The Jewish community’s largest LGBT+ charity will not take part in the London Pride march for the second consecutive year over fears for the safety of British Jews.
Keshet UK said it will not be organising a Jewish bloc at the capital’s flagship LGBT+ event after organisers Pride in London rejected their requests aimed at ensuring the safety of British Jews marching at Pride.
The Jewish charity, which has been organising the bloc for nearly a decade, said it was left with no choice but to withdraw after organisers allegedly rejected multiple requests for measures designed to ensure the safety of Jewish participants, including antisemitism awareness training for stewards.
The charity has accused event organisers of failing to support the safety of Jewish participants and said that British LGBT+ Jews had not been given adequate reassurance that they would be “physically and psychologically safe” at Pride.
Keshet UK claimed it had first contacted organisers in July 2024 to engage in “good faith, open-minded discussions to find solutions to our concerns,” but received no reply from Pride until early this year. A meeting took place between the group and organisers a few weeks ago, Keshet UK said.
The charity said it made requests that antisemitism awareness training be offered to stewards and asked for “reassurance that British Jews would be physically and psychologically safe at the event amidst rapidly rising antisemitism and LGBT+ related hate crime in the UK.” Their requests were apparently turned down.
“After various failures from Pride in London, we feel unable to say to British Jews that Pride in London has done everything in their power to keep us safe. We desperately wish this was not the case,” a statement from Keshet announced.
A spokesperson added: "British LGBT+ Jews deserve the space to celebrate our identity alongside all other LGBT+ people in the UK. We are hugely disappointed in Pride in London.
“We hope that Pride in London will reflect on the fact that, for two years now, Keshet UK has felt forced to withdraw. We hope that we can receive the necessary reassurances to allow us to return in future years.”
Sapphic Shabbat, a social group for queer Jewish women and non-binary people, also expressed their sadness that the Jewish bloc had withdrawn from Pride and said they will host a Shabbat dinner for the community on Pride weekend.
A spokesperson for the group said, “Pride should be a space for all of us - including those whose identities are both Jewish and queer.
“The refusal to provide antisemitism training for stewards sends a harmful message: that Jewish safety is optional.
“We stand with Keshet UK and all Jewish LGBT+ people who deserve to celebrate with dignity, safety, and joy. Pride that excludes is not true pride. Pride must be for all, or it is for none.
“Sapphic Shabbat remains committed to creating joyful, inclusive Jewish spaces for our community.”
The Board of Deputies has now called on organisers to foster "inclusive communities". Board Vice President, Andrew Gilbert, said, “We are disappointed to see that, once again, Keshet UK have felt unable to march at Pride in London. It is incumbent on all organisations who seek to foster inclusive communities to do so, and we urge Pride in London to include LGBTQ+ Jews at Pride.”
The JC understands that other Jewish events are being planned for Pride weekend that will be announced soon.
In a statement, Pride in London CEO, Christopher Joell-Deshields, said: “Pride in London stands firmly against all forms of discrimination, including antisemitism. We continue to work with other Jewish LGBTQ+ groups, and are committed to ensuring that Jewish participants feel welcome and protected at our events. We remain open to continued dialogue with KeshetUK, as we have expressed to the organisation directly.
“Our safety protocols are developed through extensive collaboration with city agencies and security professionals to protect all participants. Our approach focuses on comprehensive security planning for our diverse volunteer team, who come from various religious, ethnic and sexual identities, and we strive to balance the needs of all religious and community groups participating in the parade. We continuously review our protocols to ensure they adequately address the safety concerns of all communities, and welcome further constructive engagement on how we can better serve London's diverse LGBTQ+ population.”
