Western Australia’s PrideFEST kicked off on Friday night with community members sharing their personal stories relating the festival’s theme of Brave.

Pride WA President Michael Felix officially opened the festival outlining the theme.

“It is a celebration of bravery and resilience, and the theme for this year’s festival is brave, which is not just a word, but it is a powerful statement of our collective strength and determination and unwavering commitment to a more inclusive and equitable society.”

Felix said the inclusion that members of the LGBTIQA+ community had fought for over many decades was always being challenged.

“Our festival, PrideFEST, stands as a beacon of hope and a testament to the incredible strides we’ve made in our quest for equal rights, visibility and respect. The festival is a celebration that reminds us that we must be unyielding in our pursuit of justice, as well as call to our allies and community leaders – that they too must summon this courage, this strength, to stand with us and bring forward change.”

“As we come together, let us remember the words that have guided us here. Be brave, be strong, be true, and be you. It is a reminder that our strength lies in our authenticity, and our bravery lies in our unity.

“Today we stand at the precipice of a brighter future where love acceptance and equality prevail. I call I call on our broader community to remember these words to come together to bring about change, and that change starts at the smallest of beginnings.” Felix said.

The crowd at the Pride Piazza were welcomed by Indigenous Elder Neville Collard who spoke about acceptance of people’s gender and sexual identities within Noongar culture and the local community.

“I think the Pride community is accepted by the broad community.” Collard said. “Not only the Noongars, but the wider community.

Sharing that he was 74 years old, Collard said that he’d always been aware of his gay relatives all throughout his life and they they’d always been accepted.

Pride CEO Dr Lauren Butterly hosted the evening and gave the audience an outline of the wide range of events happening across the state over the next few weeks.

Representing the City of Perth Councillor Liam Gobert said that all people deserved to feel safe in their community.

“This year’s theme, ‘Be Brave, Be Strong, Be You’, is at the heart of what the City of Perth strives to achieve. To foster a belonging where our LGBTQIA plus community feel safe, seen and supported. to have a city that is inclusive where people can come together to celebrate love and friendship and where everyone is equal, accepted and empowered, where you can be your authentic self, and show the world your true colors.” Councilor Gobert said.

OUTinPerth co-editors Leigh Andrew Hill and Graeme Watson shared their story of how in 2016 they went on a roller-coaster ride of emotions when within a week they went from being fired from their jobs, to getting drunk, to making the decision to rescue Perth’s LGBTIQA+ media outlet from liquidation.

After rapidly raising funds to buy OUTinPerth, the pair launched a crowdsource fundraising campaign to ensure it remained operating as Australia debated marriage equality.

LGBTIQA+ rights advocate Alyce Schotte shared with the crowd a powerful piece she wrote after British anti-transgender activist Kellie-Jay Keen visited Perth earlier this year.

Titled I Am Tired, the piece shared Schotte’s reaction to ongoing debate over transgender people’s lives.

“I am tired of identity being discussed, debated and discussed, like it is an opinion. So much of the narrative is based on a negative understanding of the human experience.” she said.

“We are all people to be celebrated for who we are and our experiences and all their multitudes. opportunities arise in what we create, not what we tear down.” Scotte said.

Ashara Wills, the founder of consultancy firm Let’s Queer the Air, shared how they had taken inspiration from their parents mixed race marriage.

Wills shared that they felt that resilience and bravery had been installed in them from birth thanks to their heritage. Wills shared that their mother had been accepting when they shared their same-sex attraction, which gave them the bravery to share even more – they’re not a fan of really spicy curries.

Their mother cheered on from the crowd, totally accepting of their girlfriends and their culinary choices.

Drag performer Skye Scrapper shared how she’s had to make some brave decisions when her delicately balanced life spiraled out of control.

Balancing responsibilities as an accountant by day, a commitment to studying for advanced qualifications, and living a double life as a drag performer in the evenings, there came a point where Skye wasn’t doing particularly well at all of them.

After performing a section of her award-winning show The Life and Times of a Drag Queen Accountant, where she shows that all drag dance-performances are basically made up of 10 basic dance moves, Skye Scraper invited a member of the audience on stage to have a go.

With a little coaxing Labor’s Peter Foster MLC agreed to show off his dance moves, which drew a huge round of applause from the crowd.

The PrideFEST runs throughout the month. head to Pride WA for the full run down of activities.

OIP Staff

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