I don't remember the first time I was aware of pride. But the first pride
in Malta happened roughly when I hit puberty...

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Dear John,

 

As we prepare for this year’s EuroPride in Valletta, Malta, we are
reminded of the substantial journey still ahead in the fight for LGBTIQ+
rights.

 

Our co-chair MÉLANIE VOGEL and committee member MINA JACK TOLU, alongside
numerous other Green MEPs, MPs, and activists will be participating in the
Pride events in Malta to represent Greens from all over Europe.

Mélanie Vogel and Mina Jack Tolu will partake in a roundtable on
gender-based violence and sexual reproductive health and rights on Friday.
On Saturday, Greens will join the big Pride march together with thousands
of queer activists and allies. You too can join in the experience: We will
cover the event closely on Instagram [6], X (fka Twitter) [7], Facebook
[8], and TikTok [9]! Follow us to be part of EuroPride 2023.

 

Before we commence our on-ground reports, we have a VERY PERSONAL STATEMENT
FROM OUR MALTESE COMMITTEE MEMBER, MINA JACK TOLU, to share with you. In
it, they recount their personal experiences from previous Pride events,
tracing the evolution of this significant event over the past twelve years.
Enjoy the read!

 

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Mina Jack Tolu

Committee member of the European Greens

"I DON'T REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME I WAS AWARE OF PRIDE.

 

But the first pride in Malta happened roughly when I hit puberty and I
started to have mixed feelings about my gender and sexuality.

 

Some years later, I see a rainbow in my parents' house for the first time,
my twin is wearing a bracelet on their wrist. I recognised instantly that
this meant they had been to pride, or at the least a pride event. I felt a
mix of jealousy and sadness, I wasn't ready to come out myself. 

 

Twelve years ago, I attended pride with a group of friends for the first
time, I hid behind my camera and took many photos. My girlfriend at the
time did not march with me, she sat in the shade of a palazzo and waited
for the march to be over. It is weird to feel shame and pride at the same
time. Why wouldn't she hold my hand?

Pride in Malta will always hold a special place for me, it's where I
understood how the personal is political, and where I gave my first public
speech in 2013. My new girlfriend that year also avoided the march. Wasn't
she proud of me?

 

Ten years have passed, everyone knows about the progress Malta and many
other countries have made since then. Pride in Malta has also grown, from a
couple of hundred people to thousands attending in just a few years. It is
no longer seen as a protest, but a celebration.

 

BUT THIS PROGRESS IS FRAGILE AND MORE AND MORE UNDER PRESSURE.

 

Wherever in power, right-wingers attack people for who they are. Rights
we’ve fought for are reversed and aggression against queer people becomes
more frequent.

 

We also have to be careful with governments that try to turn pride events
into part of their election campaign, a way to control the LGBTQI+
narrative. For me, this shows that pride should always be a protest, a
manifestation of our global solidarity with the queer community, BECAUSE WE
MUST DEFEND WHAT WE HAVE ALREADY ACHIEVED, AND THERE IS STILL SO MUCH, TO
FIGHT FOR!"

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