PRIDE has come a long way in Jersey over the past decade – but organiser Christian May says ensuring every single part of the LGBTQ+ community feels seen, heard and celebrated remains just as important as the party itself.
As CI Pride marks its tenth anniversary this weekend, he told the JEP about the parts of the community that are still at risk and in need of Islanders’ support…
When Christian May helped organise Jersey’s first Pride event ten years ago, he didn’t know if anyone would turn up.
“I remember walking down to that first event in 2015 thinking, maybe we’ll get a couple of dozen people, maybe 100,” he recalled. “We had over 1,000. I think maybe up to 3,000 that first year.”
He remembered with obvious warmth the moment he turned the corner into West Centre and saw the crowd waiting to march. “It still sticks with me,” he said. “It was brilliant – because you just didn’t know what the reaction was going to be.”
This weekend marks a decade since that first march, with the Island set to host its 10th annual celebration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer identity with a parade through St Helier culminating with a festival in People’s Park.
DJ Woody Cook, son of DJ Fatboy Slim and BBC Radio presenter Zoe Ball, will open the main stage, followed by local artists, drag entertainers, and musicians, culminating in a headline performance from X Factor star Alexandra Burke.
But while the event has grown – drawing over 10,000 people last year – Mr May is clear that its purpose hasn’t changed.
On the one hand, he explained, Pride is about embracing queer identities and fostering a sense of belonging and self-worth within the LGBTQ+ community.
On the other, it serves as an act of resistance against discrimination as well as a platform to raise awareness about issues facing queer individuals.
He said: “When people see Pride and see the colour and see the celebration… It’s a moment to just reflect how privileged we are to have that, how far it’s come from being a protest to a celebration, but also how quickly those rights could be lost.”
Christian May
“As long as there is a young man or young woman out there who think that they’d be better off dead than be gay or lesbian or bi or trans, then pride is important.”
Mr May’s journey into queer advocacy began in 2014 when he marched through town with his partner – now husband – as part of a campaign pushing for same-sex marriage.
After that, he set up LGBTQ+ support and lobby group Liberate Jersey, and soon found himself in charge of organising an event no one had done before.
“Having grown up at a time when being out and gay probably wasn’t the most socially acceptable… I never imagined that Jersey would have a Pride and being involved in it has been an absolute privilege,” he said.
Over the past decade of organising these events, some years stand out for their scale – like the 2019 event when a 50-metre rainbow flag was carried along the seafront at St Aubin’s Bay.
Others for being unconventional – such as the virtual event filmed during the pandemic when Pride moved online and Mr May ended up dancing on his own between acts while narrating the broadcast.
And some for the difficult choices they involved – including 2022, when Queen Elizabeth II died two days before the event was due to take place.
“We removed the parade,” he said. “We didn’t feel that was respectful. But we still went ahead. We started off with a reflection on the life of Her Majesty, and then that turned into a wider sort of celebration across the day. It was challenging, but the team did it, and we still managed to offer something for the community.”
He continued: “I think every single one of the Prides we’ve had here has a moment which for me just sears itself into my memory,” he said. “It grows each year, changes each year, and I think we’ve got a good model now, which we established in 2023 and hopefully it will be as good, if not better, this year.”
While the event’s director is proud of the progress made on the Island – including the legalisation of equal marriage – he is also clear about the challenges that remain. “We’ve seen more [anti-LGBTQ+ commentary online] this year,” he said. “People are more willing to speak out in the echo chamber of Facebook and Twitter. Maybe these aren’t things that they would say to your face.”
According to the UK charity Stonewall, 42% of LGBTQ+ students in Britain have been bullied. For trans pupils, 84% have self-harmed, and 45% have attempted suicide.
Closer to home, Jersey’s 2024 Children and Young People’s Survey found that nearly half (46%) of students who identified their gender as “other” or “prefer not to say” listed gender identity as a reason they’d been bullied.
Mr May said: “As long as there is a young man or young woman out there who think that they’d be better off dead than be gay or lesbian or bi or trans, then pride is important.
“When we’re facing a world where we see in the US and even in the UK, people questioning and removing rights from trans individuals and non-binary individuals, then pride still matters, and it’s important.”
This year’s theme – Louder, Prouder, Stronger – speaks not only to the scale of the event, but to the work it still has to do.
Part of that, Mr May said, is making sure that Pride represents and includes all parts of the LGBTQ+ spectrum.
“I recognise I’m a middle-class white gay man, so I am the most privileged of someone within the LGBTQ+ community,” he said. “White gay men are not the whole community, and we need to celebrate and highlight other parts of our community. You know, trans people are being targeted and are feeling under attack at the moment because of changes in UK legislation. We also do suffer from bi invisibility and lesbian invisibility.
“We’ve got to remember those people within our community and celebrate them as well, and that’s something we always try to do with Pride, to show the whole diversity of our community.”
That diversity will be reflected on stage today, with drag kings and queens, non-binary performers, and a performance by Jersey’s LGBTQ+ choir.
“Pride isn’t just about LGBTQ individuals,” Mr May added. “It’s actually welcoming to the entire community, whatever your background, whatever your ability, whatever your race, whatever your religion, whatever your sexuality, whatever your gender, as long as you are there to support one another, to enjoy the company of one another, and to celebrate the fact that we’re a diverse Island, then you are hugely welcome.”
The event also remains free to attend and features a wellbeing area and quiet zone for neurodiverse visitors.
And for anyone thinking about attending Pride for the first time – especially if they’re unsure or nervous – Mr May has a message.
“It’s completely understandable if you’re nervous,” he said. “[But] it is the most accepting and community-driven experience, especially the parade. If you feel you just wanted to see humans at their best, come to Royal Square for midday on the 21st of June and see people embracing and enjoying each other’s company, celebrating and actually showing up for how diverse and welcoming Jersey and the Channel Islands can be. And you’ll want to stay for the rest of the day.
“There will be other people there by themselves, but there’ll be groups of people who’d welcome you to walk with them, to celebrate them, to have a drink with them, to watch acts with them as well. It really is that accepting.”
