Federal senator Lidia Thorpe was moved on from the Sydney Mardi Gras parade by police after footage showed her lying on the street and temporarily halting the march.
In a video of the incident shared on social media, the independent senator can be seen lying on her back in front of a truck that was part of the NSW police float on Oxford Street during the Saturday night parade.Credit:“Get rid of her! Get rid of her,” a person in the crowd can be heard chanting during the incident.“About 9pm last night a woman lay in front of a float on Oxford Street, momentarily preventing the progress of the parade,” NSW Police told AAP on Sunday.
Thorpe was marching in the “No Pride in Genocide” float, organised by Pride in Protest. When they announced last week that , spokesperson Mikhael Burnard said “the oppression of queer people and the oppression of Indigenous people and refugees are one and the same fight”.“The pinkwashing of the NSW Police force continues with them also joining the parade, despite deaths in custody continuing unabated,” their statement said.“Black and brown trans women started the first pride march as a protest against police violence. Today, we still face violence from police,” she said.
A spokesman for Sydney Mardi Gras confirmed the parade had been interrupted by Thorpe as she attempted to stage a protest. “While we respect the individual’s right to protest, interrupting the parade in this way has significant implications for the safety of our participants and audience,” the spokesman said.The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights.
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