'Rebirthing of pride': Auckland Pride Board optimistic about parade but 'expenses will be different'
Monday, 26 November 2018
The Auckland Pride Board is feeling optimistic about its parade as public donations near $20,000 after corporate sponsors pulled out.
A number of sponsors pulled funding for the parade after the board banned police from marching in uniform citing safety concerns for LGBTQI+ community members.
Pride Board chairwoman Cissy Rock said the Givealittle page, which had raised $19,130 as of lunchtime on Monday, was 'incredibly uplifting'.
It was set up by Laura O'Connell Rapira who said the page was both pragmatic and an attempt to cultivate hope after a difficult week for the Pride community.
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'The motivation was two-fold. If business[es] are not going to fund the parade, we still want it to happen and so we have to get the funds from somewhere else,' O'Connell Rapira said.
Rock said the board had heard there were people supportive of its stance who didn't want the parade to 'fall apart' just because corporates weren't funding it.
'The amount of money and the messages that have come along with the donations have been incredibly uplifting and really restored my faith in community and solidarity and a collective approach,' she said.
Rock said despite sponsors such as Rainbow New Zealand Charitable Trust, Fletcher Building, Sky City and the Ponsonby Business Association pulling funding, it had enough money to create 'some form of celebration of pride'.
The amount of money needed for the parade depended on what sort of parade the board wanted to have, she said.
Hundreds of thousands of dollars could be spent on a parade but some sponsors had pulled out, she added.
'The Auckland Pride Board is focusing on creating a community-led space for the Pride Parade 2019, which means the expenses will be different.
'Pride Parade was never meant to be dependent on corporations and we welcome the challenge to find creative avenues to celebrate our community's sexual and gender identity.'
The 2018 parade which was covered by registration costs and sponsorship totalled $131,000, Rock said.
Funds for the parade were spent on traffic management, marshalling, health and safety plans, compliance and permits.
The organisation also supported floats, including the ones that opened and closed the parade, Rock said.
She did not say how much money the 2019 parade had lost due to corporate sponsors pulling out.
But Rock said she felt optimistic that it would go ahead as planned on February 16.
'People are saying it's a rebirthing of pride,' she said.
'I'm optimistic that what is going to go ahead is going to be something that is really community-driven.'