Mardi Gras 2025: a new chapter?
New Post has been published on https://qnews.com.au/mardi-gras-2025-a-new-chapter/
Mardi Gras 2025: a new chapter?
After several years of disruptions and discord, organisers of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras are betting on a bumper year. QNews speaks with key stakeholders ahead of the 2025 festival. By Peter Hackney.
Some see it as a protest, others a celebration. Whatever the case, there’s no denying the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is one of the world’s biggest LGBTQIA+ events.
But in recent years, Covid-19 has played havoc with Mardi Gras, while demands from some community members to ban police from the parade have seen the event mired in discord.
Then there was the impact of Sydney’s asbestos crisis early last year. Victoria Park, the home of Mardi Gras Fair Day, was one of the affected sites, with asbestos discovered in garden beds and mulched areas. Fair Day was cancelled; hundreds of stallholders and an expected crowd of 70,000 people were left disappointed.
The disruptions, as well as rising production costs, the cost-of-living crisis and shifts in discretionary spending created a perfect storm, with Mardi Gras posting a $1.2 million loss for 2023-24 financial year.
This year, though, is shaping up as a turning point for the festival, which began in 1978 as a street parade calling for an end to discrimination against sexual minorities.
While Covid is still with us, its impact is greatly diminished; the question of whether police can march in the parade is settled – at least for now; and Victoria Park has been declared safe after an extensive clean-up by the City of Sydney, with more than 200 stalls and tens of thousands of people primed for Fair Day.
Mardi Gras’ ‘true believers’ are ready to put the last few years behind them and enjoy the summer festival, comprising not only the famous parade but a slew of parties, concerts, comedy shows, art exhibitions, film screenings and theatre under the 2025 Mardi Gras theme, ‘Free to Be’.
The cancellation of annual favourite Fair Day was a huge blow to Mardi Gras in 2024. Photo: Jeffrey Feng Photography/supplied.
Is Mardi Gras still relevant?
One of those true believers is Gil Beckwith, who’s been going to Mardi Gras since the early 1980s.
“I was in my early 20s, standing on a rooftop at the corner of Flinders Street and South Dowling, watching the parade with its spectacular energy and raw authenticity,” she says, recalling her very first Mardi Gras experience.
“It was a magical night in Sydney and I remember the flashes of lightning lighting up the sky, the sense of defiance and joy, and the community spirit that was palpable in the air.”
In 2018, Beckwith came on board as Mardi Gras’ Business Finance Manager. Today, she’s CEO.
While some people contend that Mardi Gras is no longer relevant in this age of relative equality for LGBTQIA+ people, Beckwith strongly disagrees.
“Equality is a journey, not a destination,” she tells QNews. “While we’ve made incredible strides, there’s still work to do, particularly for trans, non-binary and First Nations members of our community.
“Mardi Gras remains a vital platform for visibility, advocacy and connection. It’s not just about where we’ve been but where we’re going – and how we can continue to create a more inclusive and equitable world.”
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras CEO Gil Beckwith, pictured, says the festival remains a “vital” community platform. Photo: Jaimi Joy/supplied.
Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore is another who speaks to the continued relevance of Mardi Gras. The doyenne of inner-city politics, who recently claimed a record sixth term as Lord Mayor, Moore has supported Mardi Gras since the beginning.
In the mid-1980s, she became actively involved as a parade judge, while in 1992 she was the first member of NSW Parliament to march in the parade – something she’s done ever since.
Moore sees Mardi Gras as a kind of beacon for LGBTQIA+ people and Sydney in general.
“In the years since the brave ’78ers first marched down Oxford Street a lot has changed, but Mardi Gras is as relevant as ever,” she tells QNews.
“The glamour, wit and a sense of outrageous fun make it a highlight of the Sydney calendar.
“Mardi Gras gives us the chance to celebrate with our rainbow communities and an opportunity to see some of the best of Sydney – its diversity, its exuberance and love of a good time.”
The Lord Mayor says that apart from this celebratory and emblematic role, Mardi Gras has a continued function as an agent for political change.
“Alongside the confetti, the glitter and dancing shoes, Mardi Gras is also an important symbol of pride in who we are and a chance to recommit to the fights ahead. Because despite the progress we’ve made, many still face appalling discrimination,” she contends.
“[In October] we were celebrating the passage of Alex Greenwich’s Equality Bill, which changes many laws that discriminate against the LGBTQIA+ community, including the right for transgender people to update their birth certificate without undergoing surgery, better recognition for rainbow families, updating hate crime legislation to include intersex and trans people, and removing stigmatising provisions around gender identity, HIV and AIDS.
“But some concessions were made to the Bill to get it passed, which would have seen better protections for LGBTIQA+ students at private schools and rights to gender-affirming healthcare,” she says.
“So, it’s clear despite the progress we are making, progress which should be celebrated, the fight for equality continues.
“We still need Mardi Gras … We need it to applaud the victories won so far and to gather as a community for the cause of full equality.”
Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore, pictured attending Mardi Gras with Member for Sydney Alex Greenwich, believes the event is still “an important symbol off pride”. Photo: Nick Langley/supplied.
The police question
Despite this high-level support, not everyone is on board with Mardi Gras, even within the LGBTQIA+ community. A particular bone of contention is the presence of the NSW Police Force in the annual parade.
The force has a complex and storied history with Mardi Gras. Calls for an end to police brutality against the community were a key feature of the first Mardi Gras parade. The police only proved the protestors’ point by brutally breaking up the parade and arresting 53 people, despite organisers having sought and received permission for the event.
Amidst a deeply homophobic environment, in which male homosexual acts were still illegal, The Sydney Morning Herald published the names of those arrested, outing many to their friends, family and employers, with some losing their jobs.
But from this unpleasant start, the relationship between Mardi Gras and NSW Police improved over the years, to the point where, in 1998, the police marched in the parade for the first time.
The jubilation felt by the community at this development was aptly summed up by Mardi Gras ’78er Peter Murphy, speaking to Guardian Australia last year.
“Back in 1998, when [the police] first joined the parade, I was really happy because I felt that it was like a victory for us,” Murphy said.
Many shared his opinion, with the NSW Police float vying with the Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) for the biggest cheers along the parade route in the late ’90s and 2000s.
But in the 2010s, cracks started to form in the relationship with police, particularly after two ugly incidents at the 2013 parade.
In one, teenager Jamie Jackson Reed was kicked to the ground by then constable Leon Mixios, who believed Reed was under the influence of drugs. Mixios then stomped on Reed, holding him down with his foot because, according to the constable: “He was bleeding and I didn’t want to be contaminated.” Bystander footage racked up over a million views on YouTube within a week and Reed was later awarded $39,000 in costs by a magistrate.
In the other incident, Sydney man Bryn Hutchinson alleged he was punched and kicked by police officers after he tried to cross Oxford Street once the parade had passed through. Police claimed Hutchinson had assaulted them and pressed charges but these were later dropped.
Subsequent incidents have raised more ire but none more so than the murder of Sydney gay couple Jesse Baird and Luke Davies last February. The couple were allegedly killed by then police officer Beau Lamarre-Condon, who once dated Baird.
“It’s the straw that broke the camel’s back,” Evan Zijl from activist group Pride in Protest said at the time.
Pride in Protest tried to have police banned from the parade but were narrowly voted down at the Mardi Gras AGM in December.
“Our community is disappointed that there has been a loss, but we know it’s a question of when,” Pride in Protest leader Damien Nguyen told SBS News afterwards.
While the question of whether police can take part in Mardi Gras is settled for now, the issue seems destined to persist as a festering sore, with strong feelings on both sides.
One Mardi Gras volunteer (who did not want to be named in this story, alleging, “Pride in Protest targets anyone who disagrees with them”) claims the activist group is unrepresentative of the wider community’s views.
“They don’t represent the majority. It seems to me they just want to hijack Mardi Gras. The fact is we need the police and many police officers are gay, so they should be in the parade,” he tells QNews.
“Mardi Gras is not about banning the police or defunding the police – or opposing Israel or overthrowing capitalism or any of the issues they want to promote.
“And it doesn’t make sense to ban police because an officer [allegedly] murdered a gay couple. That police officer is also gay. Using their logic, should we ban gay people from the parade too? Ridiculous.”
Unsurprisingly, Gil Beckwith is more diplomatic.
“There has been an ongoing discourse in Sydney’s LGBTQIA+ community about the participation of the New South Wales Police Force in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade,” the CEO says.
“This issue is deeply complex and opinions within our community are diverse. The Police Community Consultation that the Mardi Gras Board held [last year] reflects the range of views on this matter.”
The participation of NSW Police officers in the annual Mardi Gras Parade has become a source of contention. Photo: NSW Police Force/Facebook.
The 2025 festival
As one might expect, Beckwith is on more comfortable ground discussing the varied offerings of the 2025 Mardi Gras festival – and there are many, with this year’s festival comprising more than 80 separate events.
Festival highlights include the return of Fair Day – which this year will include two new events, Trans Camp and the Karaoke Cave, as well as the ever-popular Doggywood dog show.
“Fair Day holds a special place in my heart,” Beckwith says. “Last year’s hiatus showed us just how much the community values this event. It’s the one event that truly appeals to absolutely everyone in our community – young, old, families, friends, four-legged companions and everyone in between.”
The annual Mardi Gras Party will be another highlight, headlined by British queer dance act Romy and US trans DJ and performer Honey Dijon.
Beckwith says this year’s festival will represent and cater to the entire LGBTQIA+ spectrum.
“It truly celebrates the full breadth of our diverse community, with events tailored to specific segments that are so important in making everyone feel seen and valued,” she says.
“For example, Ultra Violet offers a dedicated space for LGBTQIA+ women and their nearest and dearest, while Hot Trans Summer celebrates trans and gender diverse people in a luxurious and joyous way. Events like these are vital – they provide spaces where members of our community can connect, feel safe and revel in their identities.
“I’m also thrilled about the return of the Blak & Deadly: The First Nations Gala Concert. This event, which celebrates Blak and queer excellence, is incredibly important. It honours the intersection of First Nations culture and LGBTQIA+ identities.”
While recent years have been rocky for Mardi Gras, the festival is still the biggest annual event on Australia’s LGBTQIA+ calendar – and one of the biggest events of any kind in Sydney, perhaps rivalled only by the city’s iconic New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Few, if any, global cities can boast a comprehensive LGBTQIA+ festival rivalling Mardi Gras and Beckwith urges the community to come together to experience it.
“Mardi Gras is a celebration for everyone – whether it’s your first time or you’ve been with us from the beginning. It’s a chance to honour our history, celebrate our present and envision a brighter future.”
The 47th annual Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras will be held from 14 February to 2 March 2025, with festival events held at various times and locations across Sydney. Visit mardigras.org.au for information and tickets.
