BRITAIN: Activists To Protest “Militarization” Of London Pride Over Royal Air Force Flyover Plans

The Red Arrows, the precision flying unit of the Royal Air Force, will fly over London Pride next month as a “mark of respect for their LGBT colleagues.” This has some LGBT activists quite upset. Gay Star News has a statement:

“We represent a cross-section of people from the LGBTQ community and anti-militarist groups who were shocked and outraged by the announcement that the Red Arrows would be flying over London Pride this year,” the organizers said.

“The British military is deeply implicated in a history of homophobic and transphobic oppression, and is responsible for the destruction of human lives, including those of foreign LGBTQ communities, and the social infrastructure that supports them.

“On a day that commemorates and celebrates the courageous struggles of past and present LGBTQ individuals and communities against oppression and violent prejudice, we find it deeply offensive that the event is providing a platform for the RAF to sanitise its image and divert attention away from its role in executing British military objectives across the world, and the human suffering that such operations involve.”

Stonewall, Britain’s main LGBT advocacy group, opposes the protest.