Kyiv Pride comes to Liverpool

After a rainy few weeks, the sun shone today for Liverpool Pride which, this year, was a joint event with Kyiv Pride, building on the links that Liverpool made with Ukraine when the city hosted Eurovision on Ukraine’s behalf earlier this year. 

It was a pleasure to have a delegation from Kyiv Pride with us although, of course, absolutely heartbreaking that they had to be here and weren’t free to celebrate back home. Thanks to them for going to the trouble of coming over when they have so much to deal with right now. Let’s hope that they and their country will prevail as soon as possible - with the world’s support.

Today’s Blip features one of the Kyiv group shouting for justice -  which sums up the spirit of the day for me. 

I’ve added a selection of Extras which I hope also reflect the day and the importance not only of being free to be who we are, but to shine through self-expression, even in the face of those who seek to deny these freedoms. 

A particular highlight of the day was a chance Blip Meet with the lovely Flotsam www.blipfoto.com/entry/3132020077856034343 It was all too short but I very much hope to have a chance to have a proper conversation with her one of these days. Thanks to her for coming over to say hello! She’s the first Extra! 

Today’s tune has nothing in particular to do with Pride (although it does link back to Eurovision as Dana’s original version was the winning song in 1970!) but I really wanted to pay tribute to Sinéad O’Connor/Shuhada' Sadaqat and this lovely cover of ‘All Kinds of Everything’ also allows me to pay tribute to Terry Hall who left us back in December. Two of the musical greats of my lifetime, both of whom experienced childhood abuse, both gone too soon and both very much missed https://youtu.be/s8oqKyVW978