Thousands march through the streets of the city

When the rainbow is everywhere – on flags, t-shirts, cheeks, beards – then it’s Pride. The large demonstration of the LGBT community moved through downtown Zurich on Saturday. After the pandemic, it has its folk festival character again for the first time since 2019 with a big party on the barracks area and the Zeughaushof.

But it starts with the more political part, speeches on Helvetiaplatz and the subsequent parade. Shortly before 1 p.m., Helvetiaplatz still seems a bit deserted. The demonstrators crowd into the sparse shade provided by buildings and trees against the blazing midday sun. The banners are already ready, but are only raised at shoulder height: “queer, proud, angry” can be read, “trans rights = human rights” or something more original “fuck the cis-tem”.

Many wear pins on their chests that indicate which pronouns they want to be addressed with: he/him, they/her, xier/xien. Sometimes the request “no pronouns” can be read, which makes you wonder how the address is supposed to work.

It is also striking how many company groups are present. The participants in the demonstration wear T-shirts with the logos of Swisscom, Julius Baer or Johnson & Johnson. How could it be otherwise, Ikea arrived with a van. A man has placed a huge jukebox in a shopping cart decorated with Swedish flags, from which techno beats are blaring.

Successful companies move with the times. And of course the parties are also involved. A group of Green Liberals wear T-shirts with the slogan: “Equality is not rocket science!”

Many of the demands of the LGBT community have now reached mainstream society. This was also shown by the clear approval of the Swiss population for the marriage for all last autumn.

The last Zurich Pride took place a few weeks before the election. At that time it was all about the referendum. Because of the pandemic, only one demonstration had been approved, the festival did not take place. Nevertheless, around 20,000 people took part in the rally.

Controversy over the theme

This year the motto is: “trans – living diversity”. At first it was still “Trans Normal”, which was not appreciated in the community. Some were bothered by the term “normal”. This implies that trans people are just normal people and want to fit into society. There was talk of assimilation politics.

Benjamin Hermann, who had worked out the motto, justified himself on the news portal Watson: “It shouldn’t be about transgender people being ‘normal’, but rather that the norm has to be broken up and expanded”. The working group around Hermann consisted of ten trans and nonbinary people. They didn’t expect such massive criticism, but they agreed that they had to take it seriously. And so the new motto was developed with the involvement of the community.

However, the issue of trans identity remained. For the first time in the 27-year history of Zurich Pride, the focus is on the legal situation and the challenges of trans people, the organizers said. On the one hand, the community has common themes, on the other hand, it is just as diverse as other groups of people. “An important goal is that trans people can live this diversity in the future without restrictions and exclusion.”

Call for more education in schools

The topic was also the focus of the speeches on Helvetiaplatz. Zayrah David, who introduced herself as a young trans woman with Tamil roots, said: “I’m fed up with being reduced to my trans identity. I don’t want to always have to explain myself. I’m a woman, plain and simple. Even though I was born with a penis.”

She called for more education about gender identity in schools and elsewhere in society. And she encouraged the participants to stand together for the rights of trans people. “Let’s fight together today and be proud!” Loud applause.

Further demands followed from other participants, such as the introduction of gender-neutral toilets or gender-neutral, non-binary entries in passports and ID.

Led by a drumming group, the large demonstration procession then started. This time, too, there are likely to be tens of thousands who marched through the city via Stauffacher over the Sihl to Bahnhofstrasse and back to Helvetiaplatz, only to celebrate later on the barracks area.