Australian Senator Lidia Thorpe will not face charges for briefly blocking the Sydney Mardi Gras parade on Saturday night. Thorpe, who was marching with the No Pride in Genocide float organized by Pride in Protest, lay down in front of a float on Oxford Street, momentarily stopping the parade. She was not arrested and was escorted from the parade at the request of organizers for reportedly breaching the terms of her participation.
Thorpe tweeted on Sunday morning that she was proud to have joined the “No Pride in Genocide” float and implied that she was protesting against a police presence in the parade. “Black and brown trans women started the first pride march as a protest against police violence. Today, we still face violence from police,” she tweeted, adding the hashtag #NoCopsInPride.
In response to the incident, Nationals leader David Littleproud criticized Thorpe’s behavior, saying “Lidia, please, it’s not always about you.” Littleproud, appearing on Channel Nine’s Today, went on to criticize the senator, saying that it should be about moving on as a society and eliminating discrimination against LGBTIQ people in Australia.
While the incident has sparked some criticism, it also highlights ongoing concerns and debates about police presence and the inclusion of Indigenous and marginalized voices in the Mardi Gras parade. Thorpe’s actions are part of a larger conversation around the intersection of queer and Indigenous rights and the continued struggle for equity and inclusion in Australian society.
