiatives and developing trends, with the continuing aim of improving our services for both residents and visitors.
The tenth annual report was published in October 2018 and highlighted a number of major developments that have taken place in the city, including the completion of a large-scale project to replace and upgrade all of the city’s pay-and-display ticket machines, with over 800 new solar-powered machines. It also covered initiatives to tackle problem parking at our schools and along our main bus routes.
In 2017/18 the number of parking Penalty Charge Notices issued fell by 8%, while parking surplus income rose 11% to £15,209,926. Most of the surplus is spent on providing free bus passes for older and disabled people. The rest of the money has been re-invested back into other transport projects including highway maintenance such as resurfacing roads and repairing potholes and pavements.
Cllr Anne Pissaridou
Councillor Anne Pissaridou said:“We are delighted to receive this internationally recognised award for our work and I would like to thank everyone who has worked so hard to produce the report.
“The parking annual report is a critical aspect of our civil parking and traffic enforcement work and provides an opportunity for us to demonstrate the value of the city’s publicly operated parking to our residents, in an open and transparent way.
“We look forward to building on this success and engaging with our residents on the exciting developments planned for this year, including the installation of 200 Electric Vehicle on-street charging points.”
Since launching on March 1, LesFlicks has grown fast establishing there is an audience for lesbian and bisexual stories on the big and small screen.
FOLLOWING the successful launch of three film clubs, a number of private collaborative screenings and the creation of the comprehensive film database; the video on demand platform is launching on Saturday, July 20 a wide selection of short films, webseries, documentaries and feature films. They all have one thing in common – a central lesbian or bisexual story.
There are plans to add more content on a regular basis as membership grows and more films get released. The platform is also launching festival channels to help promote the various film festivals that showcase lesbian films.
A number of film events have already taken place across the UK. LesFlicks is curating and hosting a cinema at the UK’s lesbian arts festival, LFEST in Wales in July with 3 days of cinema between July 19 and 21.
Laura Dern as Laura Albert and Kristen Stewart as Savannah Knoop in the new film ‘JT LeRoy.’
They are planning a cinema screening of JT LeRoy with Manchester Pride over the August bank holiday weekend and a shorts film night with Queer Cinema in East London.
LesFlicks has already collaborated with existing film clubs including Unicorn Nights to screen But I’m a Cheerleader in a cinema for the first time in the UK; hosted a rooftop cinema at Pride in London with MINT Events; supported London International Lesbians Meetup group to host a private preview screening of Tell it to the Bees in North London; and 6 film clubs across London, Birmingham and Manchester have met and seen several films across several months, including Olivia Wilde’s debut film Booksmart in all three locations.
Naomi Bennett
Naomi Bennett, CEO and Founder of LesFlicks said:“Whilst I knew that this was an area where I could make a real impact, I’ve been bowled over by the momentum of interest and opportunities, and the number of films available. The film clubs are providing an important social aspect and we are collecting great data to show that there is an audience for these films which hopefully will help lead to more funding in the future. I’m looking forward to many more collaborations, partnerships and events as we continue to grow our reach and offering across the UK and into Europe.”
Cindy Edwards
Cindy Edwards, director of LFEST added:“The cinema is an important part of LFEST and is extremely popular, in fact it returned this year purely due to numerous requests by festival attendees, as for many women it is one of the few opportunities they get to watch films on a big screen in a room full of other women who appreciate these films. As the UK’s only lesbian arts festival, we’re delighted that Naomi has chosen this festival to launch the LesFlicks video on demand channel. We’ve worked with Naomi for several years and her dedication to the community always shines through.”
Council urged to bypass profit-making water companies and make bid to supply its own water. “Option to buy water ‘direct’ from supplier cuts out water companies and their profit margins,“ say Greens.
PLANS for the council to cut out water companies and buy water directly from the supplier could drive down costs and benefit the environment, Greens have said.
As part of a proposal going to Policy, Resources and Growth Committee this afternoon (July 18), Green Councillors are hoping that Brighton and Hove City Council will become the latest to apply for a ‘self-supply licence.’
The licence, granted by the water regulator OfWat, would allow the council to become a purchaser in the water market, cutting out water companies who often charge a premium.
Councils such as Blackpool, who have been awarded the licence, identified that ‘self-supply’ could save £194,00 over three years and improve customer service. Councils opting to self-supply are also given greater say over the management of the water supply – moves that Greens say will benefit the environment.
Cllr Phélim Mac Cafferty
Councillor Phélim Mac Cafferty, who is proposing that the council explores the option to ‘self-supply’ water, said: “With news that Southern Water has been fined a record £126 million for wastewater and sewerage spills, as well as deliberately misinterpreting performance, it’s clear that water privatisation has failed us and our environment. Greens will continue to fight for an end to water privatisation – and while that fight goes on, we want to see residents given the democratic oversight over water they deserve.
“Exploring the option to ‘self-supply’ water would allow the council to directly buy water services – cutting out the water companies and their profit margins.
“On top of lowering bills, the city’s water supply would be brought under direct democratic oversight – including wastewater management, giving us the opportunity to do more for our environment. Crucially, councils who opt to “self-supply” are also given a say in how water is managed nationwide. We are pushing for Brighton and Hove to become the latest council to challenge how water supply is owned and run– for the good of our residents and environment.”
Wind down from a full-on week of activities on the beachfront at 
Council urged to bypass profit-making water companies and make bid to supply its own water. “Option to buy water ‘direct’ from supplier cuts out water companies and their profit margins,“ say Greens.
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