no͞oz

NYC Pride Organisers Ban Police From Its Events Until 2025

By Duncan Scott

Posted on May 18, 2021

Organisers of NYC Pride, Heritage of Pride, have banned the New York Police Department (NYPD) from participating in their annual Pride events, reports CNN.

In a statement released over the weekend, organisers stated “NYC Pride seeks to create safer spaces for the LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC communities at a time when violence against marginalised groups, specifically BIPOC and trans communities, has continued to escalate.”

NYC Pride announces new policies to address the presence of law enforcement and NYPD at Pride events in New York. The steps being taken challenge law enforcement to acknowledge their harm and to correct course moving forward, in hopes of making an impactful change. pic.twitter.com/DAVtJBtCSR

— New York City Pride (@NYCPride) May 15, 2021

Organisers have said they no longer require security and first response from the NYPD, as members of the community often felt “threatened” by their presence, instead relocating security services to “trained private security, community leaders and volunteers.”

Heritage of Pride have worked with the NYPD for over 25 years, but have cited recent events such as the murder of George Floyd, ongoing Black Lives Matter protests across the US and an increasing number of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC deaths caused by police officers, as the reason behind the ban.

Heritage of Pride have said the NYPD’s involvement in NYC Pride will be reviewed in 2025.