Do police belong at a pride march?

Thousands of people marched down the streets of St Kilda, south of Melbourne, yesterday for the annual Victorian LGBTQIA+ pride march at Midsumma festival.

Queer and ally police officers were among the marchers, joining the celebration when about 50 people tried to block the officers’ way. Some of them were chanting ‘cops kill gays’ and there were banners that read ‘no cops at pride’, with outward aggression from both sides. The conflict has sparked debate over whether police officers should be permitted in pride marches while in uniform.

Diane Minnis is a 78er - which means she was at the very first Mardi Gras march in Sydney in 1978, where many queer people were violently thrown into police vehicles and arrested.

On today's afternoon edition of The Briefing, Bension Siebert speaks with Diane about her history, what happened over the weekend, and how to build a better future between the queer community and law enforcement.

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