16: Soho Pride

Old Compton Street
You can stand anywhere on Old Compton Street on this last stop but where Frith Street passes through is nearly always a good spot as there's cafes on this crossroad and it's often busy any time of the day.

Surprise! You’re back in the present day. For the last two decades Soho, and especially Old Compton Street, has been at the centre of London’s gay community. Soho looks pretty different from even five years ago. It’s changing rapidly and with it the Queer spaces, where British gay identity was forged, are also disappearing.

But we all know Soho is still a centre for all things gay. From 2003 to 2008, Soho Pride was held here and even though London Pride takes over much more of the Capital now, Soho still plays host to parades and after-parties. Where you’re standing now, could be seen as the final piece in the jigsaw of over a century of fighting for equality.

And what a fight it’s been: today in the UK, LGBTQ people can legally have sex at the same age as straight people, get married, adopt and even join the army. But the battle is not yet over.

Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell and other activists at London's vigil in memory of the victims of the Orlando gay nightclub terror attack. Photo taken by Alisdare Hickson: https://www.flickr.com/photos/alisdare/

In 2015, the UK saw 5,597 hate crimes against LGBTQ people, which was a rise of 22% on the previous year. In June 2016, a homophobic attack on Pulse gay club in Orlando, USA, saw 49 people killed and many more injured. A vigil was organised the following day on Old Compton Street and thousands turned up to fill the entire street along its length and surrounding area.

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It had been 17 years since the attack on Admiral Duncan and despite the many advances the LGBTQ community had made since the start of the 21st century, the attack in Orlando was a reminder of the homophobia still felt in society. It was on these streets, in this place, that people came to show their solidarity.

Many hundreds of people, some wearing rainbow flags and others carrying placards, came to Old Compton Street in London's Soho district to show solidarity with the victims of the attack on the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida. For full caption: https://www.flickr.com/photos/alisdare/27386911550 Photo taken by Alisdare Hickson: https://www.flickr.com/photos/alisdare/

Past discrimination has meant LGBTQ history has often been hidden, marginalised or suppressed. When we remember these places and their heritage, the places celebrated on this walk, we remember the people who came before us and we don’t forget them. #LoveWins

Political advances of LGBTQ people in the 21st century

2000 - Homosexuals no longer barred from joining the armed forces
2001 - The age of consent for gay men is lowered to 16
2002 - Same-sex couples granted equal rights to adopt
2003 - Illegal to discriminate against lesbians, gay or bisexual people at work
2003 - Section 28 is repealed in England and Wales
2004 - The Civil Partnership Act is passed, giving same-sex couples the same rights as married heterosexual couples
2008 - Treatment of lesbian parents and their children is equalised in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act
2010 - Equality Act makes discrimination against lesbians and gay men in the provision of goods and services illegal
2011 - Department of Health lifts ban on gay men donating blood
2012 - The Protection of Freedoms Act is passed, allowing for historic convictions for consensual gay sex to be removed from criminal records
2014 - Same-sex marriage becomes legal in England and Wales
2015 - Royal Vauxhall Tavern became first ever building to be given listed statute based on its LGBT history