Free to be, but are we really? The power of Allyship in changing lives

A Celebration of Identity, Strength, and Solidarity

Midsumma Festival in Melbourne, which began on 19 January 2025, marks the start of Australia’s LGBTIQ+ celebration, setting the stage for the world-renowned Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival. From 14 February to 2 March, Sydney will transform into a kaleidoscope of colour, love, and celebration, culminating in the world-famous Sydney Mardi Gras Parade on Saturday, 1 March 2025.

Marking 47 years of unapologetic self-expression, unity, and activism, Mardi Gras 2025 is set to deliver 17 days of unforgettable moments featuring international performers, spectacular parties, thought-provoking theatre, and inclusive community events.

Free to Be: A Call to Action

This year’s theme, Free to Be, is more than a celebration; it is a powerful statement of defiance and resilience. It reflects the LGBTIQ+ community’s ongoing fight for equality, celebrating how far we have come while acknowledging that our struggle is far from over.

Even now, dark forces are rising, seeking to undo decades of progress. We will not be silenced. We will not be erased. We will continue to fight, to celebrate, and to be fiercely visible for generations to come.

Free to Be is not just a slogan; it is an unrelenting declaration that we will rise together, protecting the rights we have won and pushing for the freedoms we still deserve.

More Than a Party: Why Mardi Gras Matters

Mardi Gras is more than glitter and parades. It is a global platform for visibility and change. It is an opportunity to amplify diverse voices, honour activists and trailblazers, and remind the world that our right to exist is not up for debate.

We stand on the shoulders of those who fought before us. Now, we must be louder, prouder, and stronger than ever. We march for those who cannot, and we speak for those whose voices are silenced.

But we cannot do this alone. We need our allies more than ever.

The Power of Allyship: Now More Than Ever

As a proud member of the LGBTIQ+ community, I have seen firsthand the transformative power of allyship. Allies play a vital role in fostering inclusion, creating safer spaces, and empowering us to live authentically. But allyship is not passive. It requires action, visibility, and commitment.

We are witnessing a troubling shift. Just recently, Google quietly removed all DEI events from its internal calendars. A tech giant, a global leader, has taken a step back. Why? Is this an attempt to appease the growing anti-DEI sentiment sweeping across the world? If a company of this scale is bowing to pressure, what does this signal for the future?

This is why allyship is more important than ever. Because when you look the other way today, how long until you look the other way when I am being attacked simply for being who I am?

How to Be a Better Ally

1. Educate Yourself and Challenge Biases. Learn about the history, struggles, and victories of the LGBTIQ+ community. Read books, watch documentaries, and visit local LGBTIQ+ centres. Take time for self-reflection, acknowledge your biases, and actively work to unlearn them.
2. Use Inclusive Language and Respect Individual Journeys. Words have power. Respect pronouns, use gender-neutral terms when possible, and avoid stereotypes. Everyone’s experience is unique, so avoid assumptions and respect personal boundaries.
3. Show Visible Support and Advocate for Equality. Small gestures can make a big difference. Wearing Pride colours on a lanyard, pin, badge, or bracelet creates a visible safe space for those who need it most. Imagine a young boy in a clothing store, hesitating to admire dresses for fear of judgment. Seeing your visible allyship could reassure him that he is not alone. Now, picture a teenager too afraid to come out, spotting your Pride pin and realising that someone in the room will accept them as they are. These small acts of visibility can change lives. Beyond symbolic support, advocate for inclusive policies at work, in schools, and in your community. Attend events, ask questions, and immerse yourself in LGBTIQ+ culture.
4. Support Pride Events and Speak Up Against Discrimination. When allies attend Pride marches, it empowers us to fight harder. Bring your children and educate them—because hate is taught, and acceptance must be too. Silence is complicity. When you witness homophobia, transphobia, or any form of bigotry, challenge it. Too often, I’ve endured verbal abuse while simply holding my partner’s hand, only to watch bystanders look away, unwilling to acknowledge my reality.
5. Be Consistent and Keep Fighting. Allyship isn’t just for Pride Month. Show up every day, in quiet moments and loud ones. Celebrate victories, but never forget that our fight isn’t over. Your ongoing support makes a difference.

Silence Enables Discrimination

Let me be clear. Silence is complicity.

When you witness homophobia, transphobia, or any form of bigotry, challenge it. Too often, I’ve endured verbal abuse while simply holding my partner’s hand, only to watch bystanders look away, unwilling to acknowledge my reality.

This isn’t just hypothetical. It happened to me in my local supermarket. As I walked down the food aisle at Woolworths, thinking nothing about it. Then as I was outside putting the groceries in my car, a man spewed hateful slurs, calling me a pedophile and a pervert. All because he saw me holding my partner’s hand in the shop. He shouted these disgusting and untrue allegations where members of the public could hear, making vile accusations simply because he perceives all gay men as perverts and pedophiles. What made it worse was the man sitting next to him laughing and filming this on his mobile.?

I looked around, hoping someone would step in. But instead, people averted their eyes, pretending they hadn’t heard a thing. Their silence spoke volumes.

Can you imagine what it’s like to endure this kind of abuse while simply going about your food shopping?

This is why we need allies to speak up, to make these daily moments of humiliation and fear a thing of the past.

So, what can you do?

• Speak up when you witness discrimination. Your voice can change the outcome.
• Offer support to those being targeted, even a kind word can make a difference.
• Educate yourself and others on the real harm caused by these hateful stereotypes.
• Advocate for inclusivity in your workplace, schools, and communities.

Your silence enables discrimination. Your voice can help end it.

Every action you take as an ally helps create a world where we can live without fear.

Your support means I can:

• Walk safely at night without being harassed.
• Hold my partner’s hand without enduring verbal abuse.
• Attend work events without being excluded.

Now picture yourself in my shoes, constantly looking over your shoulder, bracing for the next comment, the next stare, the next act of violence. This is why your allyship matters.

Join Us in Making History

This is more than just a celebration. It is a statement of resilience, defiance, and unity. It is a call for collective responsibility, urging every one of us to actively participate in shaping a world where everyone is free to be themselves without fear.

History has its eyes on us. The rights we protect today will define the freedoms of tomorrow. Stand up. Speak out. Be the ally the world needs.

Let’s make this moment the most vibrant, inclusive, and powerful one yet. Let’s remind the world that we are, and always will be, Free to Be??

L