78ers

The 78ers are a group of LGBT activists who marched in the original Sydney Mardi Gras on 24 June 1978 and participated in the subsequent protests against police violence and the arrests of participants in the Mardi Gras. In 1997 a small group of people who were part of the 1978 events contributed to planning the commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the Sydney Mardi Gras parade in 1998. This group became known as the 78ers and has led each year’s Mardi Gras parade since 1998.

The 78ers are those who took part in the first Sydney Mardi Gras parade on 24 June 1978 and the demonstrations that followed.  

Each year they carry two large banners proclaiming chants from the original Mardi Gras: Stop Police Attacks on Gays Women and Blacks! and Out of the Bars and Onto the Streets!

In the 2024 Mardi Gras Parade, they will also continue a rolling celebration of Fifty Years of LGBTQI Visibility with placards highlighting key events from 1974.

ABC

The ABC is the official broadcaster of Mardi Gras.  We were the first to put the parade on television.  Australia’s first gay kiss was broadcast on the ABC.  

As a much-loved part of Australian society and its cultural fabric our role is to provide informative, entertaining, and educational services that reflect the breadth of our nation.  This includes supporting and highlighting the LGBTQIA+ Community through main channels (TV, radio & online) and LGBTQIA+ platforms such as AWEI-winning podcast Innies & Outies and AWEI-winning Instagram platform ABC Queer.  

David Anderson, our Managing Director won CEO of the Year at the AWEI Awards 2022, we are a Gold Employer at the AWEI Awards, and with an active Pride group we strive to provide a safe and inclusive workplace for all.

Get onboard a flowing swirl of digital matter and matrix as we sashay into our joint future.  Chase the lights, embrace the fog of uncertainty as we map the route to the future. 

Acceptance Sydney

This year Christian groups have come together representing  a cross section of affirming Christian churches  (e.g., Catholic; Uniting; MCC and others).

These faith based community groups have existed for many decades, supporting gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBTIQ+) Christians, their family and friends. 

By providing a safe, spiritual and social environment, many LGBTIQ+ persons have found reconciliation with their faith and sexuality.

Our mission this year is to stand together in our affirmation of the dignity of LGBTIQ+ people.

Acceptance Sydney (one of the groups involved) members marched in the first Mardi Gras and played a role in “C.A.M.P.” in the 1970s and 1980s.

As an example of the positive impact these groups have made over many years is the  participation in Fair Day and Mardi Gras Parades since the 1980s giving hope to hundreds of LGBTIQ+ Christians that they are loved and fully accepted by God.

Christians all coming together in solidarity, creating hope for a bright FUTURE  to all LGBTIQ+ people of faith that they are loved and valued by God.  Inspired by the Christian mystic Hildegard of Bingen, who spoke of the flourishing of a future filled with ‘greenness’ representing life, growth and hope, Rainbow Christians Together are in sync by paving the way of hope for a bright FUTURE together in Christian churches. The “bright future” is represented in the parade by bright green t-shirts heralding a prosperous and thriving future for LGBTIQ+ people of faith and what they can bring to their community.

ACON

ACON is NSW’s leading health promotion organisation specialising in community health, inclusion and HIV responses for people of diverse sexualities and genders. Established in 1985, ACON works to create opportunities for people in our communities to live their healthiest lives.

In NSW, we’ve made great strides towards reducing HIV infections, particularly among gay and bisexual men who are Australian born and live within the inner city.

However for some other communities, particularly overseas-born gay and bisexual men who reside in areas such as Greater Western Sydney and regional NSW, we’re not seeing the same reduction in infections.

ACON’s campaign for Mardi Gras 2024 and the theme for our Parade float has a simple message: LET’S TEST.

We want to bridge the gap in the HIV data by encouraging communities who are most affected by HIV to get a sexual health check-up.

These days, testing for HIV and STIs is easy, convenient and in most cases free. And with the recent introduction of HIV self-tests being made available, getting tested in the comfort of your own home is just a few clicks away.

The design of the campaign and parade entry is inspired by the works of the late, great artist and queer icon Keith Haring, who passed from AIDS-related complications during the height of the AIDS epidemic.

So, let’s spread the word and help end HIV transmissions. Let’s leave no one behind. Let’s test for HIV and STIs.

American Express

American Express is a world where people and communities are included, respected, equal, valued and backed to thrive.

As principal partner, American Express continues to amplify how they can provide a positive and meaningful change to continually support and advocate the wonderous experience at Mardi Gras, the spirit of the LGBTQIA+ community and beyond .

In 2024, the Mardi Gras Parade will call on communities to imagine and embrace the power of coming together to manifest endless possibilities.

As the grand celebration makes its triumphant return to Oxford Street, the American Express Mardi Gras float will commemorate its skill in presenting lively enthusiasm, extravagant attire, and remarkable designs.

The float exhibits vibrant and immersive lights and colors, providing a tangible experience that instills a feeling of excitement, celebration, and self-expression throughout the city.

Taking the ‘Express Yourself’ and ‘&Proud’ concepts to new heights, the illuminating lights and bold materials, coupled with AMEX’s distinct identity, enhance an activation that one can proudly embrace during a monumental occasion.

Architecture with Pride

Architects with Pride invites queer practitioners and academics in the design and architecture industry across Australia to join in the celebration of the contributions made by LGBTQIA+ designers to Australia’s built environment.

Architecture With Pride envisions a future built environment that places emphasis on well-being, inclusivity, and accessibility. Their float, a vibrant queer space embellished with thousands of strings symbolising Australia’s queer community, represents the multitude of changes needed in the Australian built environment for a more equitable and diverse future.

Asian Marching Boys & Friends

Asian Marching Boys & Friends (AMBF) aims to promote the visibility & acceptance of gay Asian men and their friends in Australia and provide a foundation

for social networking. AMBF also strives to raise money to fund a parade entry in the annual Mardi Gras Parade to provide AMBF supporters with a fun and safe platform to acknowledge and express their sexual identity.

AMBF will engender recognition and consideration of the challenges faced by gay Asian men and their friends in the community by taking part in targeted discussion groups, guest speaking at other social group events and by sharing our stories.

Asian Marching Boys and Friends come together with the theme of ‘Electric Blue Cowboys’, the wording aims to tie in ‘Our Future’ yet acknowledge our past.  The age-old adage, ‘if the horse throws you off get back on and ride it’,  comes into play to showcase the members of the group’s ability to endure as individuals within a minority and also the group’s ability to endure year after year and return stronger and better than ever for well over 20 years. 

Our aim is to bring together all members of the LGBTQI community within our group with a diverse mix of individuals coming together as one.  As a group we are open to any member of the community as we aim to provide each member with a safe space and a platform to be a Cowboy, Cowgirl or Cow Poke being the gender-neutral pronoun to unify and ensure inclusivity for all members. 

One of our longest serving members Phu Nguyen felt growing up and watching Cowboy movies that diversity wasn’t represented in any capacity, and he was very passionate about taking this concept and making it a moment to show our future and move from traditional concepts and spark new ideas and set new ideals. 

Australian Asexuals

We are Australian Asexuals – we represent the often forgotten but very much alive ‘A’ in LGBTQIA+! We exist to connect and represent Asexuals across Australia and to educate the wider community. We aim to bring together the wider Australian Asexual community, linking communication between smaller groups around the country and generating positive conversations about the Asexual community.

The work we are doing now is intended to build a safe space for aces in the future. Where the wider community knows what asexuality is and accepts it as a valid sexual orientation.

We are creating a better future for asexual people, constructing communities, raising awareness, and building bridges to like minded groups and more.

We are a movement under construction, steadily gaining momentum to form a strong and progressive community. We are building our future Right Here, Right Now! 

Australian LGBT Ice Hockey

Harbour Lights Ice Hockey Club, based in Sydney, is the harbour city’s inaugural LGBTQIA+ ice hockey team and forms part of Australian LGBT Ice Hockey, which includes Southern Lights Ice Hockey in Melbourne. We specialise in inclusive, mixed-gender, non-contact hockey, allowing individuals across all gender identities and sexual orientations to play together in a safe and skill-appropriate environment. With 180 members, our club is a microcosm of the LGBTQIA+ community.

Our impact extends beyond the rink. Many of our players have felt empowered to come out to their friends, family and other hockey teams thanks to the supportive environment we foster. We’re not just about playing ice hockey; we’re about changing the game for queer inclusion in sports. Our efforts have gained international attention, including features by the NHL and Pride Tape, amplifying our message that ice hockey—and sport in general—should be a welcoming place for everyone.

Harbour Lights Ice Hockey Club is more than Sydney’s first LGBTQI+ club. We’re working to redefine the future of ice hockey and sport overall. With a safe and welcoming environment, we’re not just creating an inclusive space but setting a standard for leagues in Australia and around the world. We’ve got nods from global organisations like the NHL and PrideTape, amplifying our message.

Our goal? To be change-makers, inspiring a shift towards inclusivity across all leagues, not just within our own ranks. Come be part of our club and community as we build a more welcoming future in sport.

Australian Library and Information Association

‘The Librarians’ are a group of queer library and information professionals marching to spotlight the important role of libraries and archives for the LGBTQIA+ community and to also celebrate the many LGBTQIA+ people who work in the library sector.

Visibly queer people working in libraries signal safe spaces and lets others in the community know that their identity matters and that they are accepted.

Come and get some love in the library (and not just in the stacks!). Step through library doors and you will be seen and valued. Come and feel safe in our spaces. Explore our collections that reflect a diversity of experiences and points of view. For the librarians, this is love, and with it comes a transformative power that can change minds, hearts and attitudes to create a positive future for all.

Australian Rainbow Veterinarians and Allies

ARVA is an organisation providing support, advocacy, education and events for LGBTIQA veterinarians and people in the veterinary industry.

ARVA unites veterinarians from diverse backgrounds to shape a future of a better world, a world where inclusion, diversity and belonging in our intersectional veterinary community is celebrated. 

We are on a collective journey as veterinarians protecting people, animals and the environment from disease and illness. Our future journey depends on every veterinarian, every voice and action, to not only be on the front lines of care, but also be on the front lines of change.

Autism Spectrum Australia

The Neurodiversity Rainbow represents the Autistic LGBTQIA+ community. Autistic people are more likely to be gender and sexually diverse than non-autistic people. (George & Stokes, 2018). 

In 2024, we want our entry to showcase Autistic joy at Mardi Gras! 

Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect) is a national service provider and is committed to the inclusion of people living under the double rainbow intersection of both the Autistic and LGBTQIA+ communities. 

Aspect has a LGBTQIA+ Engagement Plan led by a diverse team of people and supported by an external independent committee of LGBTQIA+ Autistic people.

Autism Spectrum Australia and Neurodivergent Rainbow represent the intersectional crossover between neurodivergence and the LGBTQIA+ community. 

Research shows up to 70% of Autistic people identify as part of the LGBTQIA+ community. 

Our future generations will see our group marching with joy and in turn see hope and glimmers in their life now and into the future. 

Bears of Australasia

The Bears of Australia is a conglomeration of all bear organisations in Australia and neighbouring countries hosted by Harbour City Bears – including VicBears, Bears Perth, TasBears, Bear Men of Adelaide, Brisbears and Bear New Zealand. This brotherhood of hirsute and big body beautiful is relevant to the LGBTIQA+ communities as it highlights the diversity in the community. 

Bears of Australasia are celebrating Our Future, our fans, our friends and our family. 

Bentstix Hockey Club

Bentstix Hockey Club is dedicated to continually building a diverse, competitive and friendly environment which welcomes new members wishing to play hockey, get fit and make new friends.

Our club aims are to:

• Provide the LGBTQIA+ community members with an opportunity to learn and play hockey in a competitive, fun and supportive environment;

• Offer members the opportunity to make new friends while improving their fitness and self-esteem;

• Promote sport and participation in the LGBTQIA+ community and in turn promote acceptance of diverse sexuality and gender within the broader community;

• Promote LGBTQIA+ field hockey both locally and internationally in an effort to build participation worldwide.

Bentstix wears the Fair Go rainbow socks across the majority of its men’s and women’s teams and on all international representative teams. We choose to wear these socks to show our commitment to creating a sporting club and sporting association that is safe, supportive and inclusive. The support we have received from the Sydney East Hockey Association and Hockey NSW in undertaking this initiative has allowed us to continue to promote our aims and objectives in the wider hockey community.

Our club is one of the world’s leading gay and lesbian hockey clubs, and one of the largest by greater membership and is based in Sydney. As part of 2023 World Pride, Bentstix hosted PinkHockey’s World Pride Hockey Tournament bringing together teams from Sydney, Perth, Aotearoa NZ, London and Amsterdam to gather, connect and compete playing the game we love, making hockey a more inclusive and accepting sport for all.

As Australia’s first, largest and proudest LGBTQIA+ hockey club, Bentstix is going back to the future, celebrating the progress we have made over the last 25 years by championing diversity in Hockey. The electric energy of our float and bright neon costumes represent the colour we bring to the hockey field, by ensuring hockey remains an accepting place for all, now and into the future.

Bi+ Visibility

Bi+ Visibility is community-based organisation, whose purpose is to increase the visibility of the Bi+ community. We are here to ensure the Bisexual+ community is represented at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. The parade has a controversial history of excluding bisexuals from the parade, for example, in 1996 bisexual identifying individuals needed to provide ‘supplementary information justifying their application’ unlike their lesbian, homosexual and transgender counterparts. Moreover, the bisexual community has only been represented at the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade since 2019.

Bi+ Visibility has advocated for bisexual+ individuals in a multitude of ways since its inception in 2018 including hosting a Bisexual+ Mardi Gras float each year, providing consultancy to Mardi Gras, politicians, other LGBTQIA+ organisations and with International Pride org InterPride. 

Bi+ Visibility is calling for urgent change to NSW law to protect Bi+ people. Bi+ Visibility aim to highlight this in true Mardi Gras fashion, incorporating the use of satire to highlight this important cause by drawing on the film ‘Legally Blonde’ with a bisexual twist.

NSW is the only State or Territory in Australia that does not protect Bi+ people from discrimination. In other parts of Australia, you can take action if a person discriminates against you because of any sexuality or sexual orientation. Here in NSW, that same protection is limited to only homosexuality.

This glaring gap puts the safety of Bi+ people in NSW at risk, hides our Bi+ identities, and disregards the distinct forms of discrimination we face. 

Bi+ Visbility calls for NSW discrimination law to protect people of all sexual orientations, including people who identify as Bi+. We ask our broader LGBTIQ+ community to support us to ensure equal safety and protection for us all. 

Biennale of Sydney

A key participant of the 24th Biennale of Sydney exhibition is ‘Yangamini’, a guerilla collective initiated by Sistagirl Elder Crystal Love Johnson Kerinauia, consisting of trans and non-binary First Nations and allied communities in the Tiwi Islands. The collective advocate for sexual well-being and traditional knowledge, and have an important role in welcoming First Nations queers who seek refuge in the Tiwi gender-fluid community. Our entry and design for the 2024 Mardi Gras will be lead by and centre around the Yangamini collective.

The Biennale of Sydney has positioned itself as a LGBTQIA+ contributing organisation through its consistent efforts to foster inclusivity, diversity and representation in the art world. Through its various editions, it has showcased works by members of the queer community, and has often included themes and narratives that resonate strongly with the community, providing a platform for voices that champion diversity and inclusivity.  

Partnering with the Yangamini collective for this entry, the Biennale expands its discourse to encapsulate First Nations queer perspectives, promoting a rich and diverse representation of LGBTQIA+ art and ideas, thus contributing to broader discourse around LGBTQIA+ issues and experiences.  

The Biennale of Sydney more broadly has showcased and continues to showcase narratives that pertain to queer futures, diversity in sexual orientations, and gender identities over its almost 50-year history – making it a rich space for encountering LGBTQIA+ art and ideas.  

The organisation goes beyond representation, aiming to provoke thoughtful discussions and foster a community where diversity is celebrated, encouraging a wider understanding and acceptance of LGBTQIA+ realities. This collaboration fosters a space for vibrant discussions, cementing the Biennale’s role as a significant ally to the LGBTQIA+ community. 

“Mapurtiti Nonga” is a vibrant embodiment of resilience, supported by the Biennale of Sydney and crafted by the Yangamini collective from the Tiwi Islands. It portrays the First Nations’ Sistagirls and Brothaboys as trailblazers forging a sustainable future grounded in age-old traditions and spiritual connections. Through carnivalesque humour and colourful sculptures, it turns a critical eye on the mining industry and environmental threats while celebrating joy and diversity in our communities. This float is not just a piece of art; it is a call to action, urging society to stand against destructive forces and foster a harmonious relationship with nature. 

BIG THICK ENERGY

Big Thick Energy is the brain-child of performance artist and booty manipulator Demon Derriere and has been curated to promote body positivity and liberation through movement, creativity and community.

Our variety festival features skill sharing workshops, local artisan markets and three evenings of high energy entertainment with thick, curvy performance artists breaking stereotypes and celebrating self love. Featuring Burlesque, Drag, Vogue, Poetry Slam, Freak Show and Music, Big Thick Energy is a safe inclusive space for IBPOC and LGBTQIA+ bodies.

Step into the vibrant world of Big Thick Energy – we’re not just a group, we’re a full-blown movement, baby! Picture this: a celebration of fat joy, an ode to body accretion, and a radical anthem of self-love. We’re here to turn your conventional beauty standards into confetti and toss ’em in the trash, because guess what? Discrimination and exclusion are hard no’s in our fabulous universe.

Our mission? Creating a safe haven for all our queer fat babes, no matter the abilities. We’re all about giggles, jiggles, and giving out hugs that could rival a cozy blanket on a winter night. And when it comes to strutting our stuff in the Mardi Gras Parade, we don’t just walk – we boom boom shake the room!

So, get ready to join the movement, where every step is a declaration of confidence, and every smile is a rebellion against the norm. And remember, darling, “fat” is not a bad word – it’s a badge of honour, a celebration of uniqueness that we wear with pride.

Get your dancing shoes on, leave your pants at, because with Big Thick Energy, the party never stops, and the revolution is as fierce as our runway walk.

Bobby Goldsmith Foundation 

Bobby Goldsmith Foundation (BGF) is Australia’s oldest community-based HIV organisation, providing practical, emotional, and financial support to all people living with HIV (PLHIV) in NSW and SA.

Bobby Goldsmith was a well-known figure in the Sydney gay community in the ’70s and ’80s and we have maintained strong connections with LGBTQIA+ communities across NSW since 1984.  Over 85% of our clients and staff identify as members of LGBTQIA+ communities.  

We recognise that life for PLHIV has come a long way thanks to the strength and activism of Sydney’s LGBTQIA+ community. For 39 years, BGF and the LGBTQIA+ community have supported each other, and we will continue this into the future.

Through BGF’s parade entry, we wish to celebrate four decades of supporting people living with HIV in Australia, while conveying our hopes for PLHIV in the future.  Our purpose is to remind the wider community that HIV is still very much an issue and that despite great advances in medication and quality of life, they still face daily challenges with both their health and the stigma they face daily.  

Boys on Bikes 

Boys on Bikes is a group of gay or gay supporting people who get together each year from various groups both around Australia and internationally to ride is solidarity

Brisbane Gay Gardeners

We are a social group for like-minded gardeners within the LGBTQIA+ community who can get together in a friendly, safe environment where age, race, and size are no barrier, and it is a welcoming place for all. We hold social events not just for gay gardeners but for other events as well. For example, our group puts on functions for Mature Aged Men which is the equivalent of Mature Aged Gays in Sydney. 

Gay Gardeners Brisbane is a newly formed group in Brisbane that brings together the LGBTQIA+ community whose passion is gardening. The group meets in safe environments where everyone can be themselves. Gay Gardeners of Brisbane is also a group for those who would like to mix with the LGBTQIA+ community but are not into nightclubbing.

Brisbane Meanjin Tritons

The Brisbane | Meanjin Tritons are Queensland’s first and only LGBTQIA+ inclusive water polo club. We provide a space where our members from within the LGBTQIA+ community and our allies can come together to play water polo and socialise in a safe and supportive environment. The Tritons provide a space for our members to work on their physical, mental and emotional wellbeing, whilst participating in a team sport, something most of our members say they haven’t felt comfortable doing since they left school.

By participating in the Parade, the Tritons are able to show that we are a sporting club comprised of a diverse group of people from across the LGBTQIA+ community. Amongst our members we have Lesbians, Gay Men, Bisexual, Transgender, Non Binary and Queer Individuals. We also have members from a diverse range of ethnic and cultural backgrounds, including First Nations. We are a club that has a strong message about body positivity and we celebrate all shapes and sizes equally. The Tritons also provide a place for members of our community to meet likeminded individuals outside of the usual bar/club scene. These opportunities include sending our team to external competitions that allow them to connect with the LGBTQIA+ community from around Australia and the World. These events include our inter-state grudge matches and the International Gay and Lesbian Aquatic games (where the Tritons recently won Gold in the London games). We have also pioneered inclusive water polo in Queensland by being the driving force for mixed gendered and age inclusive games in our local Brisbane competitions.

Inclusivity is in our DNA and we are proud to offer this space for our LGBTQIA+ community to thrive and have fun!

The Brisbane | Meanjin Tritons are Queensland’s first and only LGBTQIA+ inclusive water polo club. We provide a space where our members from within the LGBTQIA+ community and our allies can come together to play water polo and socialise in a safe and supportive environment. Our club believes that sport should be an inclusive and safe space for all to work on their physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. Many in our community sadly don’t feel safe in these environments. So, to that our club has one simple message: Sport is for everyone!

BuildingPride

Building Pride is focused on improving the lives of LGBTQIA+ people within the property and construction industry.

Our programs support and connect LGBTQIA+ people, encourage ally participation and step outside of our circles, to engage and educate non-identifying people in the pursuit of greater inclusivity. We create an environment where LGBTQI+ people thrive, leading to greater attraction and retention, with the goal to develop game changers and leaders of tomorrow. Change happens when leaders make equality and fairness a priority.

Our vision is to have the Property and Construction industry a place for LGBTQIA+ talent to thrive.

Step into the Future with BuildingPride! Join us on a journey of unity, sustainability, and inclusivity as we proudly present ‘Building Better Together, a Bridge to the Future.’ Our float is a stunning rainbow-coloured bridge, a symbol of LGBTQIA+ diversity and progress, inspired by Leonardo Da Vinci. But it’s more than just a float; it’s a commitment to a brighter, fairer property industry. Our hi-vis vests, infused with vibrant colours, represent diversity and inclusiveness. Join us in celebrating individuality, equality, and a sustainable future. Together, we’re constructing a path to a more inclusive property and construction industry.

Burly Bombshells

Burly Bombshells challenge traditional beauty standards, empowering queer people to be confident in their bodies, and remind them that they are strong, beautiful and sexy. Growing up, queer people and people from various intersections within our communities, often experience discrimination and struggle with body acceptance. We encourage people to express their sexuality in a positive way, and strive to provide a safe space for queer people to celebrate liberation of our bodies, and body diversity.

Burly Bombshells are forever inspired by 40’s, 50’s and retro vintage pinup aesthetic. 

We look to empower queer people to be confident in their bodies, and remind them that they are strong, beautiful and sexy. Queer people and people from various intersections within our communities, often experience discrimination and can struggle with body acceptance. We encourage people to express their sexuality in a positive way, and strive to provide a safe space for queer people to celebrate liberation of our bodies, and body diversity.

Bush Capital Fabulous Queers

Bush Capital Fabulous queers started in 2023 in Canberra,  our support towards young adults within the UNI community bringing us all together, recognizing each individual together it’s our future, together, we can work together and make a change for the better. You are who you are. Our future is everyone’s future.

Your a star baby, Our future depends on us to totally change the way our future looks. It’s never to late to accept your sexuality, whether you’re gay by straight, trans, etc… just believe in yourself just remember there’s always help out there you’re not just in the same boat. As a community we can work together.. Let’s all look forward to “Our Future “ we are going to discourage hate against LGBTQIA and learn to love each other . 

CANVA

Canva is an Australian graphic design platform that is used to create social media graphics and presentations. We’re a design tool that makes it possible to design anything and publish anywhere.

Canva’s parade performance hopes to inspire the LGBTQIA+ community to Design the Future.  The float and futuristic Canvanauts will proudly show how we can unite to honour the past, celebrate the now, and design the future of Pride together

Capital of Equality 

Our entry, the “Capital of Equality” float, beautifully embodies the essence of Canberra. We represent a vibrant community residing in this wonderfully diverse Australian city.

With the valued backing of Canberra Frontrunners, renowned for fostering inclusivity and diversity through secure and inviting walks and runs catering to LGBTQIA+ individuals and their supporters, our initiative is gaining momentum. We are actively extending invitations to other local LGBTQIA+ groups in Canberra, such as Meridian, A Gender Agenda, Pink Tennis, and Phish and Phreak Productions, to participate and collaborate with us.

“Capital of Equality – Pink United,” stands as a vibrant tribute to the values of inclusivity, diversity, and acceptance in our capital, Canberra. Our float’s message is all about embracing “Our Future…” through a pink lens. 

The pink triangle was a symbol of persecution, but LGBTQIA+ activists reclaimed it as a symbol of resilience and strength. The colour pink is often associated with visibility and solidarity within the LGBTQIA+ community. Pink symbolises a strong sense of unity among LGBTQIA+ individuals and allies. It serves as a visual representation of the community coming together to champion causes and shape the future.

City Gym Sydney

City Gym Sydney, established in 1978, holds a special place as the iconic “gay gym” of Sydney. It has evolved into a cherished safe space for the LGBTQIA+ community, reflecting an inclusive environment that emphasizes diversity, fitness, and community. City Gym Sydney’s significance lies in its long-standing commitment to providing a welcoming and affirming space for individuals of all sexual orientations and gender identities.

For decades, City Gym Sydney has not only offered top-notch fitness facilities but has also cultivated a sense of belonging and camaraderie among its LGBTQIA+ members. By creating an atmosphere that embraces and celebrates diversity, the gym has played a crucial role in promoting both physical and mental well-being within the community.

City Gym Sydney’s relevance to the LGBTQIA+ communities stems from its history as a pioneer in offering a safe and empowering environment where individuals can work on their fitness goals without fear of judgment or discrimination. By doing so, the gym has contributed to fostering a stronger sense of community among LGBTQIA+ individuals, addressing unique health and wellness needs, and promoting a culture of acceptance and inclusivity.

In a broader sense, City Gym Sydney exemplifies the importance of creating spaces that cater to marginalized communities, allowing them to express themselves authentically while focusing on their health and fitness. The gym’s legacy serves as an inspiration for other establishments to follow suit, encouraging the development of more safe and welcoming spaces for LGBTQIA+ individuals to thrive and lead healthier lives.

City Gym’s parade entry, “Beyond Boundaries: Embracing Unity Among the Stars,” embodies a profound message of inclusivity and community. Since 1978, City Gym has been a steadfast supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community. Our entry is a testament to our unwavering commitment to unity in a limitless universe. Through visual representations of celestial imagery and powerful symbolism, we emphasize our dedication to fostering a diverse and harmonious interstellar community. In a world without confines, City Gym stands as a beacon of acceptance and support, inviting everyone to join us on this cosmic journey towards an inclusive society where the possibilities are boundless.

City of Sydney

The 2024 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade marks the 19th year a City entry has participated in the event.

The 2024 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade marks the 19th year a City entry has participated in the event. In 2024, the City of Sydney’s Parade entry is “You Be You”. The message highlights how the City of Sydney celebrates individuality and empowers everyone to be proud of who they’re, to celebrate their identity and always remember that in this diverse world, You Be You! 

Coastal Twist LGBTIQ Arts & Culture Festival

Hello from Central Coast Pride, we are the 3rd largest region in NSW and Sydneys closest regional neighbor. Coastal Twist LGBTIQ Arts and Culture festival is our annual October Pride festival which is only in its 3rd year yet we have recieved so much love and support from across the country for a region that has been living the impacts of muligenerational neglect TILL NOW!

Ongoing throughout the year we host and invite events from Queerfilm, to queer live music, from theatre to workshop.

 Our region is comprised of many communities and demographics, from different cultures, and sexualities, to varying social economic backgrounds and gender identities, as well as a range of ages, bodies, abilities, political ideologies, and family configurations. 

Our mission if for a happier, healthier and more welcoming central coast.

Future is now and  life is what you make it. Coastal twist festival is a glowing symbol of pushing through for the change you want to see, tomorrow has passed and the future is today, Lets work together to continue to deliver what a few years prior was thought impossible for this region! From zero to hero we have aligned as a community, burst out with visiblity and embraced new allies its time to  “RISE & SHINE”

Coles

Coles Group.

No matter how you identify, who you love, or where you are from, you are always welcome at Coles.

At Coles everyone is welcome at our table.

COLORFUL CHANGE LAB JAPAN

We are the organisers behind Kyushu Rainbow Pride, one of the largest PRIDE parades in the western part of Japan, located on the island of Kyushu.

Our mission is to elevate awareness of the LGBTQIA+ community and advocate for their rights in not only the region but also across Japan.

In addition to our PRIDE parade, we are dedicated to promoting Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in Japan through various other initiatives and activities, including:

– Provide consultation and training services on LGBTQIA+ topics for various industries and companies, including the bridal and real estate industries

– Form alliances with LGBTQIA+ support groups in Kyushu and surrounding areas to share information and develop initiatives that promote understanding within both government and society

– Host DIVERSITY ACADEMIA, a community that brings businesses and students to engage in discussions, learning sessions and practical actions related to LGBTQIA+ and DEI

– Establish networks and collaborate with LGBTQIA+ communities and organisations worldwide that support PRIDE events

What sets our organisation apart is the seamless synergy between the activities we undertake.

This interconnected approach fosters collaboration among governments, corporations, citizens, and nonprofit organisations, with our organisation acting as a central hub for these efforts.

We have come to Mardi Gras to forge a connection between Japan and Australia and to help shape a brighter future for Japan.

My life belongs to me, and love is the essence of it all. I determine who I love.

Make Marriage Equality a Reality in Japan!

Colours of our Community 

Colours of our Community is a fully inclusive LGBTQIA+ community group that celebrates equality, diversity and LGBTQIA+ love. Founded by Markham Lane in 2006, we create a safe space for our people to be who they want to be and love who they want to love. We lost Markham to suicide in August 2022 and this has renewed our focus to ensure the mental health of our community is front and centre of our purpose. For this reason, we partner with the Black Dog Institute for better mental health and a future where we are fierce, fabulous and free. 

Remembering Our Future – FIERCE, FABULOUS and FREE is presented by ‘Colours of Our Community’ and the Black Dog Institute.  We chart our journey towards better mental health and a brighter future 

• We recognise the lifeline our community photographers have provided LGBTQIA+ Australians for 5 decades and the critical work of mental health research and support organisations

• Our colourful illumination encourages our people to boldly express the beauty of ALL our ‘Colours’ and identities with confidence, visibility and defiance

• We look forward to OUR FUTURE where we can all be FIERCE, FABULOUS and FREE.

Cosplays Out Of The Closet

This community group is composed of people with a shared interest in dressing up as characters from popular media including comic books, video games, novels, anime, manga, television programs, movies and more. Some of us purchase pre-made costumes whilst others make their costumes and props. Both are equally valued within our community. 

We showcase our efforts and fashion online and regularly meet in public events that cater to our interests. We contribute to LGBTQIA+ communities by creating spaces where one can feel comfortable presenting themselves as they wish. Our group supports one another in pursuing the identity that suits us best. Cosplay is our medium through which we discover more about who we are and who we want to include in our lives.

As of last year, our marching group has even branched out to include cosplayers in states other than NSW!

Mardi Gras has a place for everyone that values respect, inclusion, empowerment, and diversity; even fictional characters are welcome! Everyone ranging from heroes to villains, from human to very much not human, from the most classic figures of fiction to the latest additions to popular culture, they are all here, united. Watch as we all come together in cosplay, feeling our finest and looking out of this world. You might even witness your favorite character with us, marching with pride!

Country Queens

We are a pair of guys who reside in a small country town & want to share the message that Queers are out & proud here as well.

We reside in a small town in rural Victoria & would like to shout out that Queers are here & fully accepted & supported. There may have been fear & angst in the past but not here, now or in the “Future”

CSIRO – Australia’s National Science Agency

CSIRO’s promise to our people and the world is to unlock a better future for everyone. Marching in the Mardi Gras parade helps us deliver on this promise – by demonstrating how much we value and celebrate the LGBTQIA+ identifying science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) community and everyone who interacts with it. 

Our commitment to the Sydney Mardi Gras is demonstrated in our event reports attached. Our reports highlight the impact on our people and the reach our campaign has across the community. 

The Pride@CSIRO Network, a growing community of ~300 identifying and allied CSIRO employees, promotes and drives LGBTQIA+ inclusion by raising awareness, supporting peers and challenging discrimination. We have achieved Silver Employer Status in the Australian Workplace Equality Index (AWEI), by implementing initiatives such as:

• Visibly championing and supporting our LGBTQIA+ community and allies, including through previous participation in Mardi Gras

• Developing more LGBTQIA+ inclusive language and practice in our systems, policies, and procedures

• Raising awareness of LGBTQIA+ issues and how we can be active allies through celebrating days of significance such as Wear it Purple Day, workplace discussions, training, and guides.

Through our renewed Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DI&B) Strategy that takes us through to 2026, we have identified international days of significance to celebrate, including the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT). Through storytelling, site events and a cross-agency webcast we put a spotlight on how we can all be better allies and encourage inclusion. 

Our DI&B strategy also states that we create safe workplaces, where people with lived experience can share challenges, successes and form positive relationships across the organisation. The strategy also aims to ensure that CSIRO is a recognised employer of choice through our ability to be a diverse and inclusive organisation, we do this by:

• Raising our public profile by establishing external networks that support our diversity and inclusion outcomes

• Engaging with community partners to broaden our perspectives and enhance our learning

• Encouraging our executives to be champions of diversity and inclusion and sponsor key organisational initiatives.

As Australia’s national science agency we will once again partner with the national LGBTQIA+ community group ‘Queers in Science’ to join CSIRO’s marching team and hope to grow their representation in our group in 2024. While CSIRO staff have been actively involved in QiS since it was established nationally in 2020, our formal Mardi Gras partnership began in 2023 as a way of supporting identifying people in STEMM outside of CSIRO that may find it difficult to participate in the Parade (for example, those living remotely, financially constrained or from organisations that don’t participate). The goal of Queers in Science (queersinscience.org.au) is to build community and improve support for LGBTQIA+ people in STEMM in Australia. In 2023 our partnership supported three members of Queers in Science with costume and accommodation costs, with one participant stating after the march, “It really has made a world of difference to meet so many other queer scientists with such fantastic career paths, and it’s a super heart‑warming feeling to know that there is so much support, kindness and hope out there in the community”.

CSIRO: Science for a Rainbow Future. 

CSIRO is geared up for a rainbow future! By bringing diverse and bright minds together in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), we solve Australia’s biggest challenges. We celebrate each unique individual but together form a cohesive team.

Dayenu – Jewish LGBTQIA+ Sydney

Dayenu, Sydney’s Jewish LGBTQIA+ is a social, outreach, advocacy and support group to the diverse needs of Jewish LGBTQIA+ community, their partners, friends, and families. We work to nourish the ongoing conversation across to the whole spectrum of religious observance, from Secular to Orthodox – as well as valuing the vital contributions that sexuality and gender diversity brings to society. One of our roles is to represent the cultural diversity within LGBTQIA+ communities. We do not conform to any political ideologies.

Dayenu is Sydney’s Jewish LGBTQIA+ group. Our symbol, the Jewish 6-pointed star of David (Magen David), is created by two overlapping triangles. One points downwards to the past. The other triangle points up to the future (where each of us can sparkle with our own fabulous light!). Whatever direction your star is pointing and however you express your identity, we want to celebrate with you and spread the message RAINBOW RIGHTS FOR ALL.

DEFGLIS

DEFGLIS is the Defence LGBTIQ+ Information Service, it is a bi-partisan organisation that delivers a safe and inclusive group where defence personnel, their families and our veterans of the past those who were ostracised and terminated from their service can come and feel the pride of their service and be celebrated, supported and empowered to embody change for the current and future LGBTIQ+ people of the Australian Defence Force.

DEFGLIS celebrates 20 years of service to the defence and wider community, and we are a proud community group that services the LGBTIQ+ memebrs of the ADF and their families, we are building our group to provide support to the young off-springs to our ADF personnel that are now experiences a higher visible desire to gender question. Our ADF personnel find it hard to seek help so DEFGLIS is pivoting to ensure we provide support for our future force and the future of our memebrs families. We are an organsation that has over 800 registered members that are across all of Australia. We have connections to our British Arms LGBTIQ services and also our New Zealand friends. 

Defence LGBTIQ Information Service parades to support the veterans, the widows, the families, and children of our defence LGBTIQ+ personnel of our past and present. DEFGLIS is proud not for profit organsation that celebrates the strength of our future as we build towards a inclusive Defence community.  We have been built on the shoulders of the giants that have come before us. We honour their pride, as proud Mardi Gras participants. 

Deloitte

Deloitte is a proud partner of Sydney Gay and Lesbian and Sydney WorldPride. We have a vibrant LGBTQIA+ network at Deloitte made up of community members and allies and have proudly marched for the last 2 years.  We hosted the community stage at Fair Day and created inclusive spaces for everyone (and their kids) to enjoy the day. And we ran the executive breakfast at the Human Rights Conference. 

We have provided professional services to MG and SWP to ensure a positive and lasting legacy post the events at SWP.

We are excited to bring the future to life at Mardi Gras 2024.

Deloitte is a professional services firm, driven by a purpose to make an impact that matters for our people, clients and our community. 

Deloitte is a place where diversity belongs. We believe in authenticity and work hard to create an inclusive workplace where everyone can bring their true selves to work. 

Department of Defence 

This entry includes the Australian Defence Force (ADF) – Navy, Air Force, and Army – and Australian Public Service (APS) employees. 

Defence is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce to support our people, to defend Australia and its national interests in order to advance Australia’s security and prosperity.  

Defence capability relies on the ability to attract and retain the best possible talent regardless of background. Defence is focused on building capability through inclusion, and being an employer of choice for the LGBTQIA+ community. 

Defence Values and Behaviours strengthen organisational alignment and reinforce the notion of an integrated Defence: we are stronger and more capable when we train, work, learn, lead and grow as a team.

• Defence will march proudly in Mardi Gras, reflecting Defence’s solidarity in supporting the Australian community.

• Our participation represents strength and reflects the proud history of the Australian Defence Force and Defence Australian Public Service and decades of service by personnel of the LGBTQIA+ community.

• Defence is committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce, where every individual is valued for their service, experience and capabilities. 

• Our interpretation of the ‘Our Future’ theme is ‘Our Future, Your Future, Together.’ The future force is an inclusive force that the diverse Australian community can see themselves reflected in.

Different Strokes Dragon Boat Club

Different Strokes is a Sydney-based dragon boat club rooted in and committed to a future built around diversity and inclusivity.

We aim to provide a social and fitness-focused sporting outlet for the LGBTQ+ community, as well as their friends, family and supporters.

We paddle with a collective determination to challenge stereotypes with our successes.

Showcase diversity by increasing our visibility, and spark positive change through our actions.

Our club’s strongest asset is our team spirit.

Different Strokes Dragon Boat club aims to spread our message of diversity and inclusion in sport. We envision a future where our reach has spread throughout the Earth and we now move on to spread our light throughout the galaxies.

With laser paddles powered by the strength of our rainbow souls, we will race our dragon boats across the universe.

Our celebration of inclusivity will be spread to even the farthest stars so that all beings will be able to look up to a shining night sky and know that there is a place for them to belong.

DIY Rainbow

DIY Rainbow has been chalking rainbows for LGBTQIA+ equality since 2013 (after the removal of the original rainbow crossing on Oxford St) & sharing LGBTQIA+ content since to it’s 74,000 followers on Facebook.

Please, these gays are trying to Murder Me! DIY Rainbow returns this year celebrating the GLAAD winning Ally, Jennifer Coolidge and everything White Lotus! Our float is a boat and our White Lotus staff are here to entertain you!

Drag Kings Sydney 

This group is for all Drag Kings! My name is Holden Cox and I am a drag king creating an umbrella group for all my fellow drag brothers to come and celebrate Mardi Gras with me. It’s a mix of everyone who is part of the drag community and will be members from all different Drag Kings groups. Kings of Joy and The Kings have participated in the parade and this is the first year that a united group will apply. We will be performing flash mob style as we make as we make our way down the parade route! I have received logistical support from Moon Bureau and creative support from Kings of Joy. 

As Drag Kings Sydney, we proudly champion a subculture often overlooked. Embracing all Kings, we unite under the Mardi Gras spotlight, promoting positive, non-toxic masculinity. Teaming up with Kings of Joy, a community initiative, we offer a supportive stage for first-time Drag Kings. Join us – celebrate diversity, creativity, and unity!

Drag Storytime is Not a Crime

We are a group of friends who have have mostly attended Sydney Mardi Gras Parade march in previous Wonder Mama floats. Wonder Mama is well known in the community and has been in the parade the last 9 years.

The Fabulous Wonder Mama has banded together with her  drag storytime family of Drag Queens and Drag Kings to show the world that “Drag Storytime is not a Crime”.  Drag Storytime is about love, diversity, acceptance and being true to yourself.  It shows kids and families from all corners of society that its ok to be who you are and that the world is rich with all types of people and you don’t have to be afraid to be yourself! 

Dykes On Bikes

Dykes On Bikes Sydney is one of Australia’s oldest LGBTQIA+ community groups.

We have long been known as “the protectors of the community”, spanning back to the late 1980’s and early 1990’s during the peak of the AIDS crisis in Sydney.

Dykes On Bikes Sydney (earlier known as The Vixens) used to patrol Oxford St (and surrounding suburbs) on their motorbikes, helping to defend or take care of the multiple victims of gay bashings / attacks, assisting police with keeping watch and helping when no one else would.

Dykes On Bikes Sydney is Australia’s longest running female-identified motorcycle club, and one of the country’s oldest LGBTQIA+ community groups.

Emerald City Kickball

Emerald City Kickball began in 2020 as a project between friends to find a safe and affirming way to create an inclusive community during the COVID-19 pandemic.  As a recreational sport that is available to players regardless of skill or experience level, kickball quickly became a vibrant piece of the Sydney LGBT community.

Dykes On Bikes Sydney is Australia’s longest running female-identified motorcycle club, and one of the country’s oldest LGBTQIA+ community groups.

Equality Australia

Equality Australia emerged from the campaign to deliver marriage equality for millions of current and future Australians and is now a permanent body tackling the discrimination and systemic injustice experienced by LGBTIQ+ people.

We are building on the legacy of generations of leaders and activists who have enabled great leaps forward, as well as the strength and resilience of LGBTIQ+ communities.

Together we have fought to have our love decriminalised, our relationships and our families recognised and to be protected from discrimination. But the fight is far from over. 

Our mission is to ensure all LGBTIQ+ people are treated equally and with dignity and respect. 

Equality Australia combines legal and human rights expertise with specialist campaigning and works with elected officials, governments, media, community organisations and the private sector to address discrimination and injustice and build a fair and inclusive Australia. 

Equal Australia is working hard to build a fairer and more equal Australia for all LGBTIQ+ people and their families. 

This is the future our communities want and the one they all deserve. From banning conversion practices to ending discrimination in schools and ensuring trans and gender diverse people can access ID documents that reflect who they are, there is still so much work left to do.

These vital, long overdue reforms are only possible if we start dreaming of a better tomorrow and work together to make certain it becomes Our Future.

Everyday Ability Pty Ltd

Everyday Ability is a Disability provider on the NSW Central Coast, we provide support to People living with disabilities in a number of ways including providing safe spaces and our Rainbow Friends social group allowing LGBTQIA+ people with disabilities a place to gather and access the community safely and with supports. Our previous entries in the Mardi Gras have brought visibility to these people.

The future is now! represents the breaking down of barriers for LGBTQIA+ people living with disabilities to promote and encourage free access to the community. 

Femboys Australia 

Femboys Australia is a community-based group that celebrates femboy identities and culture. Femboys are an emerging LGBTQIA+ group comprised of predominantly ‘boys’ (‘bois’ or young men, including transmasc and non-binary people) who express a more feminine gender expression, and are mostly bisexual/queer. Whilst it is mostly a gender expression, it can also be a gender identity, queer aesthetic, or all of the above. 

Femboys are an emerging LGBTQIA+ group with a large online community presence. Femboys embody diverse gender expressions, identities and sexualities as this community is mostly made up of boys/young men (including transmasc and non-binary people) who choose to wear feminine clothing often inspired by anime, kawaii, and punk/goth fashion and aesthetics. Most femboys identify as bisexual or other queer sexualities. This is the first year a femboy group has marched in the parade. 

Fetish Australia

Fetish Australia is predominately an online group which actively promotes kink and fetish events around Australia and overseas. It has been set up to help queer kinksters connect with events and the greater kink community. 

Fetish Australia also acts as a platform for kink and fetish titleholders from around Australia to work together. Our float and Mardi Gras project is run by current and recent titleholders. This provides an opportunity for the titleholders to work together, form bonds and develop great friendships. Additionally, it helps foster the kink community because the titleholders help connect the various interstate kink communities together. 

We have participated with Mardi Gras since 2018 and our float has become a staple of the fetish community.

Fetish Australia’s Kinkarama float welcomes ALL fetish and kinky folx from around the world to come on a journey with us through space and time. The kink mothership recognises those who have come before us in the community and all of the knowledge and wisdom they have passed down to us. This ship soars through the time space continuum to inspire the next generation of kinksters to live out and flourish in a sexually empowered future. 

Fiercely Old Party Children

A group of gay friends.

Tonight we are on our way to our 40th Mardi Gras Party with our friends. In 1983 two of us attended our first Mardi Gras Party. We have both been to every one since then. For the last 29 parties we have been together. The Party is a place where we gather with our community after showing our Pride to the world in The Parade. The Party is where we celebrate our achievements. We will catch up with friends and become friends with strangers. While we are not as young as we used to be, we still know how to party. Fiercely!

Fire and Rescue NSW

Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) is committed to developing a culture which embraces equity, diversity and inclusion across all areas and throughout all levels of the organisation and that is reflective of the wider NSW community which it serves and protects. 

Our organisational vision is to be recognised as a leading, best practice fire and rescue service as we effectively and efficiently minimise the impact of hazards, emergency incidents and disasters on the people, environment and economy of NSW. 

As a service we do not discriminate, and we work with commitment and enthusiasm to build connections and trust within communities including the LGBTIQ+ communities across NSW.

To do this we have a number of strategies. We support LGBTIQ+ community events like Wear It Purple and we have had stalls at Pride events in Parramatta, Newtown, Newcastle and Tamworth and Mardi Gras Fair Day. Presence at these events is about demonstrating that FRNSW are proud to support our LGBTIQ+ staff, that we are community Allies and actively support LGBTIQ+ communities through providing fire safety education, support via home fire safety checks and by being there in times of crises and disasters. 

Understanding is always a two-way street and our staff attend events not only to celebrate their whole selves but also to learn more about supporting others. 

FRNSW support staff inclusion and diversity and have a LGBTQI+ staff network called FRINGE (Fire and Rescue Inclusion Network for LGBTIQ+ Employees) and we are in the process of forming a cross Agency Ally network. The networks have Executive Sponsorship. 

The FRNSW Commissioner requested that we produce an educational film to share amongst all staff about our LGBTIQ+ stories and lived experiences. 

In addition, we have had a float in the parade for the past 18 years and FRNSW provides logistical support in fire and emergency protection to the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras to deliver a safe, secure and fun parade each year.

Fire and Rescue NSW is committed to developing a workplace culture which embraces workforce equity, diversity and inclusion. We encourage a workplace culture and environment which is respectful, free from discrimination or harassment, where diversity is valued and is used to foster innovation and improve operational capability and service provision.

First Nations Community Float 

ACON’s First Nations Health Programs is here to help improve the sexual health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, sistergirl/transgender or living with HIV. 

We do this by providing culturally sensitive HIV and sexual health education, running workshops with First Nations community members and collaborating with Aboriginal community-controlled organisations. 

Theme – Our Past, Our Power: Reinforcing our BLAK Future

Message – Rekindling the spirit of past First Nations Community Floats, we aim to reignite collective awareness. This float serves as a poignant reminder that we cannot continue to devote our future to calling out injustices and inequalities impacting our communities year after year. So, RISE with us, ACKNOWLEDGE that WE MATTER! This land always was, always will be Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander land and our people have always been and will continue to be…FEARLESS.

First Peoples Disability Network Australia 

First peoples Disability Network is the peak body for First Nations People with disability, their families and communities. We are a human rights organisation who provide systemic advocacy and create attitudinal change. FPDN is guided by and supports the LGBTIQA+ First Peoples with Disability Advisory Action Group

THIS IS WHO WE ARE! This land always was, always will be, LGBTIQA+ First Nations people with disability  and our deaf mob too always were and always will be . This is who we are to enable a future for the next generation. First Peoples with Disability participate, celebrate, educate, advocate and transform societal attitudes along the way.

FLAGCOM and Friends

FLAGCOM was originally formed in January of 2010. It was conceptualised and formed 13 years ago to be the active voice of the Filipino LGBTQIA+ in our community. As the years went by, and through our annual Transgender pageant, we have steadily increased our presence and significance in the Filipino community and in the mainstream society. Flagcom became synonymous with organising events, functions, fiestas, weddings,  beauty pageants, modelling competition, fashion shows, art exhibitions and many more. Our support based does not only consist of LGBTQIA+ members but from people of different sexual orientation. Our supporters started with the Filipino Community and ACON. To date, we have supporters from various people of different ethnicity.  We have developed strong relationship with other LGBTQIA+ group especially the Thai community. FLAGCOM’s mission since the beginning is to  promote safe sex, community harmony and social cohesion. We have been nominated 5 consecutive years at the Western Sydney Community Forum’s Zest Award. We look forward to participating once again with next year’s parade and we wanted to continue participating for years to come.

Our Future is like a mask. The face of the mask can be created using our imagination. The imagination can bring reality or a fiction. We don’t know what’s behind the mask so much so that we don’t know what will be our future. But if we can create a happy, smiling, colourful, useful mask and believe and be inspired with the creation, then we will have a very positive future.

Football Australia

Football Australia (FA) together with the Australian Professional Leagues (A-Leagues), The Flying Bats FC and the Sydney Rangers FC strive for football participants be given a fair opportunity to compete, judged by other athletes and fans alike, only by what they contribute to the sport or their team’s success. All four organisations aim to ensure the safety and inclusion of all in and around our the game of Football which  – includes LGBTQIA+ athletes, coaches, volunteers and fans. 

“Join us on a dynamic journey of unity and progress of the Matildas & Football Australia, in collaboration with the A-Leagues, Flying Bats, and Sydney Rangers, proudly presents ‘Our Game for Our Future.’ Celebrate the vibrant tapestry of LGBTQIA+ inclusion in football, honouring the collective spirit of players, fans, and allies. Our float captures the harmony between diverse identities and the shared vision of a more inclusive future. Through sport, we champion acceptance, empower athletes, and inspire generations. Together, we score for equality, creating a legacy of change that shines brightly in the heart of Mardi Gras. Join the match for love, unity, and a triumphant future!”

Free Gay and Happy

Free Gay and Happy (fgnhappy) is a social group of friends and friends of friends.  We started out as three fluffy bunnies on a very rainy parade day, completely mesmerised. What started out as a new chapter in my husband story turned into a social group of over 1200 members.   

19 years ago, Teresa with her gay friend Adrian  took her then husband Mick by the hand and marched him up Oxford Street in his first Mardi Gras. This one act of unconditional love showed him that a gay future together was far more incredible than he could ever imagine. Far better than the fear and thoughts of  suicide he was facing.

The following year more friends joined in and the multi award winning FGnHappy – Free gay and Happy – was born and has now been a fun part of the parade every year since, offering acceptance for anyone wanting to share in the love of our social support network and of course the magical Mardi Gras experience. 

During the year we hold social events big and small around the country to keep our members connected.  We promote the importance of mental health, social connections, partying safely and the celebration of true self – but most importantly being free gay and happy!

20 years ago, Teresa with her gay friend Adrian took her then husband Mick by the hand and marched him up Oxford Street in his first Mardi Gras dressed as 3 fluffy bunnies. This one act of unconditional love showed him that a gay future together he feared was far more incredible than he could ever imagine. The multi award winning FGnHappy – Free gay and Happy – was born and has now been a fun part of the parade every year since, growing in size like breading rabbits, to now over 1200 strong. FGnHappy offers acceptance for anyone wanting to share in the love of our inclusive social support network. 

FREE MUM HUGS AUSTRALIA

We are a growing group (around 5 years old) of affirming people who attend LGBTQIA+ events around the country, giving hugs, high fives and love to our Queer community, who have often been rejected by family or friends upon coming out. We have been to Brisbane Pride, Sunshine Coast Pride, Trans Fair Day, Trans Picnic in the park, Midsumma, youth dances and formals and many more around Australia including in Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. We also provide support and friendship to the queer community and their families in various ways, such as referrals to support services, attendance at rallies and marches, and listening ears. We are modelled on the Free Mom Hugs organisation which was founded in Oklahoma, USA by Sara Cunningham in 2014. Our group includes mums, dads, aunties and uncles, siblings, cousins etc. and is not limited to “mums”. We are dedicated volunteers who receive no funding other than occasional small pockets of public fundraising we conduct ourselves via GoFundMe etc to fund our presence at events (such as Mardi Gras), or to purchase giveaways for Pride goers. Our members are a mixture of people from the LGBTQIA+ community, and allies (who are often parents/family members of queer kids and/or adults). We also have established The Share Shack by which we can distribute fabulous and free!!! Pride-worthy and everyday clothing to people in the LGBTQIA+ community who may find shopping and choosing the right garments for them to be difficult. 

We have members all over Australia- including locations such as the Sunshine Coast, Mid North Coast and Central West of NSW, and Western Regional Victoria. Our members are very passionate about helping those in the LGBTQI+ community in regional areas.

Free Mum Hugs Australia’s message is simple. Our message is LOVE. Our message is AFFIRMATION. Our message is that YOU ARE LOVED, ACCEPTED and CELEBRATED JUST AS YOU ARE. We want our Queer Community always to know WE ARE HERE FOR THEM, WE TURN UP, WE LISTEN, WE LOVE THEM !

 We are winners of :

Trans Community Awards 2022 Service Provider of the Year.

The 2023 Annual Queens Ball Award for Best Community Group.

Freedom Angels

A group of gay, transgenders and friends get together to celebrate and participate the Sydney Mardi Gras 2024 to express and support and be part of the community. 

A group of gay, transgenders and friends get together to celebrate and participate the Sydney Mardi Gras 2024 to express and support and be part of the community.  This year we will be dressing up colourfully with big angel wings representing our freedom of being expressed who we are. 

Fruits from Brazil Inc

Fruits from Brazil started in 2014, by a couple of LGBTQI+ friends on Facebook. They created a group to connect the Brazilian queer community in Australia, and help newly arrived LGBTQ+ Brazilians in settling and integrating successfully into the local Australian community.

We started with over 100 members, holding regular, social monthly meetings. Today we are more than 2k members and growing. We have had our own Mardi Gras float since 2014, and continue holding monthly social meetings, as well as other events.

The “Fruits from Brazil is on Fire” concept is not just a showcase of the nation’s fruitful bounty but also a representation of the zest, passion, and warmth of its people. With the powerful resonance of 20 live drummers echoing the Festa Junina rhythm, we aim to create an unforgettable spectacle that celebrates diversity, unity, and the fire within all of us.

Fusion Pride Northern Beaches

Fusion Pride Northern Beaches builds a healthy local LGBTQIA+ community through the pillars of inclusion, visibility and respect.

Fusion will take a leading role in supporting the community development of local queer groups by offering means of meaningful social connection, education, events, advocacy and support networks.

Fusion invites Northern Beaches residents who identify as LGBTQIA+ to be part of a group that acknowledges them and celebrates their inclusion in our wider community.

FUSION PRIDE & GLAM – Uniting the Northern Beaches’ is the inaugural float representing the Northern Beaches LBTQIA+ community.

Serving beach-glamour, our float is a proud collaboration between Fusion Pride and GLAM, two grassroots community organisations. Together, we are here to connect and support queer and gender diverse people on the Northern Beaches, today and into the future.  

We want every person in our rainbow community to know: you are absolutely valid and there is a place for you here.  This float proudly represents our “Future of Inclusion”.

Gay Dads Community

Having children as a gay man is a challenge. Whether you came out after having children, were supported with the help of a surrogate, co-parent or had children through fostering/adoption, all pathways for gay men to become parents are difficult to navigate. 

The Gay Dads community, which is supported by Rainbow Families, brings together all types of gay dads and gay men considering having children. This support network, which includes face-to-face gatherings and an online community, helps gay men learn from each other’s experiences and make friends. 

For many gay men, the Gay Dads Community is how they found out how to become a parent. 

For the kids of gay dads, meeting and making friends with other kids whose families look like theirs helps them thrive in the face of societal judgement and criticism. 

Having kids as a gay man is a challenge. 

Whether you came out after having kids or before, all pathways for gay men to become parents are difficult to navigate. 

The Gay Dads Community, which is supported by Rainbow Families, brings together all types of gay dad led families and provides a network of support for both gay dads and for their children.

Rainbow Families works to support all types of LGBTQ+ families including gay dads.

By uniting together as one community of Rainbow Families, LGBTQ+ families are able to support each other and rise higher. Together we sparkle.

Gay Tradies 

We are a group of gay tradies and their friends/supporters. We are helping to get the message out that there are gay people everywhere, including the trades and services industry, working on your homes and construction sites everywhere.

We’re here to get the message out there that gay tradies exist and are working on your construction and building sites across the country.

GENDER FREE JAPANESE

We are a group called Gender Free Japanese and a community founded by Japanese who are based in Australia. Our strong desire is for Japan to become a country where everyone can live comfortably regardless of minorities.

Our community is very welcoming to people who are LGBTQIA+ people but also who haven’t even known about the word 「LGBTQIA+」 and have different backgrounds.

We noticed that there are still lots of Japanese don’t know about LGBTQIA+ people so we try letting those people be aware of LGBTQIA+ people are close to you.

The Sydney Mardi Gras Parade is a very successful event and a great place to get people’s attention, so we have participated as a float group for the last two years and that experience brought our community a lot of good influences such as the numbers of our community members becoming bigger now. We especially involved a lot of Japanese international students here in Sydney. It is very important to us to have Japanese young generations because they lead the next generation in Japan. Those new members who participated the Sydney Mardi Gras Parade last year, we received lots of great feedbacks such as one young international student said that he didn’t know about the word, LGBTQIA+ before but now he wants to tell his friends in Japan what is LGBTQIA+.

Another our mission is “Marriage Equality in Japan” as you aware that we are not allowed same sex marriage in Japan yet. We believe that it is a great opportunity for us to be in the Sydney Mardi Gras Parade and raise our voice there.

Hi everyone!

We are a group called Gender Free Japanese.

Our community group was founded by Japanese who are based in Sydney, Australia.

We are very welcome to everyone who loves Japan and supports us. For loving Japan more and more, let’s make it change Japan as an LGBT-friendly country.

Hey, Japan!! It’s your turn after Estonia!

Girl Guides NSW

Girl Guides NSW, ACT & NT offers girls aged 5-17 access to a variety of activities throughout the year, where they can develop their skills in a safe environment whilst having fun and finding friends. Girl Guides empowers girls and young women to discover their potential as leaders of the world. GGN intends to change the world, one Girl Guide at a time. 

GGN has always had queer people as part of their ranks, however over the last ten years, we have recognised the growing need and demand for inclusion and recognition in our organisation. From our State Inclusion Lead who is a young queer woman, to creating safe spaces in our grass roots units for LGBTQIA+  and questioning youth, Girl Guides prides itself on our growing championship and support of the LGBTQIA+ community. 

‘The Future is Female,’ as presented by Girl Guides NSW, ACT & NT is focused on empowering girls and young women as future leaders of the world. GGN wants to highlight the impact that our members will make on the future, and promote the importance of female voices in positions of change and power, as these voices will create meaningful change. 

GLADD – The Association of LGBTQI+ Doctors and Dentists

Started in 2012, GLADD is grassroots, community not-for profit organisation, which represents LGBTQI+ Doctors, Dentists and health workers. 

Over the last 12 years our main focus has been in the on the SGLMG Parade using it as a platform of visibility to represent LGBTQIA+ Doctors, Dentists and Health workers the the community we serve the wider public.

In addition to Mardi  Gras Floats, throughout the year we either helped organised or self organised, community socials and LGBTQIA+ conferences and talks (with a focus on heath issues relevant to our community).

Each and every one of us have unique identities, ones that cannot fully be explained just by our gender or sexuality. To honour the uniqueness of all heatlh professionals, our patients and broader society, we wanted to celebrate the intersectional identities of first nations people, people of colour, trans and gender diverse people and everyone in between, so that all identities of our society can be represented. We believe our future is each and every one of us together, so prepare for an explosion of colour culture and fun.

Glitter Babes

We are the Glitter Babes I run a community float for all are welcome, several of us have participated in community volunteering around,  and we have a participant that has designed floats for the Mardi Gras workshop and throughout the community and world pride  some of our participants volunteer for limes as well, i myself used to volunteer for lemons.

“Stage Five Clingers” we have all been there at one stage or another, from momentary infatuation to the desire to move states and move in with someone you hardly know. The desire to be and want to be in a fulfilling relationship is a natural human impulse. Therefore that’s why we are bringing forward this subject and all the emotional baggage that comes with it, “Stage Five Clingers” Mardi Gras Float celebrates diverse attachment styles in the queer community, promoting unity through humour. It acknowledges natural desires for connection, influenced by life experiences. Humour shifts the discourse from shame to hope, encouraging empathy and open conversations. The float challenges stereotypes and fosters understanding while delivering a message of support. Symbolising shared humanity, it unites us in celebrating emotional connections and the power of community. This lighthearted concept lets us laugh at love’s quirks as we all carry emotional baggage, hoping for genuine connections. “Stage Five Clingers” is more than a float; it’s a symbolic representation of our shared humanity, attachment journeys, and the power of coming together to celebrate, understand, and uplift one another within the queer community.

Guide Dogs NSW/ACT

Guide Dogs NSW/ACT is a not-for-profit organisation that provides support services for people living with low vision or blindness. 

We offer a range of services all with the focus of supporting our Clients regain their independence and live their best possible life. 

This includes our “Connections” services which focuses on bringing people together, creating connected communities and reducing the social isolation that often comes with having low vision or blindness and that has been a huge part of our Clients’ lives throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

In addition, Guide Dogs has an Access Team that focuses on ensuring people with low vision or blindness are able to participate in and navigate around their communities safely and in a meaningful way. This is to ensure equity of access and inclusion for all. 

Guide Dogs NSW/ACT has previously been a part of the Sydney Pride March, supporting our Clients to take part in this incredible, vital and much-loved event to recognise and celebrate diversity and equality. 

Our Connections Team will be assisting Clients to participate in and enjoy various pride celebrations by providing accessible walking routes and potentially an audio-described walking tour. 

At Guide Dogs NSW/ACT, we want all of our Clients to be proud of who they are – inside and out – and to have the same opportunities to celebrate and be celebrated for who they are.

The theme of the 2024 Mardi Gras – Our Future – aligns with our 2030 strategy of ‘Leading the Charge’. Both encourage us to think about the change we want to see for our society in the future to eliminate barriers to participation and create a more accessible and inclusive world for all. 

Join us as we lead the charge to create an accessible and inclusive world for people with low vision and blindness and eliminate barriers to participation so they can live the life of their choosing! People with low vision or blindness, our staff, ambassadors, supporters and community will be marching alongside Gulliver, a giant 4.3 metre Labrador.

Gymnastics NSW

Established in 1948, Gymnastics NSW (GNSW) is the State Governing Body for Gymnastics. With over 200 clubs across NSW, the 70,000 registered athlete members have access to participate within the seven Gymsports (Women’s Artistic, Men’s Artistic, Rhythmic, Trampoline Gymnastics, Aerobic Gymnastics, Acrobatic Gymnastics and Gymnastics For All).

Gymnastics NSW is here to be heard, to champion, celebrate and participate. We are working toward our FUTURE, LEAPING FORWARD.  We are Flippin’ excited!

Haka For Life

We are a suicide prevention charity that has been part of Mardi Gras on 4 previous occasions. We use Maori & Aboriginal cultural dance to connect LGBTQIA+  and  Non LGBTIQA+ to the power and healing that culture brings. 

Toitu Te Tiriti- Honor the Treaty. Pronounced:  Toy 2 tear tea rrrit tea.

A message to the New Zealand Government to Honor the Treaty Of Waitangi and to stop attacking our rights to self determination under the treaty and the protections of Maori, including  Takatapui (Maori LGBTIQA+ community) under the terms of the treaty. We are here to display the love and unity our culture brings the world, by standing with our Darug & Indigenous Brothers & Sisters.

We stand together in culture, gender & love to end suicide.

Harbour City Bears

Harbour City Bears is a social/community group for hairy, gay men, their friends and admirers. Harbour City Bears is an inclusive group with members self-identifying as most of the aspects of the LGBTQIA+ comunity:  :esbian, Gay, Trans, Intersex, Asexual and ally.

Harbour City Bears are celebrating our future, our fans, our friends, and our families.  We encourage acceptance and inclusion while running events that are safe spaces for attendees can socialise, connect and be their authentic selves.

Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organisation that works as part of a vibrant movement to uphold human dignity and advance the cause of human rights for all. Human Rights Watch investigates and reports on abuses happening in all corners of the world. We are roughly 550+ people of 70+ nationalities who are country experts, lawyers, journalists and others who work to protect the most at risk. 

We scrupulously investigate abuses, expose the facts widely, and pressure those with power to respect rights and secure justice. Our researchers work in the field in 100 some countries, uncovering facts that create an undeniable record of human rights abuses. We tell the stories of what we found, sharing the with millions of social media and online followers each day. News media often report on our investigations, furthering our reach. We meet with governments, the United Nations, rebel groups, corporations, and others to see that policy is changed, laws are enforced, and justice is served.

Human Rights Watch advocates for LGBTQIA+ people and their rights with activists representing a multiplicity of identities and issues.  We have a dedicated division with 9 staff dedicated to investigating abuses against people who identify as LGBTQIA+. We document and expose abuses based on sexual orientation and gender identity worldwide, including torture, killing and executions, arrests under unjust laws, unequal treatment, censorship, medical abuses, discrimination in health and jobs and housing, domestic violence, abuses against children, and denial of family rights and recognition. We advocate for laws and policies that will protect everyone’s dignity. We work for a world where all people can enjoy their rights fully.

To ensure our independence, we refuse government funding and carefully review all donations to ensure that they are consistent with our policies, mission and values. We partner with organisations large and small across the globe to protect embattled activists and to help hold abusers to account and bring justice to victims.

Human Rights Watch investigates and exposes violations of human rights and advocates for a right-respecting future for everyone. Whilst advancements have been made, the LGBTQIA+ community still face severe discrimination which our float spotlights, calling on governments to protect and advance human rights. Here in Australia and around the world, Human Rights Watch is advocating for a better and safer future. 

I Just Want To Be Me

Single entrant, I just want to be me.

Independents for Inclusion

Our group is led by the North Sydney and Warringah  LGBTQIA+ Community and Kylea Tink MP and Zali Steggal MP. Also invited as guests are independent MPs Allegra Spender and Dr Sophie Scamps. These ‘teal’ MPs  share a strong cohesion of shared values when it comes to inclusion and celebration of diversity.

As an LGBTQI+ group, we are supporters of the Independent Movement in politics, as we firmly believe independent representation works to directly unite our people with our parliament.

The local LGBTQI+ community in North Sydney and Warringah deeply value and appreciate the independent MPs’ sincere focus on inclusion. We have participated in the parade in 2022 and 2023. It is so meaningful to have our Federal Representatives walk with us in unity with our community.

We are so proud to have representation that values, celebrates and respects our local LGBTQIA+ community.

The North Sydney, Warringah, Wentworth and Mackellar  LGBTQIA+ Communities proudly march in unity with our independent Federal MPs for the causes of inclusion and active representation. 

Inner City Legal Centre

Inner City Legal Centre (ICLC) provides free generalist legal services to the Sydney inner city and  Eastern Suburbs. Our solicitors and volunteers offer advice, casework, and representation in civil, criminal, and employment law. 

We also specialise in providing legal advice and support for LGBTQI+ individuals in NSW, including the award-winning Safe Relationships Project (SRP) for those experiencing domestic violence. ICLC are the leaders in providing advice and representation for Trans and Gender Diverse persons (TGDLS). The ICLC also offers the Sex Worker Legal Service (SWLS) offering advice and representation to sex workers across NSW.

Inner City Legal Centre wants to secure a future free of discrimination. To do that we need NSW legislation to catch up with the rest of Australia.

NSW was the first place in Australia to legislate against discrimination on the basis of homosexuality yet now, unequivocally, has the worst LGBTQ+ legal protections. 

Inner City Legal Centre wants to focus on the Anti Discrimination act and changes that need to be made now for a better future for all. 

Inner West Queer Families and Friends

Inner West Queer Families and Friends is a group of people who live in the Inner West of Sydney who aim to support each other in raising children within LGBTQIA+ family units.  We want to promote inclusivity and diversity in the family unit and increase representation of kids in Mardi Gras. We represent queer parents, queer children/children of LGBTQIA+ families and extended family and friends who are part of the support networks for these children. We want to showcase our community!!!

We are a group of queer families and allies from one of the most queer parts of Australia, the Inner West of Sydney. We are sending messages of support for the next generation facing an uncertain future. Promoting trans-inclusivity, climate justice, social equity and peace. 

Kirketon Road Centre

The Kirketon Road Centre is a health care service that provides free and anonymous care to people who experience barriers to accessing health care. ince 1987, KRC has  a dedicated and extensive history of working with members of the LGBTQIA+

We work in partnership with Twenty10, with ACON , with The Gender Centre along with the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. KRC staff work tirelessly to include and advocate for members of the LGBTQIA+ communities in all aspects of our service. 

KRC’s Mardi Gras entry embodies the theme of “Our Future…” Their entry showcases a diverse group of health workers, peers, and activists.  At its centre is the KRC Bus, successor to the AIDS Bus, symbolising resilience during the HIV/AIDS crisis. The AIDS Bus provided vital care and support to the many communities affected by HIV. 

KRC’s entry echoes the 1986 Mardi Gras appearance of the Bus, highlighting progress in the fight for equal rights and ‘Health For All.’ It embodies a celebration of diversity, love, and resilience, with lessons from the past guiding us all toward a brighter future.

Latinx in Sydney

LGBTQIA+ Latinxs in Sydney group started as a small project early in 2018 having our biggest highlight by taking part in the 2019 Mardi Gras Parade & 2023 World Pride. Our community members are people from diverse ages, genders and sexuality and come from all over Latin America. 

Our mission is to advocate for safety, equality and wellness for the Latinx Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer + group. 

In the LGBTQIA+ Latinxs in Sydney Community, our members expect to feel supported while also providing support for those who need it, such as new members and international students, which simultaneously creates a strong sense of belonging and family.

Join us in celebrating the vibrant LGBTQIA+ Latinx community in Sydney, a diverse group from all corners of Latin America. Since our humble beginnings in 2018, we’ve tirelessly promoted our culture, advocated for safety, equality, and wellness. Members find belonging and support, fostering a strong bond (Familia).

Our float draws inspiration from the Andean concept of Pachamama, Mother Earth, symbolizing feminine energy & interconnectedness with all life. It bridges nature, diversity, and unity as we envision a brighter future. Join us to honour & protect Pachamama, as our ancestors & indigenous cultures have for generations, in ways similar to the Gadigal people of the Eora nation also does. 

Legs On The Wall

Founded on Gadigal land in 1984, Legs On The Wall boast a formidable track record of sharing vital contemporary stories through spectacularly daring public art. Conscious of this trailblazing legacy and led by Artistic Director Joshua Thomson and Associate Artist Vicki Van Hout, Legs approach our fortieth anniversary in 2024 with PRIDE, and remain a forward-facing company propelled by our mission: to make meaning in a rapidly changing world through transformative physical theatre.

Legs’ performances incorporate the lyricism of dance, the enchantment of circus and the expressive heft of the theatre. Routinely reimagining what’s possible in the conventional auditorium, Legs works also – famously – break through the walls of cultural institutions and language barriers, bringing excitement, wonder, humour and gravitas to public spaces. It really is time for Legs to take part in Sydney’s most extraordinary parade!

For Sydney World Pride Legs created LOVERS, seeing five pairs of LGBTIQA+ identifying aerial performers, representing the diversity of communities in Sydney and around the Asia Pacific – as well as couples in committed relationships – flying from Quay Quarter Tower near the Sydney World Pride March as it progressed. LOVERS was performed to the roars of marchers making their way from the Harbour Bridge to the Domain. Our parade entry will feature performers from LOVERS in their up-cycled rainbow costumes and act to remind onlookers and the community of a powerful day of statement making in 2023. The team who worked on LOVERS all commented on the extraordinary joys of working harmoniously with an entire ensemble of LGBTIQA+ artists, remarking postively also on the cultural safety provided by Legs as producers, and the incredible achievement of representing their pride, high above thousands of marchers nearby.

Legs was founded in 1984 on principles of gender equity and socially conscious story-telling has been at the heart of the company’s ethos throughout our history. The current leadership of Legs are LGBTIQA+ identifying and the company has always been a place of acceptance, physical freedom and strong progressive values. LGBTIQA+ artists have, and continue to consider Legs a home for their artistic development and sense of community. 

Celebrating 40 years of daring physicality, socially-conscious storytelling and PRIDE, Legs On The Wall enter the Parade with a vision for the future that is uplifting, representative, brave and PHYSICAL! Legs’ emergence in 1984 as an ensemble of street performers means that as an organisation we have grown up alongside the Mardi Gras and boast a similar origin story: “born on the Streets of Sydney”. During 2023’s Sydney World Pride March Legs’ aerialists made rainbows in the air, suspended from Quay Quarter Tower, and this year Legs march to celebrate 40 years of artistry, progressive values, and physical bravery, propelling that legacy towards an even brighter future.

LGBTQ Domestic Violence Awareness Foundation

Our Foundation is committed to helping end domestic violence in LGBTQ communities through our awareness campaigns, education programs and reducing barriers to reporting abuse and accessing support. The LGBTQ Domestic Violence Awareness Day, held annually on 28 May, raises global awareness about the prevalence and challenges of domestic, family and intimate partner violence and abuse in LGBTQ communities. It is the only day like it in the world, helping to increase visibility, start conversations, and break down barriers in a bid to end violence and abuse within LGBTQ communities. We are working to develop educational resources for frontline workers, domestic violence support services, workplaces, and the broader community to help support them to better understand how they can ensure LGBTQ people are safely supported if they experience domestic or family violence.

This year we will Shine a Light on the invisible and forgotten issues of Domestic, Family and Intimate partner violence within the LGBTQ community. We envision our future where our community is #SeenAndBelieved and have put an end to violence and abuse within LGBTQ communities and relationships. We are marching to increase visibility and understanding of DV within our community, and giving hope and courage to victims and survivors.

Our mission is to support LGBTQ victims and survivors of domestic violence and abuse through awareness, education and breaking down barriers to accessing help.

Life Without Barriers

Life Without Barriers is a leading social purpose organisation of 8,000 employees working in more than 500 communities across Australia. We support children, young people and families, people with disability and mental illness, and older people. We also work with refugees, asylum seekers, and unhoused people.

At Life Without Barriers, our LGBTQIA+ inclusion journey came from humble beginnings as one of the first organisations to offer same-gender couples the opportunity to become foster carers. We recognise and respect all the ways relationships and families are found and formed and continue to actively seek people to join our growing network of LGBTQIA+ carers.

We welcome all those of diverse sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics to join our organisation and support all LGBTQIA+ employees to bring their whole selves to work. The number of employees sharing with us that they identify as LGBTQIA+ increased from 6% in 2018 (Employee Engagement Survey), to 15.5% in 2021 (D&I Survey).

Life Without Barriers has participated in the Australian Workplace Equality Index (AWEI) for the past five years. Our score has increased each year from 18/200 in 2018, 54/200 in 2019, 74/200 in 2020, 102/200 in 2021, to 124/200 in 2022. In 2022, we achieved Bronze Employer Recognition for the second time: https://www.lwb.org.au/news/life-without-barriers-achieves-second-awei-bronze-employer-recognition/ 

For more on our LGBTQIA+ inclusion work, visit our website: https://www.lwb.org.au/social-policy/diversity-and-inclusion/lgbtqi-support-at-lwb/ 

We believe a better future is not just possible – it’s within our grasp and starts with our choices today. We’re partnering with people to create a world where every individual has the opportunity to succeed. Together, we can turn dreams into reality and make the world a better place for all. Let’s create a brighter future, one step at a time. Join us in imagining Life Beyond Barriers.

Lifesavers with Pride

Australian surf lifesavers creating a welcoming, progressive and inclusive surf lifesaving culture for the LGBTQIA+ community.

Lifesavers with Pride is the conjugate between the LGBTQIA+ community and Surf Life Saving Australia (SLSA). This year, we highlight our continued commitment to developing a safe, inclusive and accepting environment and culture at SLSA that will help shape the next generations of lifesavers across Australia. We are excited for the emerging diversity of membership in surf lifesaving that reflects local communities that they serve.  Our presence in Mardi Gras aims to inspire others to join their local surf lifesaving club.  We are honoured to be joined for the first time by the SLSA board as we march proudly up Oxford Street towards the beaches that we are committed to keeping safe. The beach does not discriminate and neither do we.

Little Creatures

The partnership between Little Creatures and Mardi Gras reflects the brand’s passion for connecting with consumers and contributing to community and culture in a positive, vibrant and sociable way – the way that Sydney Mardi Gras has been doing so for over 46 years.

More broadly, Lion has a strong history of support and advocacy for the LGBTQIA+ community, notably publicly supporting marriage equality, has a long-standing relationship with the Bobby Goldsmith Foundation and has received both WGEA citation and AWEI accreditation. At Lion we adhere to The Australian Workplace Equality Index – the definitive national benchmark on LGBTQ workplace inclusion.

As an EOCGE holder, Lion is also among some of Australia’s leading change-makers who are driving and embedding gender equality in the workplace.

Through our Pride at Lion program Lion is committed to lead and advocate for inclusion and diversity internally and externally. Pride at Lion is a network group designed to promote LGBTQ+ inclusivity within our workplace, to ensure everyone is able to be their best authentic selves.  Throughout the year, the Pride network is involved in various pieces of work such as AWEI accreditation, organizing events for LGBTQ+ days of significance, building awareness through our social network presence & various other pieces of work – these included:

– World Aids Day Fundraiser

– Pride Podcast launch

– Access to Diversity Training

– Opening of gender-neutral bathrooms at our head office

Introducing the Little Creatures ‘All Creatures Welcome’ float. Little Creatures is a fun and vibrant place where everyone is welcome. It’s where we celebrate difference, facilitate genuine connection and create unique and memorable experiences all whilst enjoying a beer.  It’s important to echo everyone’s voices in our communities, and we are a brewery that has and always will champion that. All Creatures Welcome.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore and Alex Greenwich MP

As independent advocates for LGBTIQA+ visibility and equality in State and Local Government, our volunteers are essential to help progress their advocacy. Alex and Clover join the Mardi Gras Parade each year with supporters and volunteers to say thank you for their help to support their ongoing representation of the LGBTIQA+ communities. Clover has represented LGBTIQA+ communities in local and state government in an over 30 year career. She got equal adoption rights for LGBTIQA+ families in NSW and government action during the AIDS crisis, and continues to support Mardi Gras and the community as Lord Mayor of Sydney. Alex Greenwich has been the Member for Sydney since elected in 2012, representing the interests of Sydney’s LGBTIQA+ communities in the NSW Parliament. He helped establish and co-chair Australian Marriage Equality’s 10 year lobbying and community campaigns to achieve marriage equality and recently brought the Equality Bill to NSW Parliament. He is a member of the Global Equality Caucus Steering Committee. 

Lord Mayor Clover Moore AO and Member for Sydney Alex Greenwich MP will proudly march in 2024, their 11th time together!

Clover has been marching in Mardi Gras since 1992, when she was the first politician to join the parade. She and Alex will be surrounded by their volunteers and friends, behind the City of Sydney’s fabulous parade entry.

They both would like to acknowledge the bravery of the LGBTIQA+ community in their fight for equality, and firmly believe that everyone deserves to feel safe and respected, irrespective of their gender identity or sexuality.

Clover and Alex stand with and support the entire Rainbow community — now and always — and would like to wish you a very happy Mardi Gras!

MAG Sydney Inc

MAG Sydney Inc – Mature Age Gays is a social group which over the 32 years it has been in the Community has attracted gay and bisexual men. It is a social group meeting twice monthly, where members share company and friendships or more in a safe space. Whilst our constitution states all members of the LGBTIQA+  Community and allies all over age 18 are welcome, the group continues to attract ageing gay and bisexual men. However over recent years, whilst our female membership is small, it is growing.

MAG Sydney Inc – MAG being Mature Age Gays. The name says it all. Having lived through the darker times, our members although ageing, are keen to participate in a more accepting Community, and our objective is to show that we are grey, gay and out. The Mardi Gras Parade gives us the opportunity to fulfill that objective. Our entry title “We’re Here For Our Future, Our Future Is Your Future”, is meaning that whilst MAG is 32 years old and here for our future, it is also here for the Community’s future.

Marine Rescue NSW

Marine Rescue NSW is a not-for-profit charity that provides emergency marine search, rescue and communication services to the NSW boating community, saving thousands of lives every year. 

Marine Rescue NSW is committed to upholding LGBTQI+ rights and there are many members of the LGBTQI+ community within our 3,300 volunteers, staff and their families. Since its establishment in 2009, Marine Rescue NSW has worked with our members to create a volunteer community that is welcoming of members of the LGBTQI+ community and to celebrate this diversity within our membership and society.

Our past participation in the Mardi Gras parade has sent a strong message on the vital importance of inclusiveness and diversity to our membership and the community we serve. 

In 2022, our first rainbow boat crew was formed and we strive for further equity and diversity. 

 Marine Rescue NSW entry has the theme of ‘All Aboard’ – reflecting the nautical roots of the organisation as a marine rescue service and its culture of inclusivity and tolerance – where everyone is ‘welcome to come aboard’. We are proud as an emergency service to have many ‘rainbow’ crew members and in our commitment to provide a vital service to all members of the community.  

MECCA MAX

Coming soon.

Coming soon.

Mid North Coast Pride

Mid North Coast Pride float consists of 4-5 LGBTQIA+ social groups located in the Mid North Coast from Taree to Grafton who have come together to celebrate pride and diversity. Our goal is to create a fun and festive atmosphere that celebrates the diversity and resilience of our LGBTQIA+ community while promoting acceptance and equality for all. 

Introducing the Mid North Coast Pride float, a captivating symbol of unity and inclusivity for LGBTQIA+ individuals and social groups beyond the city limits. Our vibrant float is a celebration of our diverse community’s past, present, and future, showcasing the collective strength within us. By bringing together LGBTIAQ+ social groups in the Mid-North Coast area, we strive to amplify our voices and create a powerful display promoting visibility and advocating for social change. This remarkable representation of LGBTQIA+ people from non-metropolitan areas sparks vital discussions, ignites action, and demands equal rights, resources, and visibility for all individuals across every region. 

Midas Creations+

Midas Creations aims to break down social tribes within the community and bring people together. 

Our Golden Glamz community group is an extension of Midas Creations values and our previous values of Love, Unity, Valor & Equality marching within the parade since 2012 as the Glamazon All Starz.

Midas Creations identified people’s thirst for social connections outside of the bar and club scene and through community consultation we have provided this platform through online and physical events.

To keep our community members safe throughout the pandemic, we maintained our community connection through online events and meet ups.

Whilst Midas Creations was born in Sydney, we have interstate and international members.

Midas Creations and the Golden Glamz are passionate advocates for acceptance and creating space for the LGBTQIA+ community to feel safe and welcomed.

Midas Creations aims to break down social tribes within the community and bring people together. 

Midas Creations and the Golden Glamz are passionate advocates for acceptance and creating space for the LGBTQIA+ community to feel safe and welcomed.

In a world where we are seeing our LGBTQIA+ community continuing to fight for and maintain our rights to exist and be accepted, the Golden Glamz are marching in unity to remind ourselves and the world to be strong, be fabulous and be kind.

We are here and are making our mark in this world!

Mini Matildas

We are a group of Matildas fans and young soccer players who enjoyed the World Cup so much we don’t want it to end. We celebrate the amazing representation of lesbians, queers and trans people in women’s soccer/football internationally that was on display during the recent FIFA Womens World Cup. We love the skills, talents, courage and attitude of the Matildas players, and how they inspire the next generation of young LGBTQI+ people to dream and to be.

You can’t be what you can’t see.  The future for the queer community is embodied in our young people. The Matildas have been incredible role models playing in the recent FIFA Womens World Cup with amazing skill, strength, courage and pride. More than half the team are LGBTQI+ and show the world what is possible when this is just the way we roll, no big deal. And the future is a growing acceptance and pride – and excitement – within the wider population for what we queers bring to the table – scoring goals!!! 

My People | My Tribe

My People | My Tribe is a community group proudly founded by queer people for queer people. Our #barenakedtruth photo campaign sharing the lived experiences of LGBTQI communities started in response to horrors of the Pulse nightclub massacre. It continues to this day and was even the featured artwork for the Mardi Gras 2017 festival. We have continued to expand our representation each year, only further diversifying our representation of queer lived experiences around Australia and the world. 

My People My Tribe’s ‘Disco Cowboy” float subverts the historically queerphobic Country industry and reclaims the joy of a hoedown with sparkle and sass. Let’s do-si-do to a brighter, gender-non-conforming future.

Nepali Queer Community 

I represent a dedicated and passionate group called “Nepali LGBTQIA+ Unity” that is committed to advocating for the rights and well-being of the Nepali LGBTQIA+ community in Sydney. We serves as a platform for individuals of Nepali descent who identify as LGBTQIA+ to come together, find support, and engage in initiatives that promote inclusivity and acceptance.

Our group actively contributes to the LGBTQIA+ communities in several ways:

Support and Safe Space: We offer a safe and inclusive space where LGBTQIA+ individuals from Nepal can connect, share experiences, and find support from their peers. This support is particularly crucial for those who may be struggling with issues related to identity and acceptance.

Visibility and Awareness: We actively participate in events such as the Sydney Pride Parade to raise awareness about the challenges and triumphs of the Nepali LGBTQIA+ community. By participating in events like these, we aim to reduce stigma and foster acceptance.

Advocacy and Education: We engage in advocacy efforts to promote LGBTQIA+ rights, both within the Nepali community and in broader society. We organize workshops, seminars, and awareness campaigns to educate individuals about LGBTQIA+ issues and rights.

Cultural Sensitivity: Our organization acknowledges the intersectionality of identities and works to bridge the gap between cultural expectations and LGBTQIA+ identities within the Nepali community. We aim to create a harmonious environment where individuals can embrace their identities without compromising their cultural backgrounds.

Mental Health and Well-being: We provide resources and support for the mental health and well-being of LGBTQIA+ individuals. This includes access to mental health professionals who are sensitive to the unique challenges faced by this community.

In representing the Nepali LGBTQIA+ community in the upcoming Sydney Pride Parade, we aim to highlight the diversity within LGBTQIA+ communities and showcase the resilience, strength, and contributions of Nepali LGBTQIA+ individuals. We believe that our presence in such events is a powerful way to challenge stereotypes, promote acceptance, and inspire others to embrace their authentic selves.

Our entry, “Nepali LGBTQIA+ Community,” sends a powerful message of “Harmony in Diversity.” We celebrate the diverse identities within our Nepali LGBTQIA+ community and emphasize that unity is forged through acceptance, understanding, and cultural pride. Our colorful banners, rainbow flags, and multilingual messaging reflect the intersectionality of our identities. Through personal narratives and artwork, we share stories of resilience and empowerment. Our message resonates with the broader LGBTQIA+ community, highlighting the importance of embracing and celebrating all identities. We stand in solidarity, fostering a culture of unity, diversity, and acceptance for a brighter, more inclusive future.

Newcastle Pride Inc.

Newcastle Pride was incorporated on April 11, 2018. We are a Newcastle-based, LGBTQIA+ community-based charity organisation 100% volunteered run, with the objective to promote and support the LGBTQIA+ Pride community within the Hunter Region. We have hosted three successful Newcastle Pride annual festivals and many stand-alone inclusive events. 

Pride festivals and queer events gives community members a sense of inclusion, a place of belonging and allows them to celebrate who they are in a safe, fun environment without judgement. These events remind us to support and respect each other and show the world that we are a proud and resilient community.

Our 2018, 2019, and 2022 festivals gained great community and business support, with many prominent community organisations and businesses from the Hunter and beyond joining Newcastle Pride as sponsors and partners. Since 2018, Newcastle Pride has grown significantly and has been warmly welcomed into the community growing into a recognisable brand over the years.

Our vision is to make the Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, and Hunter Region a happier, healthier, safer, and more culturally rich place for all of the LGBTQIA+ community. To empower the current and future generations to be their true selves and feel accepted and proud of who they are, regardless of their gender identity or sexuality. We aspire to a safer, more inclusive future for our community. Newcastle Pride Inc. has zero tolerance for all forms of oppression, including racism, sexism, transphobia, homophobia, biphobia, ableism, ageism, xenophobia, and all other forms of discrimination. 

Newcastle Pride, “Be Brave, Be You”, and come together to celebrate love, acceptance and equality showcasing the incredible diversity that defines our community. “Be Brave, Be You” and let’s shape a future where acceptance knows no bounds, let’s make history together and an unforgettable spectacle of love and empowerment. Our future invites you to embrace your true selves and “Be Brave, Be You”.

Newtown Breakaways Football Club

The Newtown Breakaways Football Club was established in 2002 as an independent women’s AFL club. After 20 years, we remain as committed as ever to being a diverse and inclusive club welcoming everyone. In 2020 we then introduced our Breakaways Men’s teams widening our base and adopting the mantra of “AFL for All”.

Centred around Newtown & the Inner West our club has always had a significant lesbian and transgender membership.  As a club we are proud of our queer heritage and championing LGBTQIA+ via the Breakaways Annual Pride Round held at Henson Park within the Sydney AFL competition and our multiple entries in the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras.

Our core club values are commitment, competitiveness, and inclusivity.

Newtown Breakaways – Women, Men & Non-Binary playing together with Pride!  

Our Future … Absolutely Everybody.  An Aussie anthem by Vanessa Amorosi, a massive queer ally.  The lyrics oose inclusivity, sharing your diversity.   The Song became the unofficial anthem of the 2000 Olympics and is now synonymous with sport.  

The Breakaways celebrate the 2024 Mardi Gras theme “Our Future” with a cracking interpretation of AFL as a community sport, demonstrating that AFL Futue “is for all”.  Join us … NewtownBreakaways.com  … All I wanna be …

No Borders No Judgement

Our group stands as a vibrant and unwavering supporter of the LGBTQIA+ communities, steadfastly contributing to their empowerment and visibility. With  legacy Mardi Gras members, spanning over 30 years, our founding members have played integral roles in prior Mardi Gras festivities – not just as participants, but as performers and innovative choreographers.

Central to our group ethos is a commitment to inclusivity. We embrace individuals from all walks of life, irrespective of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or expression. Our doors are open to everyone, be it LGBTQIA+, straight, non-binary, or any other identity. 

“No Borders No Judgement (NBNJ)” is a new group established for 2024 but has evolved from members of Vic Presence and Gay Pride Australia. We’ll be striving to create a reputation as a safe and welcoming people, where diversity thrives.

What sets us apart is our founding members unparalleled prowess in crafting spectacles that resonate with the heart of the LGBTQIA+ experience. Our floats, costumes, and choreography are renowned for their creativity and grandeur – painting a vivid tapestry of colours and emotions that mirror the vibrant lives within the LGBTQIA+ spectrum. This commitment to excellence has not gone unnoticed, as in prior years. we have been honoured with nominations from Mardi Gras committees for our exceptional creative concepts.

Chris Bakis and Kirsten Mann have been instrumental members of two major Mardi Gras groups over the last 30 years (VicPresence and Gay Pride Australia) and have led performers in 5 other groups – always been dedicated to fostering diversity and inclusiveness. Through these alliances, No Borders, No Judgement will stand as a beacon of hope, celebrating the multifaceted identities that comprise the LGBTQIA+ communities. Our presence in Mardi Gras will not merely be a performance, but a testament to the resilience, courage, and unity that define the LGBTQIA+ journey.

In essence, our organisation is a living embodiment of the values that Mardi Gras represents. We dance, create, and unite to magnify the voices of the LGBTQIA+ communities. With each step, each float, and each applause-worthy choreography, we send ripples of love and acceptance, reminding the world that our differences are our greatest strengths, and that celebration knows no bounds when it comes to diversity.

“Unity Unveiled: Envisioning Our Alicorn Spirit” is a celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community’s strength, resilience, and shared aspirations. 

The alicorn (and evolved unicorn, with wings) is renown for it’s ability to unite others together and symbolises the transformative potential that lies within unity and imagination. 

The key message is that by coming together and embracing diversity, we have the power to create a future that transcends boundaries, uplifts spirits, and empowers individuals to be their authentic selves.

Northcott

Three of Australia’s leading disability service providers, Northcott, Cerebral Palsy Alliance and Afford will join forces to represent LGBTQIA+ people with disabilities. Together these organisations support 27,000 people with disability, across NSW, ACT, QLD, SA and WA, hundreds of which identify as LGBTQIA+.

Our  float will include LGBTQIA+ individuals from all three organisations: Northcott, Cerebral Palsy Alliance (CPA) and Afford. Combined, these organisations have more than 230 years’ experience empowering the disability community to fight for their right to inclusion. This includes decades of advocating for the rights and inclusion of LGBTQIA+ people with disability in both the queer and disability communities. It has subsequently evolved to also advocate for all LGBTQIA+ people within the disability community, including parents, carers, workers.

OURtopia asks the question ‘Why wait for a future of inclusion, when we can embrace diversity in all its forms now!’ OURtopia sees LGBTQIA+ people with disability who are supported by Northcott, Cerebral Palsy Alliance and Afford come together. They invite you to travel through time and join them in their future utopia, a land and time where there are no barriers to inclusion. 

Northern Stars of the NT

Representing the Rainbow Community of the Northern Territory.

See the NT strut their stuff with ‘Priscilla’s Timeless Journey: 30 Years of Freedom’ at this year’s Mardi Gras! 🌈 This float celebrates the LGBTQIA+SB community’s dazzling journey towards acceptance and self-expression, with a massive inflatable high heel, shimmering silver fabrics, and futuristic silver-clad marchers. We’re sending a loud, proud message that no matter where you are, you can be your fabulous self! 🌟 Our float’s connection to the Northern Territory adds a touch of outback magic to the global stage, emphasising that all Rainbow individuals deserve love, acceptance, and a glittering future. Join us as we dance, shine, and celebrate our vibrant, diverse family! 💃🕺 🎉

NSW Ambulance

NSW Ambulance is the statutory provider of pre-hospital emergency care and ambulance services to all communities in NSW including the LGBTQIA+ communities.

NSW Ambulance keeps the LGBTQIA+ communities safe, now and into the future!

NSW Department of Education

We are the NSW Department of Education (DoE) and one of the largest public sector employers in the Southern Hemisphere, representing more than 130 000 staff members in thousands of locations across NSW. 

We connect and educate with communities every day in every corner of NSW from Broken Hill to Bondi. Whether we are building infrastructure in the heart of the suburbs, teaching on the dusty plains, or developing policy of Education from Parramatta, we come together to be Australia’s best education system and one of the finest in the world for the future of students. 

We contribute to lifelong learning, from early childhood education, to both public and non-government schools, to vocational and higher education. Our workforce includes teachers, non-teaching support staff and school leadership teams as well as a corporate and policy workforce. We are diverse, with strong representation from our First Nations and multicultural communities.

Our Pride in Education Network, led by two executive sponsors and two co-chairs, has grown to be one of the largest in the NSW public sector and the largest staff network for the DoE. It has worked tirelessly to make the DoE a more inclusive place to work. We celebrate days of significance such as IDAHOBIT and Wear it Purple Day (a day born in NSW public education) to make sure the LQBTQIA+ community is visible and our stories are heard across NSW. 

We are a member of Pride in Diversity and we are well underway to entering the Australian Workplace Equality Index. We work with other LGBTQIA+ agencies such as Qtopia in producing educational resources that link to curriculum so that they can be taught at the museum and in classrooms across the state from Kindergarten to Year 12. The Department of Education has launched its Diversity, Inclusion and Belong Strategy which for the first time prioritises LGBTQIA+ people. We are making the changes today for the future of the LGBTQIA+ communities.

Embracing our People

The NSW Department of Education float proudly celebrates the vital role we all must play so all our people feel comfortable to embrace their identity and share their stories for current and future generations.

NSW Liberal Party

Liberal Pride is the Liberal Party’s peak LGBTIQ organisation. 

It supports LGBTIQ party members and plays a strong role in advocating for policy positions that align with the interests of queer Australians. 

Liberal Pride has a fabulous, vibrant, inclusive, and diverse membership. Its State Parliamentary Patrons include openly LGBTIQ members of parliament the  Honourable Chris Rath MLC, and the Honourable Jacqui Munro MLC.

Former elected MPs/Councillors include Trent Zimmerman, Don Harwin, Shayne Mallard, Christine Foster, and Bruce Notley-Smith; all of whom were and continue to be outstanding advocates for our community. 

NSW Liberal Pride is proudly the NSW Liberal Party’s LGBTIQ Branch. It celebrates a diverse membership from across the State, and is committed to advocating for the LGBTIQ community. Its LGBTIQ Members of Parliament are: the Honourable Chris Rath MLC; and the Honourable Jacqui Munro MLC.

NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association

The NSW Nurses and Midwives’ Association (NSWNMA) is the peak professional and industrial union for nurses and midwives in NSW. Nurses and midwives play an important role in providing inclusive and appropriate care for the LGBTQI+ community, including involvement with mental health, sexual health and gender affirming care services. Our Association also includes a large number of LGBTQI+ nurses and midwives, who are proud of their identities and of their membership to our union.  

The strong voices of nurses and midwives have delivered important recent wins as we continue our fight for safer and more inclusive care. From safer staffing in public hospital and aged care facilities, to winning more accessible HIV and mental health care, the voices of nurses and midwives have helped improve the care our communities receive. 

Our strong voices have delivered much to be proud of – but there is still more to do, and we will continue to fight for the health care services our communities deserve! 

NSW Police Force 

The NSWPF is dedicated to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of all members of the community by providing policing services that are available and accessible to all. 

The NSWPF have over 300 operational GLLO (LGBTIQ+) Liaison officers across NSW work together with their local LGBTIQ + communities, to develop and deliver an effective response that are sensitive to the needs of all sexuality and gender diverse people. 

NSWPF has marched in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade since 1996. Our marching contingent demonstrates the ongoing support and strong commitment to LGBTIQ+ communities and our own staff who identify as LGBTIQ+.

The GLLO’s work closely with Pride in Police, the employee network for LGBTIQ+ staff and allies to openly support and enable all NSWPF employees in all aspects of workplace inclusion and to bring their whole selves to work.

NSW Police Force has participated in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras since 1996. 

This year’s entry features our GLLO (LGBTIQ+) Liaison officers’ program, PRIDE in POLICE Employee Network and allied employees celebrating our vibrant and diverse workforce within the NSW Police Force. 

The contingent represents the NSW Police Force’s ongoing support and strong commitment to our LGBTIQ+ employees, both sworn and unsworn, and broader LGBTIQ+ communities. 

The NSW Police Force wants to take this opportunity to say a BIG THANK YOU to the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras & LGBTIQ+ communities for working with us to keep NSW safe and strong.

NSW Rural Fire Service

The NSW Rural Fire Service is the world’s largest fire service. 

We have 70,000-plus volunteers who are members of 2,000 brigades and provide fire and emergency services across 95 per cent of NSW, from the coast to the far outback and from the Queensland border south to Victoria. 

Our mission is to assist and protect the community – lives, property and the environment – from bushfires wherever we are called upon, whether in NSW, nationally or internationally.

Our Service reflects the community we serve. Our volunteers are drawn from all walks of life, from every village, town and city in the state. We are proud of our diversity and know our differences make us stronger. 

The RFS is the world’s largest fire service. We are smart, technologically advanced, resourceful and determined. Our people are ALWAYS FABULOUS!

Our FUTURE is NOW. As a fire service, our eye is always on the next fire season – and the next and the next. Now and in the years to come, our community knows it can rely on the RFS for help and protection during bush fires and other emergencies. 

The RFS is proudly representative of every community we serve, drawing from the rich tapestry of diversity across this state. We embrace a future that is inclusive, respectful and FABULOUS.

NSW SES PRIDE

NSW SES is a volunteer-powered emergency service, responsible for the emergency management of floods, storms and tsunami in NSW. We have over 11,000 members comprising of both Volunteers and employed staff, supporting 274-unit locations across the width and breath of NSW. For over 60 years, NSW SES has worked with communities across NSW to save lives and build safer communities.

NSW SES established the NSW SES PRIDE Network in 2017 to recognise, support, advocate and visibly represent all LGBTQIA+ members within the NSW SES and to visibly reflect the communities of NSW we serve. 

NSW SES PRIDE strives to create a culture of inclusion where everyone feels safe, valued, and respected for the diverse backgrounds, thinking, and lived experiences they bring to the agency.

Building safer communities not only includes a commitment to D&I, but also the visible demonstration of active implementation of inclusionary practice across the NSW SES. Participating in the Mardi Gras parade is a public statement of that commitment and a demonstration of active inclusion implementation.

Orange is synonymous with NSW SES, and in a rainbow, orange represents creativity, the ability to enjoy oneself, relax and enjoy life. To achieve this, communities must be fully equipped to prepare, respond and recover from flood, storm and tsunami. 

This requires looking to the future and developing creative solutions to achieve this. It involves increasing diversity within emergency services, and ensuring we have an inclusive organisation in order to attract and retain volunteer numbers which will allow NSW SES to sustainably respond to disasters that will impact our future. 

NSW Teachers Federation

Federation is a registered trade union, representing the interests of teachers who work for the NSW Department of Education, TAFE NSW, NSW Department of Corrective Services, and the New South Wales Education Standards Authority. 

We have had a LGBTIQA+ group (of various names) since the 1980s and have actively campaigned on LGBTIQA+ rights including members participating in the first Mardi Gras, age of consent for same sex partners, AIDS/HIV education, marriage equality and against “parental primacy” legislation. 

We have worked with other community organisations to achieve progress in LGBTIQA+ matters (or maintain the gains we have one), most recently including Wear It Purple & Twenty10 (GSA resources), Equality Australia (parental primacy bill) and others in broader community campaigns. 

NSWTF has been fighting for inclusive education in public schools for years, from sexual health education during the HIV/AIDS epidemic, to the Safe Schools program and the promotion of GSAs (co-creating guides with Twenty10 and Wear It Purple).

READING IS FUNDAMENTAL – NSW Teachers Federation celebrates the right of families and young people to see themselves reflected in the material they read and learn.  We pay tribute to the hard work of both public school teachers and drag queens in supporting the development of young people, and working to create safe and inclusive spaces. 

NUAA

NUAA works to advance the health, human rights and dignity of all people who use or have used drugs. We advocate against stigma and discrimination wherever they occur. Our members, staff, volunteers and service users include many members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

The NSW Users & AIDS Association (NUAA) was formed and funded in 1989 as an independent, user-driven community based organisation educating, supporting and representing injecting drug users in the face of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. As an organisation, we have been at the forefront of user-driven community engagement and support, both then and now, as we approach another precipice in fighting stigma and criminalisation of both the drug-user and LGBTQIA+ communities and their intersections.

NUAA is a peer-based organisation devoted to advancing the health, human rights and dignity of all people who use or have used drugs. We envision the upcoming NSW Drug Summit as a yellow brick road to a shift in policy from targeting drug users with criminal penalties to an approach based in health and human rights. Evidence based policies such as decriminalisation, drug checking, safe consumption services and a regulated cannabis market are a step towards a safer and more just future. With heart, courage and brains we can unite to defeat the wicked witch of the war on drugs as we make our way to the Emerald City, where the principles of equity and justice are realities, and “Just Say No” is banished forever.

Oceanic Pups and Handlers (O-PAH)

Oceanic Pups and Handlers are a kink-positive group led by Syd-Pah representing the  Queer Pups and Handler groups from Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, Canberra and Adelaide. We pride ourselves on inclusivity regardless of sexuality and gender and are heavily involved in the queer kink spaces, across the capital cities. 

We look to our future with pride. We gather as one within the community and stand proudly alongside our neighbours. We dream of a future where Queer Kink, and expressionism of self, can be done in the light. We honour our queer history that lead us to this point, and move forward toward a better future.

Optus

Optus supports and empowers its LGBTQIA+ employees by fostering greater inclusion through visibility, awareness and support, so that it can be a place where people can bring their full selves to work.

Optus has an employee-led volunteer group called “Express Yourself”, that was formed by a team of passionate employees advocating for Marriage Equality in Australia.

In 2021, Optus formalised the Express Yourself Network to bring together people with shared identities and their allies, and foster a more diverse and inclusive work environment.

Express Yourself is a key pillar in Optus’ broader Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging strategy, set to create spaces for change where everyone is not only accepted for who they are but are expected to be their authentic selves. Many of the Express Yourself members, as well as allies, are marching today and have been integral in brining Optus’ partnership with Sydney WorldPride to life this year.

At Optus, Yes is an attitude that unlocks a world of possibilities. When we stand united and choose to create change, we can make great things happen.

Yes, yeah, or yasssss – it’s an attitude that unlocks a stratosphere future full of possibilities. The ship reflects Optus’ journey toward “Our Future”. When we stand connected, and choose to create change, the future is as bright as the stars. 

Order of Perpetual Indulgence

The Order of Pepetual Indulgence is an Internatinal Order of Gay Male Nuns and Female Lesbian Clergy.

Our mission is to Promote Universal Joy by the Expiation of Stigmatic Guilt and the Granting of Pepetual Indulgences through Habitual Perpetration.

In the first half of 2023 Mother Abbyss died unexpectedly. During his life he was a committed activist, committed to the Gay and Lesbian cause, and he was one of the Ancients (Foundation Sisters) of the Sydney House of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, which was founded in 1981.

At the Memorial Service for Mother Abbyss, his brother spoke most affectionately of Mother Abbyss and reminisced about those very early days when the Sisters were trying to create the look of their habits, and he recalled Mother Abbyss in an early attempt to create the look for his wimple and veil, used a toilet seat.  (Actually he used a child’s seat as a full sized one is too large to be able to be crafted to wear.)

Subsequently a photograph was found of Mother Abbyss wearing said toilet seat.

So in the Parade this year, the Sisters pay homage to Mother Abbyss by trying to emulate the toilet-seat wimple.

And the Sisters are very grateful that the use of toilet seats did not take-off and continue.

Meanwhile:

2024 marks the 40th anniversary of the repealing of the sections of the Crimes Act that dealt with Homosexual activity. 

In other words, Law Reform.

But today the rise of right-wing and conspiracy ideologies is threatening our freedom.

During 2023 a Member of the Legislative Council posted an offensive remark on social media about a Member of the Legislative Assembly.

The signs that the Sisters are carrying are the alleged words of the social media slur: No shit on my dick.

It is believed that the matter is currently subject to litigation.

Out for Australia

Out for Australia is an organisation dedicated to supporting and mentoring aspiring LGBTQIA+ professionals as they navigate their way through the formative stages of their careers. 

The theme of our Parade entry is “Out for our Dream Jobs” The future of inclusive work.  The key message of our parade entry is that young LGBTQIA+ people can achieve their dream careers whilst being their authentic selves, and through being their authentic selves can be the leaders of tomorrow. 

OzFurs

OzFurs represents a segment of the Australian furry community.  The furry fandom consists of people who come together with a shared love of anthropomorphic characters, who express themselves with artwork, costumes and literature.   Frequently, the furry fandom provided a haven for abused, bullied and ‘othered’ queer people.  

The fandom itself is made up from people from all walks of life and doesn’t discriminate acceptance based on age, gender, race or neurodivergency.  The vast majority of the furry community are queer and come with their own experiences and their own creativity.  The furry fandom is unique in the world of large fandoms; as they are completely original.  None of the work, costumes or conventions are derivative of any other intellectual property.  Everything is created by the individual and shared amongst each other for enjoyment and love.

In light of the 2024 Mardi Gras theme, OzFurs would like to represent a Solarpunk future that incorporates the themes of optimistic eco-sustainability and acceptance of all.

P&G

Our brands are trusted in millions of living rooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, and bathrooms—and have been passed down from generation to generation. We are the people behind the brands you trust, and we’re committed to making peoples’ lives better in small but meaningful ways, every day.

As P&G grows, we stay grounded in our purpose, values, and principles and a deep-rooted understanding between each other and our company that being our best and doing our best—for the people who buy our products, for one another, and for the world around us—will lead to mutual success.

The ongoing partnership to support the LGBTQIA+ community is grounded in P&G’s mission to create a company and a world where Equality and Inclusion is achievable for all. Equality and Inclusion is a core element of P&G’s business operations to make a meaningful impact for consumers, communities and employees.

This year, P&G has teamed up with Aboriginal artist, queer feminist and 2021 NAIDOC National Artist of the Year, Bobbi Lockyer, who has come on board as creative designer, developing P&G’s Lead with Love float for the parade.

P&G have been partnering with Minus18, a LGBTQIA+ youth charity, for the past 3 years, helping to provide anti-bullying resource kits to school students across Australia. 

P&G’s brands, Fairy, Gillette, Olay, Oral-B, Pantene and VÖOST, have produced content to raise awareness about diverse issues faced by different members of the LGBTQIA+ community, thereby driving a call for action from the broader community to “Lead with Love”.

Parents for Trans Youth Equity (P-TYE)

Parents for Trans Youth Equity (P-TYE) are a group of mostly parents and also other family members and allies, who work together to create a safer and more supportive community for trans and gender-diverse young people. Our work includes advocacy, advice and education. Members consult and research to guide policy and procedures across government and both public and private sector spaces.

Our message is that the Future will see our trans children and young people as we see them – a natural, normal part of society, and as the inspiring, resilient, creative and amazing adults that they are becoming.

This year, more than ever, we march to represent those who can’t yet outwardly acknowledge or show themselves, and their families. With so much misinformation in the media generated through anti-trans groups, it is so important to support all trans and gender-diverse youth with an overwhelmingly positive and emphatically strong message of normality and acceptance. Join us!

People with Disability Australia (PWDA)

People with Disability Australia (PWDA) is Australia’s peak national cross-disability body, led by and for people with disability, providing rights-based advocacy and representation to members across Australia. 

We are a member driven organisation by and for people with disability and our Membership, Board, Senior Team and staff have strong LGBTQIA+ representation and a long-standing history with the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (SGLMG) Parade. PWDA has participated in the SGLMG Parade for many years and the event is an important marker on our disability calendar.

As the peak national body for all people with disability, PWDA maintains a specific focus on the intersection between LGBTQIA+ identity and disability and consequently strives to offer effective representation and advocacy for LGBTQIA+ people with disability . 

We maintain ongoing links with organisations such as the National LGBTI Health Alliance, Touching Base (a sex workers organisation for people with disability), Positive Life NSW (people living with HIV, a disability), as well as many other not-for-profit and community-based organisations. PWDA’s 2022-2025 Strategic Plan also specifically identifies advocacy support for LGBTQIA+ people with disability  as a priority action.

The PWDA theme this year is, “Our future is NOW!”

People with Disability Australia (PWDA) is a national peak cross-disability rights, advocacy and representative organisation that is made up of, led and governed by people with disability. 

Our members and staff are passionate about equal rights, showcasing the diverse shades of LGBTQIA+ people with disability to the world!

In 2024, PWDA calls on all of us to come together to amplify the rights of LGBTQIA+ people with disability now, because the future is now. 

PFLAG+ Australia

PFLAG+ Australia is an organisation that supports parents of LGBTQIA+ loved ones because research clearly shows that supported children have better outcomes overall in terms of general health and reduced suicide and self harm.  We provide peer support, social activities and connection, along with education and speaking activities to broaden acceptance of our LGBTQIA+ loved ones.

PFLAG+ Australia was formed last year to ensure the longevity of PFLAG+ and foster greater acceptance for inclusivity.

PFLAG  Sydney  is creating a Caring, Just, and affirming world for LGBTQ+ people. As parents and friends of our gender-diverse community. We are building futurism, we encompass Free Community services and access for our Face to Face Family meetings in Sydney or digital and phone support for our country cousins.

PHANTOM

PHANTOM (Pansexual+ Humans Advocacy Network Towards OAGID Mutuality) is an online-based Community Group that advocates for other people in the global OAGID (Orientation And Gender Identity Diverse) Community, in particular for Pansexual+ people (who identify as pansexual, panromantic and numerous other minority orientations/gender identities) as well as for Pansexuality as an orientation.

Personally, I am a Pansexual Genderfrict Paragirl and am involved with the OAGID Community at every available opportunity, both as a private individual and as the Leader of the PHANTOM Community.

I’m a financial member of SGLMG and attend as many important SGLMG events as possible, including the AGM, during the Mardi Gras Festival and other parts of the year.

I therapeutically support many OAGID people online, whether they are from NSW, other Australian States/Territories or further, particularly young people who face more challenges with being closeted, harassed for being who they are, are affected by gender dysphoria and having a higher incidence of impacted mental health/suicide.

One of my services to these people is free psychotherapy under a peer support model, on a voluntary basis.

The Pansexual+ Community is also a target for online predators who misconstrue what Pansexuality truly is and as an Online Moderator, I continually work to maintain a safe space for my members, where for some, the PHANTOM Community is the only place where they can freely express themselves in an orientation and gender diverse manner.

I’ve been involved at times with various organisations but maintain a role as an advocate on an independent, individual level. I am motivated by my lived experience as a member of the OAGID Community.

An example of my involvement within another organisation is Sydney Queer and Disability (SQuAD) as their Co-Treasurer. I have represented SQuAD in a number of past OAGID events across Sydney, including Fair Day 2019, Parramatta Pride Picnic 2018 and as the MC of an OAGID event for International Day of People with Disability 2018. (SQuAD is not associated with the entry in this application.)

In 2019, I was amongst the groups that appeared in two of the videos used in the WorldPride bid.

In 2020, I streamed Global Pride continuously for over 24 hours and participated in the Live online chat, providing support and advice to other participants and was a contributor to the Danni Minogue Global Pride video.

As a person with disability, I am also heavily involved with people who are neurodivergent, many of whom also deal with both disability and orientation/gender identity issues on a daily basis.

As the creator and chief advocate of PHANTOM, I march in the Parade as an Individual but in representation of a broader cohort of humans, many of whom cannot even attend or watch a parade because of their circumstances.

PHANTOM – Here to call for the end of all oppression of OAGID people in order to protect OUR FUTURE.

No surgeries to update documents! Ban conversion therapy, homophobia and transphobia! Gender-neutral facilities everywhere! Extend Marriage Equality! No more harmful misgendering! Recognise ALL Orientations and Gender Identities!

PHANTOM advocates that the world cease all forms of OAGID (Orientation And Gender Identity Diverse) oppression to ensure OUR FUTURE is protected for Pansexual+ people and all other OAGID folk.

Please Don’t Forget Our Homeless

We are a voluntary  body of caring folks who especially  care about our growing Homeless. 

With particular attention to the most vulnerable our Lgbtqia Homeless. 

We provide toiletries, ladies products, fresh fruit, dog food for their trusty best friends…blankets.

We endeavour to find our most vulnerable homeless the Lgbtqia Homeless overnight accommodation….and try to support these folks letting them know they are not alone or forgotten. 

Our float is one of the crowds favourites and a lot of our audience will resonate with our float…especially   those feeling  the rental stresses and fear of eviction  to homelessness. Plus all those who have been evicted to homelessness due to sexual discrimination .

Our float highlights the vulnerability of our Lgbtqia Homeless and lack of services to our Lgbtqia community. 

OUR FUTURE theme provides us the opportunity to showcase services vitally missing in the Lgbtqia community like Safe Houses for domestic violence victims especially for males and Trans .

OUR FUTURE allows us to see what could be possible.

Point Clare Families

Our group is a local community group who show LGBTIGA+ community that rainbow families can be a positive force to promote acceptance and change in the broader community. That by fearlessly engaging in our local communities we can build a strong grassroots action that builds inclusivity and acceptance locally.

Initially, there was one same sex parent family in our Public School. There was no connection to LGBTIQ+ community and so we fitted into the local community as best we could. The creation of Point Clare families was to invite our ‘straight’ families into the LGBTIQ+ community to share our favourite celebration, Mardi Gras. The kids are now teens and thanks to their participation, with their families, in Mardi Gras, they feel confident and safe to explore their identities because they know they have their families support and now, the acceptance of the broader community. Being featured in local media and social media platforms has elicited celebration and support from the wider community. Somewhat surprisingly, we have not received negative comments etc. We also have support from both the Primary school and now the High School they attend. 

Our group is preparing confident young queer youth and strong young allies who will one day be leaders and allies in both the LGBTIQ+ community and broader community. They won’t have ‘coming out’ stories, they will have affirmation stories and experiences. They will raise their own families (if they so choose) that will perpetuate acceptance and diversity.

The Point Clare Families float, ‘Stand Up, Stand Out’ has been designed and created by the leaders of the future, the youth participants of Point Clare Families.

Point Clare Families are participating in their 5th Mardi Gras. The children of 2017 are now the young adults of 2024 and are exceptionally proud of the evolution our group continues to experience.

Point Clare/Koolewong/Tascott is a small community on the Central Coast. Our participation and success in Mardi Gras is a point of pride for our little community and our acceptance by the community has created a safe space for our young people and their families to thrive. We will continue to Stand Up and Stand Out for a positive future for all.

Polly Petrie and her Follies

I would like to apply for a float in the parade. This would be a tribute to Polly’s Follies which was the longest running drag show in Australia. It closed at the commencement of the Covid lockdown. Polly is in semi-retirement at the moment and is ill with cancer. She is still hanging on in there. The float would feature Polly and a number of her showgirls that she launched in her variety show including me Dawn Service, and Sarah Topaz.

Tribute to Polly Petrie’s contribution to the Sydney drag scene.

Positive Life NSW

Positive Life NSW provides support and advocacy to the LGBTQIA+ community impacted by HIV, and contributes significantly to the health and wellbeing of all people living with HIV in NSW, the majority of which identify as LGBTQIA+.

As the largest group of all people living with HIV in Australia based in NSW, Positive Life NSW celebrates this year’s bold invitation to claim ‘HIV Pride Beyond Prejudice’, reshaping Our Future without ignorance, fear or shame about living with HIV. While the mantra of ‘ending HIV’ marks a bold aspiration, the enduring presence of people living with HIV remains here to stay. We joyfully gather to celebrate this 45th Mardi Gras, as we boldly envision Our Future where we speak out and stand tall as proud people living with HIV.

Pride in Medicine

Pride in Medicine is a newly founded, not for profit organisation of rainbow doctors, medical students and allies. Our group started in 2022 with a small group of senior surgeons and O+G specialists, as a way to shine a light on issues affecting rainbow people in healthcare. It was quickly realised there was a need to provide visibility to, and advocacy for medical students and clinicians within our community, and we opened the doors to medical students and doctors from all specialities.

Through advocacy, education and mentorship, we aim to be a voice for rainbow medical students, doctors, and patients. We want to create an environment where doctors feel safe to be their authentic selves at work and eliminate the inequities faced by our rainbow patients.

Pride in Medicine is a not-for-profit organisation made up of rainbow and allied doctors and medical students across Australia and Aotearoa. We are here to support and advocate for medical students and clinicians within our community. Our members come from a range of medical specialties with a shared vision of healthcare that delivers for rainbow patients and staff.

Pride in Protest

We are a grassroots political organisation dedicated to achieving queer and trans liberation in all aspects of social, economic and political life. We have hosted community rallies, liased with major NGOs and political parties, and advocated in solidarity with all manner of marginalised groups including Blak activists, refugees and the economically marginalised.

In a time wherein the global right wing targets queer and trans people as a political scapegoat, and mainstream parties are unwilling to advance our rights, we believe it is time for queer and trans people to get active, get organised and get marching. We take to the streets of Sydney in solidarity with all marginalised and oppressed people, and with one united message- No Compromise In Defence of Our Rights!

Pride Morris

Pride Morris is a new group that brings together queer morris dancers of all genders from groups all over Australia. The group combines queer self expression with a traditional folk dance form that brings us joy. Pride Morris provides a community for queer dancers from existing morris dancing clubs from all over Australia. The group comes together each year for a limited season around a special pride event, and its debut will be the The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras in 2024. More spontaneous outings at pride rallies and protests are also organised by members in their local areas.

Morris dancing is a style of traditional English folk dance. The dance form involves lively choreographed routines performed with waving handkerchiefs and clashing sticks. It’s a performance/spectacle dance rather than a social dance, often danced in groups of six. In the context of a parade (known as a ‘processional dance’) it is danced in a long column of two lines. Morris costumes often involve hats adorned with flowers, and the wearing of bells. Morris dancing is always performed to live music, and Morris teams include dancers as well as musicians playing folk instruments including the fiddle, button accordion, tin whistle, trumpet, etc. 

Pride Morris is looking to bring the joys of Morris dancing to new audiences. ‘The Morris’ has always been a dance for festivals. Traditionally, each small English village would have their own group to perform at special village celebrations to mark the passing of the seasons. It is best danced in-the-street, in the middle of a roaring crowd, with live musical accompaniment and jangling bells. When a dancer capers high off the ground and the crowd yells “higher” – an electric atmosphere is created, a bond between the audience and the dancers. 

We acknowledge that our group dances on the unceded lands of many first nations countries. We pay our respects to the Elders, past and present and to all the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people of our community. Our group values the decolonisation of Morris Dancing in Australia, acknowledging the First Peoples here and their connections to Country and culture. We hope to always perform our dancing respectfully and with love. We hope that by doing so we will bring joy, celebration to those that watch and dance with us.

For many Morris Dancers, learning Morris Dancing is a part of understanding their own cultural history, and many therefore have English family histories. However, Morris Dancing is not an exclusive practice – anyone can join in no matter where their family backgrounds are from. Everyone is welcome and our members include people with many different cultural heritages. 

Pride Morris is a new group that combines the joys of queer self-expression with the joys of traditional English Morris Dancing! They are a fun, energetic, all-ages dance group for queers and allies to dance in the sunshine, meet other LGBTQIA people, and most importantly be very silly. Historians and scientists agree that Pride Morris keeps you fit, happy, and loving life. Pride Morris welcomes new members of all dancing abilities and musicians to join their technicolour revelry. 

“Better than all the cassowaries in the Daintree!” – Sydney Afternoon Paper

“Great, hearty food and lovely service. We were served by Jessie – thank you Jessie, and good luck with law school!” – TripViewer

QANTAS

Qantas has a longstanding history of actively supporting and contributing to equity for LGBTQIA+ communities – including being one of the largest employers of LGBTQIA+ Australians, demonstrated through their strong internal pride network including allies as well as LGBTQIA+ employees.

We value our people’s diverse lived experience and believe that our inclusive culture contributes to our strength and success. Our diversity of thought and experience helps us to understand our customers, make better decisions and get things done safely. Our aim is to build a safe and inclusive culture by championing equity and celebrating diversity.

As a Major Partner and the Official Airline of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras, Qantas is proud to bring travelers from across the world and throughout Australia closer together. Pride is well and truly in the air, and we will continue to support equity, diversity, and inclusion.

QLife

Qlife is Australia’s free, anonymous phone and webchat LGBTIQA+ Peer Support service. It celebrates 10 years in 2023 and is operated by Twenty10 in NSW and it’s previous iteration was GLCS NSW.

QLife is a peer support service that helps you stay connected to community. Support, referrals, information – there is always somebody to connect with when you contact QLife. Operating 365 days a year, 3pm – 12 midnight. 

Qtopia Sydney

Qtopia Sydney established in February 2021, is  a not for profit organisation, committed to the core principles of empowerment and inclusivity – seeking to enfranchise the LGBTQIA+ communities in Australia through awareness and education – public exhibitions, temporary displays, community engagement initiatives, performative art and curricula-linked education programs, delivered virtually and from what will become the largest centre for Queer history and culture in the world.  

Operating from the old Darlinghurst Police Station and opening in February 2024, the centre will provide a safe and inclusive space that celebrates, remembers, educates and fosters awareness of the rich and troubled history of LGBTQIA+ communities in this country, viewed from pre-colonial times, extending to the HIV/AIDS crisis, Stonewall riots, the first Sydney gay and lesbian Mardi Gras in 1978, through to contemporary issues such as the plebiscite and trans rights for Australia’s gender diverse community. 

Qtopia Sydney’s inaugural Mardi Gras Parade entry is titled ‘Colourful Past, Bright Future.’  

As Sydney’s home of Queer History and Culture, we acknowledge the trailblazers who have come before us – the activists, community leaders and ordinary individuals who courageously championed the rights that we cherish today.  

And we celebrate the vision of a bright future where every queer person thrives with vibrancy, fulfillment, and happiness in a safe and inclusive world.  

We believe that Qtopia will play a pivotal role in helping to create this vision. The future is bright. The future is queer! 

Queer and Gender-Diverse Pole Dancers of Sydney 

Queer and Gender-diverse Pole Dancers of Sydney

We are a collective hailing from many studios, including Sydney Pole, Goddess Aerial & Pole Fitness, Bobbi’s Pole Studio Sydney and more. We offer classes, workshops and performances that celebrate and elevate Queer culture. Across the studios we work, we prioritise the safety and inclusion of LGBTQIA+ students, and advocate for their empowerment within our dance spaces. Through our performances at Strips clubs, Burlesque shows and Pole competitions, we showcase our experiences through dance and celebrate our Queer lives and bodies.

When we dance, we are our most authentic selves. As a Queer and Gender-diverse collective of dancers, we strive for unapologetic erotic celebration in dance and in life. We are a rich community of dancers; people with diverse expressions of gender and sexuality, First Nations dancers, sex workers, and dancers of all body shapes and abilities. We are the sexual revolution, and we invite all bodies to dance with us.

Our bodies unite to honour the rich history of sex workers and LGBTQIA+ pioneers of social progress. Off the pole, we stand arm-in-arm against rising conservative extremism and the threat it poses to our rights and freedoms. When we spin, we fill the air with magic and dance for our own pleasure.

Our future is one of safety, autonomy, and celebration. We envision a future free from targeted violence, digital shadow-bans, and whorephobic legal policy. We strive towards the decriminalisation of sex-work, protections for workers enshrined in legislation, and liberation of our bodies through dance.

Queer Arab Alliance

The Queer Arab Alliance is set up for the awareness and benefit of the queer arab community.

I noticed there were no dedicated arab groups in the 2023 (or any in recent history’s) Mardi Gras. I wanted to create a marching group to show the world we exist, we’re proud and we are visible.

We need our communities and the youth to know we’re here.

We aim to create a safe space for queer people of Arab/MENA (Middle East North Africa) decent. Our purpose is to create visibility for the many LGBTQIA+ youth, adults and elderly who haven’t, and don’t see enough representation within our community. 

Queer Roller Derby

Queer Derby (previously The VR – Vagine Regime) was formed from the desire within our community to foster the already inclusive attitude within Roller Derby to create a safe and fun environment within our sport for our high levels of LGBTQI+ participants.

2024 is the 15th time roller derby has appeared in parade!

Roller Derby returns for our 15th skate for the SGLMG parade with a  jungle of diversity representing an inclusive, accepting future for all. 

Just like the diversity found in our jungles, forests and bushland – roller derby is made up of all types: strong, flamboyant, stealthy, fast or fierce – battling each other on the track for their future.

We strive to light the way forward for all sports.  

We skate towards a future where all people can participate equally in all sports regardless of body type, gender, sexuality, background, race or religion!

Queer Screen

Our Vision

A celebration of the diversity of sexualities and gender identities through queer storytelling on screen, by inclusive and respectful communities full of creativity, inspiration and pride.

Our Mission

To transform and engage individuals and communities through queer storytelling on screen.

We will achieve this by:

– Showcasing diversity of queer creativity through film and video

– Supporting queer filmmakers and other artists who address diverse sexualities and gender identities to reach audiences

– Valuing the contributions of our volunteers in every aspect of our work

– Building and nurturing partnerships

– Listening to and engaging with our audiences and communities

– Ensuring the sustainability of our organization so queer stories continue to be seen

Celebrating the diversity of sexualities and gender identities through queer storytelling on-screen, by inclusive and respectful communities full of creativity, inspiration and pride. 

Inspired by Queer Screen’s diverse and vibrant community, Queer Screen’s 31st Mardi Gras Film Festival 2024 celebrates coming together, starting conversations and  embracing our future through queer film.

Queer Vibes

Queer Vibes is a dance club for the LGBTQIA+ community in Canberra. Our community began as ‘Queer Zumba’ through a post-COVID recovery grant from the ACT Government. We have since entered Mardi Gras twice as ‘Queer Zumba’.

After our 2023 Mardi Gras, we re-imagined our future and our dance fitness classes evolved. We now do a different style each month and rotate through diverses dance styles, which certainly keeps us on our toes! So far we have done swing, salsa, hip-hop, commercial pop, afro-fusion and bollywood dance styles.

We have the same sponsors and many of the original Queer Zumba members. But instead of just solely focusing on Zumba we are exploring a broad and culturally diverse range of dance genres.

Queer Vibes is a community dance group who meet weekly to forge a path to a happier, more vibrant and inclusive future through dance.

They celebrate diversity by intrepidly exploring a new dance style each month! From salsa to swing, pop to afro-fusion, hip hop to Bollywood. It certainly keeps them fit, laughing, and on their toes!

Queer Vibes love venturing away from screens and out into the wilds of the forgotten lands of IRL – ‘In Real Life’.

They are fiercely committed to protecting and enriching vulnerable queer spaces, helping community and culture come alive, and re-imagining our future!

R U OK?

The R U OK? vision is a world where we’re all connected and are protected from suicide.  

Our mission is to inspire and empower people to meaningfully connect with those in their world and lend support when they are struggling with life. 

We’re an all-of-population health promotion campaign but have developed resources that encourage support for and amongst members of the LGBTQI+ communities. Our resource hub (https://www.ruok.org.au/lgbti-resources) shares stories from bodily, sexuality and gender diverse people and their allies alongside resources which encourage peer-to-peer support. This hub was developed with the support and guidance of the LGBTIQ+ Health Australia which includes Qlife, who are our referral partners. R U OK? proactively recruits Community Ambassadors from the LGBTQI+ communities who inform our initiatives and assist with the development of resources.   

R U OK? has, since 2017, had a float in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade and, since 2018,  a presence at Fair Day . 

R U OK?’s mission is a world where we’re all connected and protected from suicide. In Australia, LGBTIQ+ people have higher rates of mental ill-health and suicide, due to experiences of discrimination and stigma.

Whilst suicide is complex, feelings of connection and belonging are a proven protective factor. That’s why we’re calling on all Australians to Ask R U OK? with care. This is something we can all do to help our LGBTIQ+ friends, family and colleagues feel supported.

Ask R U OK? today, for our future tomorrow.

A conversation could change a life.

Rainbow Amnesty International Australia

Amnesty International is an independent, global movement of people who campaign courageously for human rights. In more than 150 countries worldwide, over 10 million of us stand together for justice, freedom, human rights, dignity and equality.

The NSW LGBTQIA+ Network (known as Rainbow Amnesty) is one of Amnesty International Australia’s network of volunteers that campaign specifically for LGBTQIA+ human rights locally, in the Asia Pacific region and worldwide. We work in solidarity with communities, to amplify voices and fight against injustice and discrimination.  

We are all born free and equal in dignity and rights. Rainbow Amnesty campaigns in solidarity with LGBTQIA+ individuals and communities for these human rights. We demand “nothing about us, without us”. We work to leave no one behind. Together we CAN make human rights accessible to all LGBTQIA+ people.

Rainbow Babies and Kids

Our group, “Rainbow Babies and Kids’ has supported children of LGBTQI+ parents for 26 years. In 1998, Several lesbian mothers came together for swimming lessons in Leichhardt. We created “Rainbow Babies and Kids” to provide peer support to our children. We have more than 700 members in Australia.  We offer events aimed specifically at the children of LGBTQI+ parents. We realised that our children have to Come Out as having LGBTIQ+ parents to their peers, teachers and community, just as we did. We provide a safe, fun and normative space for children of LGBTQI+ parents to connect with others like them. Some members are in rural areas where our community can be invisible or being out is impossible or dangerous. Our group provides an important link for these parents to connect with us and support each other.  Stay-at-home parents can be isolated and more so if they are LGBTQI+ in rural areas. Our group provides a lifeline to these members of our broader community. 

We organise a bi-annual camp at Kiama and cover the cost for some low/no income, marginalized families to join us. At the camp, we offer 3 nights/ 2 days of activities making it easy for newcomers to join in. Our Parade float allows us to promote our group and our sponsor Rainbow Fertility which services LGBTQ+ people only!  

Our children show that they are proud to be part of the LGBTQI+ community. The parade is an annual highlight for our children and us. We are always contacted by numerous families after the parade. Most contacts want specific information, but occasionally some families are really struggling.  Even if just one family benefits from that contact, we have met a serious need in our community that no one else is addressing.

This is Rainbow Babies 26th year of marching in the Parade! 

Since 1998, we have celebrated our LGBTQI+ families by providing a lifeline to community members who are, or and want to be, parents. Rainbow Babies have always dreamt of a future without discrimination. 

We are proud of our children as they thrive in our community which celebrates diversity and inclusion. Our children are the future! 

As well as marching, we hold bi-annual camps in Kiama which is an easy introduction for new members and a lot of fun!  

Rainbow Families

Rainbow Families is a not-profit charity that reduces suffering and disadvantage of LGBTQ+ families. Suffering may include bullying, harassment, abuse and discrimination. Disadvantage may include social exclusion, discrimination, stereotyping and stigma.

The mission of Rainbow Families is to relieve suffering and disadvantage of LGBTQ+ families by providing resources and support for LGBTQ+ families and education to the wider community about the value of LGBTQ+ families into the broader community. We do this by working with parents, children, government, businesses, schools, the broader community and other not-for-profit organisations.

Rainbow Families is led by a volunteer board and group of committees and supported by parent and ally volunteers and a vibrant community located all over New South Wales. Together, we are focused on making the world a better place for all LGBTQ+ families. 

Rainbow Families, who is marching for the 9th year, is a not-for-profit charity that reduces suffering and disadvantage of LGBTQ+ families.

In their group, we see LGBTQ+ parents and carers and their kids all marching and celebrating MG together.

While LGBTQ+ families are created in different ways, once their children are born, the challenges they face as families are the same.

Rainbow Families is led by a volunteer board and group of committees, and supported by parent and ally volunteers and a vibrant community.

Together, Rainbow Families is focused on making the world a better place for LGBTQ+ families.

Rainbow Families Regional

Supporting a family as an LGBTQ+ person is daunting and brings its ups and downs. Social isolation is one area that can negatively impact both LGBTQ+ parents and their children. While social isolation can be experienced by LGBTQ+ parents who live in urban areas, particularly those with babies and young children, it is of particular concern for LGBTQ+ parents who live in regional or rural areas. 

Rainbow Families Regional, Social Support and Playgroups reduce the isolation experienced by LGBTQ+ parents and their children by bringing people together. Meeting and becoming friends with other LGBTQ+ families who are from their local area is affirming and helps reduce the stigma LGBTQ+ families have every day. 

At our events, kids of LGBTQ+ parents meet and become friends with other kids whose families look like theirs, and this improves their self-confidence and the pride they have in their family. LGBTQ+ parents also benefit as they build relationships and make friends with other parents and develop a local network of support which helps in reducing the feeling of isolation. 

Supporting a family as an LGBTQ+ person can be challenging and isolating.

Rainbow Families Regional, Social Support and Playgroups reduce the isolation experienced by LGBTQ+ parents and their children by bringing people together and helping them build a local community of LGBTQ+ families.

In just 9 years Rainbow Families has established  over 19 different regional, social support and playgroups all across NSW, all run by volunteers.

Rainbow Labor

Rainbow Labor is the grassroots organisation for LGBTQIA+ Labor members and supporters.

Rainbow Labor is the grassroots organisation for LGBTQIA+ Labor members and supporters.

Rainbow Labor believes all people are created equal in their entitlement to dignity and respect, and should have an equal chance to achieve their potential.

Rainbow Labor as an organization reflects Labor’s broader objective of  a fair and equal future for all.  

Rainbow Rebellion

Rainbow Religion is the Australian arm of Extinction Rebellion’s LGBTQIA+ group. The entry will feature queer activists from the environmental movement. The LGBTQIA community has always been at the forefront of activism. The history of Mardi Gras is as protest. Queers are seasoned activists – we have fought for our survival before and we are fighting again. 

Rainbow Rebellion: Future Resistance celebrates the strong, staunch, LGBTIQA+ community fighting for our future in the climate emergency. The float consists queer environmental activists from across the climate and LGBTIQA+ rights’ movements celebrating our current and future modes of resistance, and imagining a world where life thrives in the future. 

We demand of our leaders and industry:

– End native forest logging

– No new coal

– Leave no one behind. Climate justice is social justice – we are not free until we are all free; repeal the anti-protest laws. 

We envisage a world where the forests, oceans, skies, and rivers are protected. Where we have stopped new coal, ended native forest logging and halted the climate emergency. A world that is safe for us and all living things.

Queer people are seasoned activists, we have fought for our survival, rights and visibility and we will continue resisting the toxic system for all of us to survive in the future. It’s important we keep going to ensure a future for ourselves and for all the people we love around the world.

Rainbow Recovery Club Pty Ltd

Rainbow Recovery Club provides a dedicated space in the heart of Surry Hills for a variety of 12 step recovery meetings for members of the LGBTQIA+ community recovering from alcoholism, drugs or other addictive behaviours.

To attract the newcomer into 12 step recovery programs, and foster interest in fellowship and the program for recovery from alcoholism, drugs or other addictive behaviours.

Rainbow Recovery Club celebrates 22 years of service in 2024.

Rainbow Recovery Club is a part of the LGBTQIA+ community and we support individuals on their journey to living clean and sober. We provide a dedicated space in the heart of Surry Hills for a variety of 12-step recovery meetings for members of the LGBTQIA+ community recovering from alcoholism, drugs, or other addictive behaviours.

We aim to attract newcomers as we believe that recovery is possible for everyone and that no one is alone. We are a diverse and inclusive group of people who understand the challenges and opportunities of recovery and are willing to help.

We invite anyone interested to join and experience the joy and freedom of living clean and sober. The future is bright, and we are here to shine with everyone

Raio de Sol Community Samba Band

Raio de Sol Community Samba Band is a non-profit, Brazilian percussion band based in Canberra. Embracing individuals of all walks of life, we celebrate diversity and unity through our shared passion for rhythms. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned player, everyone is welcome to be part of our drumming community! ‘Raio de Sol’ means ‘Sunbeam’ in Portuguese and we hope to spread positivity and sunshine everywhere we go with our energetic rhythms and groovy moves. 

Raio de Sol Community Samba Band is a non-profit, Brazilian percussion band based in Canberra. Embracing individuals of all walks of life, we celebrate diversity and unity through our shared passion for rhythms.  Our future is connection through rhythm, bringing people together with music and dance!

Safer Pastures 

We are a community group of queers advocating for safe spaces for LGBTQI+ people. We believe that queer bars, clubs, festivals, events and other spaces should be places where all members of our community can feel safe from sexual harassment and assault.

Queer spaces like bars, clubs, events and festivals should be sanctuaries where we can roam free. But too many queer people experience things like verbal harassment and sexual assault in the places we should feel most safe. We love to have a wild (west) time, but there’s no room for harassment and assault at our rodeo.

Safer Pastures is a community group of cowboys, cowgirls and cowtheys, riding together for safer queer spaces. We’re bootscootin’ our way towards safer pastures where we can all have a rootin’ tootin’ good time!

Scouts NSW

Scouts Australia NSW provides young Australians aged five to 25 with fun and challenging opportunities to grow through adventure. Our youth-led, adult-supported approach ensures our youth members are always at the forefront of our program. We empower our youth to lead themselves and each other, and work to ensure young people have a voice in their local, national and international communities. The Scout Law states: “Be Respectful, Do What Is Right and Believe in Myself.” These are key messages for our young LGBTQIA+ members, both to foster self-acceptance and pride in their identities, as well as a reminder to all Scouts to treat others with integrity. Scouts Australia NSW has a strong commitment to Diversity and Inclusion and actively supports young people and adults of diverse sexualities and genders to join the organisation and find acceptance. We know that one in 10 Australians identifies with a diverse sexuality, sex or gender identity according to the Australian Human Rights Commission, with higher proportions in younger age groups. Part of one of the world’s largest youth organisations, with 16,000 members across the state primarily aged between five and 25, our participation in the Mardi Gras Parade and Fair Day reinforces our support of our LGBTQIA+ youth to bring their whole selves to Scouts. We know that you can’t be what you can’t see, so we ensure our ongoing support of Mardi Gras allows our youth from Broken Hill to Ballina to Bega to feel secure and proud of themselves no matter how they identify.

Scouts NSW is an inclusive, youth-led, adult-supported organisation where youth aged five to 25 can have fun, seek adventure, be challenged and build leadership and life skills. We are open and supportive of people from all walks of life and create safe and supportive environments for all LGBTQIA+ people, welcoming many rainbow families from across NSW into our Groups and halls. Scouts live our values of care, respect and self-confidence and seek to build these in all our youth and adult members, empowering them to be their true, authentic selves and help “Create a Better World” for their future.

Selamat Datang Community

Selamat Datang Indonesian Community was created to support the Indonesian LGBTQIA+ community in Australia and Indonesia by participating in the annual Sydney Mardi Gras Parade. Beyond the Mardi Gras Parade, we organise social activities among the members and fundraising with LGBTQIA+ organisations in Indonesia to support those living with HIV/AIDS. 

Selamat Datang Indonesian Community has always been a community group for the Indonesian LGBTQIA+ but is open to anyone who supports our mission and what we stand for.

Selamat Datang Indonesian Community was created to support the Indonesian LGBTQIA+ community in Australia and Indonesia by participating in the annual Sydney Mardi Gras Parade. Beyond the Mardi Gras Parade, we organise social activities among the members and fundraising with LGBTQIA+ organisations in Indonesia to support those living with HIV/AIDS. 

Selamat Datang Indonesian Community has always been a community group for the Indonesian LGBTQIA+ but is open to anyone who supports our mission and what we stand for.

Service NSW 

Service NSW serves the 8 million+ residents of NSW with pride and delivers essential services to all people residing in NSW. Service NSW strives to reflect the customers they serve and believes in being a public supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community, as such, we are committed to providing meaningful support and publicly contributing to diversity and inclusion. 

As the face of the NSW government, it is necessary to ensure that members of the LGBTQIA+ community feel safe to manage their transactions and enquiries at all Service NSW Service and Contact Centres. To support our community, we ensure our teams flourish in a culture of care and belonging where they feel included, respected, and supported to bring their whole selves to work. 

Within Service NSW sits the Social Impact Team, who introduced a Cultural Program to the business in 2020 to build the cultural awareness, confidence, and capability within the organisation. The program supports our local team members on the “frontline” (Service Centres and Contact Centres) to provide a positive and inclusive experience for both our diverse staff and customers. 

One of the primary streams of work within the Cultural Program is the Pride Stream. The objective of the Pride Stream is to support initiatives that facilitate a sense of safety, support and belonging for our LGBTQIA+ team members and customers in which all can be celebrated as their authentic selves. 

A snapshot of the work that has been undertaken as part of the Pride Stream includes:

• Introduction of pronouns onto staff name badges and email signatures

• Provision of Pride Flag Lanyards and pins for all Service NSW team members

• Celebrating our LGBTIQIA+ teammates through a Pride series on Workplace by Facebook (internal social media channel) where team members have the option of sharing their stories.

• Inclusion Training – provided through online internal platforms. 

In addition to the Pride Stream, there are a variety of groups that support the roll out of the Pride initiatives within the organisations including:

• Pride Cultural Advisor Network – a group of employees within Service NSW with lived experience as part of the community that offer suggestions, guidance, and support of all Social Impact Pride Initiatives

• Pride Employee Resource Group – inclusive of the broader Department of Customer Service where employees and members of the LGBTQIA+ provide advice and ultimately make extremely influential suggestions on all Pride related initiatives across the wider department. 

Please note: A Supporting Document outlining the work undertaken and initiatives has been uploaded with the application. 

“Serving NSW with Pride – Today and Into the Future’ celebrates the diversity of the 8 million + customers we support across NSW and the team members who assist them.  

Service NSW strives to promote a diverse and inclusive work culture so we can ensure all communities in NSW are supported with pride. We are committed to creating safe, accessible and welcoming spaces now and into the future for everyone who needs to complete NSW Government services and transactions.

Sex Workers & Community

Sex workers are part of the LGBTQIA+ Community. Sex workers and LGBTQIA+ people share a political history and are still fighting for the same rights, to live our lives free of discrimination and criminalisation. In 2023 we have all faced fresh attacks from anti-LGBTQIA+ and anti-sex work groups.  For many queer people sex work provides an opportunity to assert bodily autonomy and gain financial freedom. Throughout history, sex workers and LGBTQIA+ communities have faced numerous challenges and fought for our rights together – sex workers were a significant presence at the very first Mardi Gras in ‘78. We look forward to celebrating the intersections of and continuing the solidarity between LGBTQIA+ and sex work communities as a part of the 2023 Mardi Gras Parade. 

Welcome to a future where sex workers’ skills and experience are valued, and our work is recognised as real work with the same industrial rights as all other workers. 

Welcome to a future where all LGBTQIA+SB people are free to live authentic lives without fear of discrimination and vilification.

Every step we take today brings us closer to this future – our future.

Welcome to the Red-Light Future.

SGLMG Community Float

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (SGLMG) is an LGBTQIA+ not-for-profit member-based organisation that produces the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade and Festival and several other events and supportive initiatives throughout the year.    

SGLMG was built on the foundations laid by early community activists who fought for LGBTQIA+ rights in a time of wide-spread, institutionalised oppression and discrimination. 

Year-round, we also develop initiatives that celebrate our LGBTQIA+ identity, champion creative expression, challenge injustice and elevate diverse voices. We proudly provide a platform for our communities to share with the world. 

The Sydney Mardi Gras invites you to become the centre of your parade experience. The Tarot Reader has presented the cards and they have now come to life.

Witness the revelation and possibility of your place in Our Future, the exploration of the diversity and representation in community, our purpose in our culture, and let us help you find the voice to be who you want to be.

Shellharbour Shag-Harders

We are the Shellharbour Shag Harder’s, a small group of young LGBTQIA folk from the Illawarra region. We contribute to our local community by  providing  space for queer people and their friends to come together and support one another in their journey to becoming more confident and accepting of themselves. The Shellharbour Shag-Harder’s come together every year to showcase a float in the Mardi Gras that represents our journey, as well as our hopes and dreams for the wider LGBTQIA+ community. 

The Shellharbour Shag-Harder’s are inviting everyone, all people of the world to dance and rejoice in the positivity of coming together no matter where you come from or how you identify. The Shellharbour Shag-Harder’s are coming together to work towards a future filled with acceptance and inclusion where everyone is positive, free and celebrated.

Shining Together

A close-knit circle of LGBTQIA+ friends coming together to uplift our community through mutual support and extending a helping hand to those facing challenges within our society.

Embracing Legacy and Tomorrow: Mardi Gras 2024 Celebration is our homage to Mardi Gras’ rich history, a bridge between the past and a future brimming with hope for the entire LGBTQIA+ community. As we revel in the vibrant present, this event becomes a tapestry of remembrance and anticipation, weaving together the threads of our collective journey. It symbolizes our commitment to not only cherishing our roots but also nurturing the growth of an expansive and radiant future, where the LGBTQIA+ community flourishes. Join us in this jubilant commemoration that paints a canvas of unity, progress, and endless possibilities. 

Social Justice in Early Childhood Foundation

Social Justice In Early Childhood (SJIEC) is a not for profit, politically active organisation working for social justice issues pertaining to the lives of children. It’s members consist of early childhood teachers and educators, consultants, academics, researchers, managers, community people, and those generally interested in the rights of children. The group is Sydney based with national and international members and hosts an annual Conference as well as being involved in lobbying and activism around social justice anti-bias approaches in early childhood.

As Whitney sang, children are our future.  Prismatic early childhood education policy projects a sparkling mirror ball of rainbow inclusion for families, children and educators.  

Advocating for policy and practice that supports inclusive, anti-bias and LGBTQIA+ friendly curriculum and settings means that not only are our rainbow children, rainbow families, and rainbow educators  celebrated and included in early childhood centres now, but these children will go on to shape, fight for and live in a socially just, truly inclusive, rainbow friendly world.

Special Broadcasting Service (SBS)

As Australia’s most diverse broadcaster, the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) holds a unique place in the Australian media landscape, inspiring all Australians to explore, respect and celebrate our diverse world and in doing so, contributes to an inclusive and cohesive society.

Today, SBS is a modern, multiplatform media organisation with a free-to-air TV portfolio spanning five distinctive channels in SBS, NITV, SBS VICELAND, SBS Food and SBS World Movies; an extensive radio network providing 68 communities with services in their own language; and an innovative digital offering, including SBS On Demand, available to audiences anytime and anywhere.

We consistently amplify LGBTIQ+ Content through our free to air, On Demand and digital services and stories. In February 2022 SBS launched new commissioning guidelines and targets aiming to see representation of LGBTIQ+ people onscreen and behind the camera. including: 8-12% of onscreen and offscreen roles in unscripted content for LGBTIQ+ people and targets for onscreen and offscreen representation across scripted content as well as career development targets for production companies for LGBTIQ+ practitioners.

Each of us dreams of a better tomorrow and a future where we can not only be our authentic selves, but contribute meaningfully to our society and be seen and recognised for those contributions. We invite you to reflect on how far we’ve come since 1978 and think how far we can go as we take a peek into the far future. SBS, The Spacial Broadcasting Service, bringing you a more inclusive tomorrow.

St Vincent’s Hospital Sydney

St Vincent’s Hospital has been a cornerstone provider of health and wellbeing services for the Darlinghurst and Sydney communities for decades, and has a strong reputation as being an integral part of the care of sexuality and gender diverse populations in the area. Providing person centred care to those who need it most, SVHS has seen milestones in queer healthcare, including the first diagnosis of HIV in Australia, the establishment of the world leading model of care of Ward 17 South and more recently working to be a gold level provider in the Health and Wellbeing Equality Index.

We, like SGLMG are part of the history of Darlinghurst and its queer communities.

Our entry is presented by the Pride@SVHNS Network, a group of sexuality and gender diverse staff and allies who support the mission to create equity, safety, belonging and justice for all.

40 years ago, the sisters of charity at St Vincent’s faced the challenge of the emerging AIDS crisis head on, providing care for the community with compassion and dignity. They took the bold step to open Ward 17 South Australia’s first dedicated HIV/AIDS unit which cared for more than half of the country’s HIV/AIDS patients. 

That same year the SVHS heart transplant team performed the first successful heart transplant operation in Australia and has since performed over 2600 heart and lung transplants.

. For the last 4 decades we continue to provide care for those who need it most, delivering innovation in HIV Care, health equity and inclusive health. Our hearts shine with pride and joy to be part of the community that helps keep us healthy.

We look to our future by reflecting on this legacy St Vincent’s continues the mission of the sisters through innovation and compassionate care for all. 

Studio Kink & The Sydney Fetish Community

Studio Kink is a community organisation providing education and events for the kink community in Sydney. Our Directors are a team of LGBTQIA+ people who are driven to provide a safe and inclusive space for artisans and crafters, performers, instructors and educators who are all about freedom of expression, equality and respect. 

Specifically we have created a wide range of events to allow LGBTQIA+ folk to explore creativity and identity through fetish. We describe kink as not only anything that falls under the BDSM umbrella but also includes more contemporary iterations of non binary/non hetro experience. 

We hold regular art shows that allow emerging queer artists to show their work (some for the first time) with no gallery fees. The themes are fetish inclusive and often allow artists to display deeply personal work that would not be shown in other galleries.

Our social events provide quality kink space for the LGBTQIA+ leather community, including Sydney Pups and Handlers, Leather Title Holders (both Australian and International) and those into bondage and SM play. We also hold events for specific fetish groups providing social space for the kink and leather culture.

We have a range of LGBTQIA+ instructors delivering classes on everything from yoga to sexual communication skills, shibari to leather craft. At its core, our education includes matters on consent, respect, inclusivity and provides plain English explanations of safer play practices and safe space policies. 

Studio Kink supports other organisations, specifically Twenty10, Bobby Goldsmith Foundation, BlaQ, and ACON through fundraising and cross over promotion and visibility – and we are always open to collaborate and support LGBTQIA+ groups and organisations where possible.

Over the past 8 years of operation, Studio Kink has become a gateway into the kink community for young and old LGBTQIA+ people who are curious about kink.

Studio Kink hosts regular events throughout the year welcoming the Kink and Fetish Communities from around Australia (and the world), where we welcome all genders and sexualities and in collaboration with the rubber and leather groups, Pups and Handlers and more. For this reason we are proud to have a very diverse representation march with together with us during the Mardi Gras 2024 parade.

Studio Kink and the Kink & Fetish Community have joined forces to promote self-expression and freedom with our KINK.Unchain Your Future! theme. We aim to showcase the inclusive nature of the kink and fetish community, inspiring self-exploration and personal growth through kink. This collaboration fosters understanding and acceptance, particularly within the LGBTQIA+ community by highlighting the beauty of consensual exploration. 

Sydney Convicts RUFC

Formed in 2004, the Sydney Convicts are Australia’s first and World’s most successful gay and inclusive rugby club. The Convicts are proud members of the LGBTIA+ community & more broadly the Rugby community of NSW.

On the field, and in the community, we continue to break down barriers and challenge stereotypes. From spearheading the Anti-Homophobia & Inclusion Framework for Australian Sports, to providing an inclusive & diverse community. We exist so that everyone can find their place in Rugby.

From the grassy-fields to glittered-streets, lace up your boots and join the Sydney Convicts Rugby Club in celebrating our 20th Anniversary. Featuring a kaleidoscope of retro rugby jerseys, dazzling trophies from the cabinet, and moves that make you go wow. OUR FUTURE, OUR CLUB, is a scintillating club mix that celebrates 20 years of rugby, where everyone is welcome to come play.

Sydney Equality Dance 

We represent same sex partner dancing and inclusive dance studios in Sydney. We support safe spaces for LGBTQIA+ community to learn dancing with who ever they choose as their partner. We also advocate the inclusion and celebration of diverse partnerships in mainstream dancesport events.

Our concept, ‘Disruptive Rhythms: Redefining Dance,’ is a bold fusion of cutting-edge choreography and progressive ideals, spotlighting Australia’s top ballroom and Latin dancers, including reigning Open World Champions in same-sex dancing. Our ensemble, dressed in captivating competition attire, challenges norms with gender-bending couples and seamless role-swapping, proclaiming dance as a universal art for all. Vibrant visuals and music complement our presentation, but the heart lies in our exceptional dancers, heralding a future where diversity reigns, dance transcends boundaries, and every unique rhythm deserves celebration.

Sydney Frontrunners

Sydney Frontrunners is Sydney’s inclusive running and walking club for the LGBTQI+ community and allies. We are open to anyone regardless of ability, age, sexual orientation or gender identity. We are part of the International Frontrunners, a network of like-minded LGBTQI+ running and walking clubs across the globe. We have more than 150 members, ranging from walkers and recreational joggers to marathon runners and competitive athletes, and everyone in between. We are a social club too! We love to grab a coffee, a drink or a bite to eat after our runs. We organise regular social events, races and fun runs which are a great way to meet our members and to bring everyone together to have a sense of community, purpose and meaning as part of their lives.

Sydney Frontrunners is shining brightly this year. Sydney’s running and walking club for the LGBTQI+ community, last year celebrated our 40th birthday. This year we are lighting up a path to an exciting future.

Sydney Gay & Lesbian Choir

Sydney Gay & Lesbian Choir is a non-auditioned choir which welcomes members regardless of their sexual identity or musical experience. The choir is open to all – lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, intersex, queer and our straight allies. What unites us is a love of singing together and striving for performance excellence. A powerful symbol of diversity, inclusion and harmony, the choir has maintained a vital and visible presence in the history of Sydney’s LGBTQI community.

Sydney Gay & Lesbian Choir has provided the soundtrack to countless community events and celebrations over the years, and has regularly represented Sydney on the national and international stage. Our repertoire is equally diverse, ranging from classical to pop, and from music theatre to contemporary Australian compositions. With around 90 active singing members at any time. We usually present two major concerts each year, as well as performances at a wide range of community events, interstate and international festivals, collaborations with other artists, recordings and fun social events.

Sydney Gay & Lesbian Choir held its first ever performance in 1991, following a letter published in the Sydney Star Observer in November 1990 which called for community interest in forming a choir. Over 30 years later we’re still going strong and looking forward to a healthy & inclusive future.

 We are remembering our past while reaching for a better, more inclusive future.  We are a 33 year old organisation with a proud history of community, activism & involvement within our LGBTQIA+ family. We are constantly evaluating how to evolve to better serve our members & our community. Our tree represents the journey we have all taken, from the roots to the canopy. The coloured ribbons winding around the roots reflect that in the beginning there was only one flag that represented us all. As we rise up the trunk more colours join in as recognition of a more diversified representation for all in our community.  As we reach the canopy, the full colour & vibrancy of our community shines, with pride coloured flowers & leaves with a hope for the future from each choir member. Our choir members dance & march behind our tree, honouring our past & excited for our future while basking in the confetti of our hopes & dreams that have shot into the sky.

Sydney Gaymers

At Sydney Gaymers, we believe and recognise that video games are developing rapidly. In effect, video games are fast becoming as important as traditional media for storytelling, human connections, and the advancement of arts and culture.

Our primary, and most important goal in recognising the above, is to create safe spaces online and offline for LGBTIQ+ people to be included as this genre develops. This inclusivity is formed through safe social spaces, encouraging positive connections with others, and safe online spaces where Gaymers can meet and recognise each other. At Sydney Gaymers, people should flourish, feel welcome, and supported in their growth.

We value the neurodiversity of our community and strive to foster connections between potentially isolated people. Our approach in assisting those that are struggling is holistic; in that we will attempt to refer people to the relevant organisations whilst also ensuring they are in the best position to create their own support structures with others.

Sydney Gaymers are back to represent and embody the characters that first empowered them. Each marcher in the float has chosen a character of yesteryear to show the world all the different inspirations for their strength and courage today. Across different genres, worlds, and timelines, all of our Gaymers continue to strive for representation, safety and acceptance, no matter their inspiration. Take a peek at all the different characters that can help inspire you to believe in the hero inside you.

Sydney Outfielders

The Outfielders are Sydney’s only LGBTQIA+ slow-pitch softball league – Players of all ages, genders, orientations and skill levels play in our social competition from September to March each year, and can also participate in off-season workshops and social events.

Sydney Outfielders first entered into the Sydney Eastern Suburbs Slow-pitch competition in 1998, and have grown from a single team to a community sports club, with up to ten teams participating in the summer season. The league also participates in the annual Sydney Mardi Gras program, providing a free play workshop and a stall at Fair Day, as well as other yearly social sports and community events to connect the LGBTQ+ community to our love of softball and each other (eg. World Aids Day social game, Pride Month social game, League Christmas Party, End of Season Awards Party, etc etc).

Our rainbow softball club is marching as Diamond and Heart suite cards in an Alice in Wonderland Fantasy! Since 1998 Sydney Outfielders is the only LGBTIQ+ softball league in Australia, and one of the most accessible and welcoming sports clubs in Sydney. No particular fitness levels or experience is required for playing, we have a league structure which supports gender equality, skills development, and a social summer competition. We want our rainbow community to engage in the many physical and mental health benefits of social team sport. We play on the diamonds at Moore Park and our club has plenty of heart – Diamonds and Hearts forever!

Sydney Queer Irish

Sydney Queer Irish exists to support those who identify as LGBTQI within and connected to the Irish and Irish Australian community in Sydney and NSW; and to be a role model for acceptance of LGBTQI people from other cultures and nationalities in Australia and around the world.

‘We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars’ is a quote from Oscar Wilde, one of Ireland’s most famous queer sons.  It inspires us all to look to a future where we can help each other to find the light even in our darkest moments. Each of our luminaries is inspired by one of the seven heavenly bodies with elements taken from astrology, mythology and the classics. Our marchers will shine individually like stars and collectively form the glowing tail of our comet of light and optimism.

Sydney Quiet Queers

Sydney Quiet Queers is a social group for members of the LGBTQIA+ community who are not into the “scene”.  We like to say we are into bookshops, not nightclubs.

There is a perception out there that all LBGTQIA+ people are loud, and out there, and in many ways, Mardi Gras fuels this perception.  We’d like to represent those who are more introverted.

We are based on Facebook, and have been running only since March 2021.  We currently have around 1300 members, which shows the need for such a group.  We have regular meetups, in person, crafternoons, and virtual meetups.

Not every LGBTQIA+ person is loud and out there.  Some of us are quiet, introspective and homebodies.  But we still have dreams of a brighter future, where we are all welcome and loved.

Sydney Quiet Queers invite you to have a rest from the hectic nature of the rest of the parade, take a deep breath, and relax with us for a moment.

Sydney Silverbacks Wrestling Club

The Sydney Silverbacks Wrestling Club is a not-for-profit sporting association that trains weekly in ‘Freestyle’ (Olympic rules) wrestling. We are an organisation that caters to, and is run by, the LGBTQIA+ community and its allies. It is a core component of our mission to create a safe, inclusive, and supportive space where people of any gender, sexual orientation, and skill level can come to us to learn the sport, increase their fitness, and meet other people.

Two core pillars of our club are creating a safe and supportive environment for LGBTQIA+ people to participate in social and/or competitive sports, and creating visibility of LGBTQIA+ sportspeople in the sporting world as a whole through our association with Wrestling Australia and state wrestling bodies, and participation in their events.

We are highly visible within the wrestling communities both in NSW, and Australia as a whole. We are also a member club of Wrestlers Without Borders (WWOB), a queer-inclusive international wrestling organisation, and have sister clubs in Melbourne (the Wranglers) and internationally. We live by the objective to make the sporting world a safer and more inclusive space for people within our rainbow communities. As our wrestling club is highly integrated with both the LGBTQIA+ community as well as the wrestling community, it is through this visibility and active participation that we serve as a conduit for mutual understanding and communication between these two distinct spaces.

The Sydney Silverbacks Wrestling Club and their allies from the wider wrestling community ‘takedown’ the barriers faced by LGBTQIA+ people in the sporting world.

On the mat we face each other as ‘reds’ versus ‘blues’, but tonight we stand together and combine our strength to move us all forward in unison.

We invite all from our communities to stand alongside us. You CAN wrestle your way through any barriers thrown in front of you that stand between you and participation in any sport, be that transphobia, sexism, racism, or homophobia.

The future of sport belongs to us all!

Sydney Stingers

The Sydney Stingers are a LGBTIQ-inclusive water polo club in Sydney, Australia with teams playing in the NSW metropolitan competition and an internal all-gender social competition with a focus on beginners’ skills, called INTRA. Originally formed in October 2001 to represent Sydney in the 2002 Gay Games, the club is now a well-known part of the Sydney LGBTIQ+ sporting and water polo communities. 

Our mission is to provide a safe, inclusive and friendly environment to learn, play water polo, train and socialise. 

Join the Sydney Stingers as we make a splash at the Mardi Gras parade, championing the powerful message: Pleasure Is A Right! Our demand for all gender inclusion in sport is a vibrant expression of the Festival theme, ‘Our Future.’ From humble beginnings as a gay men’s water polo team in 2001, the Sydney Stingers have evolved into a diverse, inclusive family, welcoming all LGBTQIA+ individuals and allies. Now, united by a shared vision, we’re diving headfirst into the fight for the freedom to play, compete, and celebrate, regardless of gender identity. Together, we’re forging a future where everyone can revel in the joy of sport without discrimination.

Sydney Swans

At the Sydney Swans, we want everyone to feel welcome – always. We are committed to making our games, and our club more broadly, inclusive. Our official LGBTQIA+ supporter group is the Rainbow Swans and  in 2023 their chair, Sarina Jackson, was the club’s No.1 ticket holder. Since 2016 the Sydney Swans have played in the Pride Game – an annual AFL match that celebrates the rich diversity of LGBTIQA+ communities. Our club has also participated in key Pride events, including a come and try event at World Pride, Fair Day, and the Parramatta Pride Picnic. 

After becoming the first AFL club to launch a Diversity Action Plan (DAP) in 2017, in 2022 the Sydney Swans partnered with community organisations including Twenty10 to launch the club’s second DAP. The key pillars of the plan include the Advancement of Women, Disability Empowerment, Multicultural Inclusion and LGBTQIA+ Pride. The DAP is our roadmap that lays out formal commitments to change, and to always listening to and learning from those in our community. 

Our club is also proud to have been the first professional sporting club to march in the Mardi Gras Parade – we look forward to standing together with LGBTIQA+ communities again in 2024.

THE FUTURE IS TOGETHER – in sport and in life. We are stronger together, we are better together, and we are all at our best when we can bring our whole selves to everything we do.

At the Sydney Swans we are committed to ensuring everyone in our community can be their whole selves – always. And we will do that by walking together with LGBTIQA+ communities through advocacy, through sharing stories, and ensuring everyone feels welcome, safe and included at the football. 

Tamworth Pride Inc.

Tamworth Pride is a voluntary organisation seeking to support LGBTIQ+ people, especially people of any age who feel isolated. We create social opportunities for these people encouraging confidence and helping them to be open and proud and to celebrate their diversity. We engage with the broader community seeking allies to stand with us and promote inclusivity under the rainbow flag.

We run a monthly Family BBQ, Monthly Pride & Friends Dinner and a monthly FriYay Drinks night. 

We also hold an Annual Fair Day each year which attracts around 2000 visitors each year and an after party attended by around 100 people. 

We have a great working relationship with our local council, ACON and other organisations within the Tamworth region specifically dealing with mental health and other issues LGBTQIA+ people face in significant numbers. 

This year we have taken under our wing the youth group Refracted which is specifically for LGBTQIA+ youth and is the only group of it’s kind in the Tamworth and surrounding regions. We are partnering with community organisations in Tamworth to help grow this group  and help reach more young people in our region.

Our float describes how a butterfly signifying the people who formed Tamworth Pride Inc transformed Tamworth from a place where our queer community was fractured to a place where we are now unified and people know where their people are.

It also symbolises the transformation people from the LGBTQIA+ community go through when they come out to family, friends, co-workers etc. It’s both a physical and spiritual transformation  as we all change once we truly acknowledge our authentic selves.

Taronga Conservation Society Australia

At Taronga, we are dedicated to securing a shared future for wildlife and people and believe together we can find a better and more sustainable way for wildlife and people to share this planet. We support and celebrate the rainbow community and believe that wildlife and all of humankind can share this planet harmoniously with kindness, love and compassion.

Taronga Zoo and Taronga Western Plains Zoo care for over 6000 animals from over 350 species, deliver behaviour change campaigns to over 1.5 million visitors and conservation education to over 500,000 school students annually. Taronga also has conservation programs in more than 18 countries, conducts significant research including the largest Coral CryoDiversity Bank in the world, breeding and in situ projects throughout Australia and the world, and provides free healthcare and rehabilitation to over 1500 native injured animals each year.

We are defenders, champions and ambassadors for the wild. And we’re on a mission that is of critical importance it can’t be allowed to fail. As a conservation community, we commit ourselves to the ongoing process of reconciliation within our field; to respect, connect, consult and be led by the complex and vital knowledge of First Nations Peoples as we urgently work to safeguard the future of our planet. Taronga recognises that the planet’s biodiversity and ecosystems are the life support systems for the health and prosperity of all species including our own. At no time in history has this been more evident, with drought, bushfires, climate change, global pandemics, habitat destruction, ocean acidification and many other crises threatening natural systems and our own future.

As an organisation we are committed to providing a safe and supportive environment for all employees, volunteers, and students, including those who identify as part of the LGBTQI+ community. Taronga is a regular participant of the Mardi Gras Fair Day, as well as hosted the annual visit for the Nuns of Perpetual Indulgence as part of each years Mardi Gras celebrations and participated in World Pride initiatives across the state. 

Taronga has proudly participated in the Mardi Gras parade ten times and we are looking forward to the 2024 celebrations. Our involvement has created a culture of inclusiveness within our organisation, as we have both LGBTQI+ community members and their allies participating each year. For many of our younger participants this is their first experience with an inclusive workforce, which has allowed them to be comfortable and truly themselves. We work together to ensure a brighter and safer future for all creatures. 

“Fierce Futures – a brighter tomorrow for all creatures” – represents the ferocious and fierce way in which Taronga alongside LGBTQIA+ communities will fight and champion a better and more powerful future for all.  

Wild tigers are facing a difficult future, but Taronga are fighting for a wildly bright one! Just like LGBTQI+ communities have imagined and demanded the future they rightly deserve, Taronga stands alongside them in protective solidarity. Just like a chatty and loud tiger, Taronga is very vocal advocates of the LGBTQI+ community and champion all to participate, influence and fiercely protect the rights of the community and create a future where both people and wildlife thrive.

Taronga in a fierce and striking display will bring a focus to the important message of Sumatran Tiger conservation, the importance advocating for a brighter future for all, and send a message of inclusion to all those who make up our Taronga community that we will champion a brighter future for all.  

The Float That Went Wrong 

We are Kath and Jen, two lesbians who have had no idea what we’re doing for more than 25 years of Parade. We’ll be joined by a group of friends and community members who might just save the day. Or maybe it will go horribly wrong.

Our group is drawn from the LGBTQ community and includes members who have served on the boards of organisations like ACON and the Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby, as well as contributing countless volunteer hours to Mardi Gras. But mainly we are just ordinary queers and allies.

Every year behind the most fabulous floats are a series of small and large disasters. The prop that got left at home, the truck that broke down, the costume that didn’t arrive. Sometimes the wheels fall off – literally! This float showcases what goes wrong and what’s left: a bunch of crappy signs and a few bedraggled feather boas. 

KathnJen have had no idea what we’re doing for more than 25 years of Parade. We’ll be joined by some friends who might just save the day. Or maybe it will go horribly wrong.

There’ll be tears before bedtime but it’ll be FABULOUS!!!

The Forbidden Fruits

The Forbidden Fruits are a group of family and friends, who represent a diverse range of ethnic, cultural, religious and sexual backgrounds.  We contribute to LGBTQIA+ communities through supporting and attending LGBTQIA events, as well as advocating for LGBTQIA+ rights within our social networks, and wider ethnic and cultural communities.

Those members of the Forbidden Fruits who identify as LGBTQIA+, passively and actively advocate through their very existence as visibly present LGBTQIA+ people of colour within their ethnic, cultural and religious communities, the LGBTQIA+ community and wider society.  They embody and represent the diversity of experiences that exists within the LGBTQIA+ community, straddling and navigating multiple contexts on a daily basis in their effort to live their individual and collective truth.

The Forbidden Fruits are a group of family and friends who represent the ethnic, cultural, religious and sexual diversity of our LGBTQIA+ communities.  As LGBTQIA+ People of Colour we live as “Forbidden Fruits” proud of our identity but often unseen and isolated.  By coming together and celebrating our diversity, we can move forward as a community and create a more positive future for all.

THE FUTURE IS FLUID

We are a diverse group of Queer sorts (led vaguely by myself) who have been in the Mardi Gras parade for over the past decade in various themes/forms and outfits. 

We are a culturaly diverse group made up of creatives, academics, un/Professionals, wannabees and rag-tag individuals that embrace the opportunity of representing the assortment of Queer communities we call home.  

Ever wondered what will the Alternative Queer dance party scene look like in the year 2123?

Well consider yourself invited to a Diverse Digital Dystopian Disco where sexuality and gender are as free flowing as the cocktails! Incorporating both Afro-futurism and Asian-futurism, behold the future of Fashionable, Fuckable, Frivolous and Fabulous Gender Fluidity! 

In the Queer future of our dreams skin-tone, body shape, gender, sexuality, disability and age will be immaterial, all that will matter is FUN and ACCEPTANCE! 

Join us in the future, join us on the dancefloor! 

The Gender Centre

The gender centre has been operating for the past 40 years delivery essential psychosocial, welfare and well being services to the Transgender and Gender Diverse community of NSW. This has included, Housing and accommodation service, counselling, advocacy. outreach services, regional rural and remote face to face service delivery, psychological services, group work programs, youth camp and  and family support

The Gender Centre’ s 2024 float showcases the faces of the TGD community; TGD stories, journeys and our voices speaking up and out for ourselves. Hear US is the call for all people in Australia to hear TGD stories and to join with us to create a more inclusive future.

The Greens NSW

Greens NSW is a political party dedicated to ecological sustainability, social justice, grassroots participatory democracy and peace and non-violence. The party has a longstanding commitment to LGBTQIA+ rights and is actively involved in advocating for LGBTQIA+ equality and inclusion at the grassroots and in all levels of government. We have been vocal supporters of marriage equality, transgender rights, anti-discrimination legislation, and other key issues that impact the LGBTQIA+ community. 

Currently Greens NSW is working to; ensure any new anti-discrimination legislation is free of loopholes or exceptions, amend the birth deaths and marriages act for self-identification, ban conversion practices, support First Nations LGBTIQA+ community, address intersectional discrimination, create safe schools and end ‘special religious education’, establish a Minister for LGBTQIA+, protecting trans and gender diverse people from ongoing violence and abuse, improve LGBTQIA+ health and reproductive rights and repeal the Mandatory Disease Testing Act.

Greens NSW actively encourages LGBTQIA+ candidates for political office, furthering the representation of LGBTQIA+ individuals in government and ensuring that their voices are heard in the decision-making process. The party engages with LGBTQIA+ communities through events, forums, and direct collaboration to support community campaigns and goals.

“Let’s Build a Future Worth Fighting For!” The Greens are proud to work for and with LGBTQIA+ communities for safety, inclusion, justice, and celebration – yesterday, today, and tomorrow. There is a bright future ahead of us, but it won’t happen by itself and will take collective action to achieve.  The Greens are with you, in the Parliament, at all levels of government and in the community, for equality without exception.

The Itty Bitty Titty Committee

We are the Itty Bitty Bitty Committee! Our aim in being a part of the Mardi Gras Parade is to proudly increase lesbian visibility and  hopefully serve as role models for lesbians who are not yet out/newly out/less confident in their sexuality.

We are a group of friends who are predominantly lesbians, along with our allies and a sprinkling of gay men. We are a mix of ages and we even have a 78er in our group.  We provide camaraderie and support to each other.  We have been in the parade many times.  Our entries always focus on fun with lots of sparkle, celebrating our lesbian lives,  often including a feminist message.

In the wake of the Barbie movie phenomenon, the Itty Bitty Titty Committee is excited to announce the release of a very special edition in time for Mardi Gras 2024 – Lesbian Barbie (Lesbie)! 

In the movie, Barbie explains to Ken that “every night is girls’ night” in Barbie World, which will suit Lesbie as she cruises around in her camper van.

Our key message is that there is space for Lesbian Barbie in the Barbie Pantheon. Our costumes replicate those worn during the movie’s climactic scene where the Barbies take back their power and reinstate the Matriarchy in Barbie World.

The Oz Queer Hags

The Oz Queer Hags (formally the Oz Fag Hags) is a community group that has been honoured to march since 2008. 

We are a group of people who transgress the boundaries between gay and straight culture and unsettle current notions of identity politics because their definition of self comes not from whom they identify as, but from those they identify with.  

The queer hag’s relationship with her gay male friends is an identification that is based on empathy between two groups of people who rebel against the rigid laws of gender politics.  Not all fag hags are straight, some are gay, and some are bi and we all ‘perform’ our own versions of gender.  

Queer hags prefer an ambiguous gender script that blurs the boundaries between masculine and feminine. We are, in effect, unruly women who defy social norms of what a woman should be – we are outspoken, loud, swear and refuse to conform but above all we form, what amounts to, a familial bond with our gay male friends.  Because of our loyalty and outspoken views, each fag hag’s voice has the potential to wield political power within a patriarchal society and bring about understanding in the wider community. 

As Margaret Cho says: “Don’t underestimate the power of our wagging tongues.”

Community Facebook Group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/janetstarr/ 

Lovebot Frenzy: Programmed for Love

Sparks fly and circuits sizzle as the Lovebots from the planet Oz Queer Hags descend onto Oxford Street.    

With the finesse of an interstellar matchmaker and the charm of a cybernetic poet, these mechanical romantics scatter romance in their wake, demonstrating that even algorithms can’t help but partake in a bit of heartwarming mischief.

The Pinnacle Foundation

We are Australia’s LGBTQIA+ education charity. Our flagship program provides educational scholarships, mentoring and opportunities for young LGBTQIA+ Australians to realise their full potential.

The Foundation awards multi-year scholarships nationally to students aged between 18 and 26 for fulltime study at public higher education institutions in Australia to achieve educational or vocational qualifications in any profession, trade or the arts.

Scholarship applications open 1 July and close 31 August with scholarships awarded in December.

Every Pinnacle scholar is carefully matched with a mentor who will typically share the same academic and professional interests, gender identity and sexual orientation. The mentor acts as a role model. They will have walked the scholar’s path – and provide the encouragement, counsel and inspiration to support the scholar’s rounded development and successful completion of their studies.

Scholars and alumni also receive opportunities through the wider Pinnacle “family”.

Additionally, we ally with The University of Sydney Business School to deliver the LGBTQIA+ Executive Fellowship:  https://www.sydney.edu.au/business/study/executive-education/lgbtqia-executive-fellowship.html . The Fellowship, the first of its kind in the Asia Pacific region, develops senior and executive leadership capabilities within the LGBTQIA+ community.

We rely on the generosity of our individual donors, philanthropic and corporate partners, the passionate contributions of over 200 volunteers, and a fulltime-equivalent staff of less than five, to deliver our program across Australia.

The Pinnacle Foundation is Australia’s LGBTQIA+ education charity.  

The Pinnacle Foundation’s flagship program awards educational scholarships for fulltime public tertiary studies, mentoring and opportunities to young LGBTQIA+ Australians to realise their full potential. 

Additionally, The Pinnacle Foundation allies with The University of Sydney Business School to deliver the LGBTQIA+ Executive Fellowship, a week-long intensive program for mid-senior LGBTQIA+ executives and allies. The next LGBTQIA+ Executive Fellowship will run 3 – 7 June 2024 and applications are now open.

The Pollys Club

The Pollys Club was formed in 1964 as a means for the LGBTIQA+ community to socialise. Almost 60 years later we are still going strong. 

We stage 5 dances per year that provide an inclusive & fun space for our community to come together. 

We also provide grants & donations for various LGBTIQA+ charities & worthy causes.

The Pollys Club is 60 years young in 2024.  Our theme of “Mirrorball” reflects on our past, whilst lighting the way to our future. Since 1964, we’ve hosted queer events – from Poly-lympics to social dances – raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for worthwhile causes that support the LGBTQIA+ community. At 60 it’s time for us to reflect on being one of the longest continually-running queer community groups in Australia – possibly the world! We look ahead to a bright future of providing a fun, safe dance space, where you can be yourself, for many years to come.

The Rainbow Mob 

We are a group called The Rainbow Mob. 

We are on TikTok and just like to talk about issues facing our Mob and the Aboriginal Community. 

We like to make people laugh and have fun and joke around.

Tiktok is TheRainbowMobb  which includes KUWTristanandthemob, Joooodes,VibewithPorsche 

We are a group called The Rainbow Mob.  Two lesbians and 2 gay guys out here reppin our First Nations mob.  We all live on the Central Coast – Darkinjung Country. 

We are on TikTok and talk about issues facing our Mob and the Aboriginal Community on Darkinjung Country. We play jokes on eachother and strive to make people laugh and Tristan loves scaring the shit out of Jodi ALL THE TIME! 

Our favourite saying is … “OMG Who do we think we are”  

We like to make people laugh and have fun and joke around.  We are out of control.

The Sydney Hookers Boxing Club

We are proud to be the only  LGBTQI+ Boxing and fitness club in the southern hemisphere and strive to ensure that whilst not only providing a space to learn the sport of boxing but also a place for the local LGBTQI+ community to come together. The  Sydney Hookers was founded to provide a safe and inclusive space for the LGBTQI+ and there allies to get involved in the sport whilst learn the skills, techniques and joy social/group sports give people. We want to provide opportunities for LGBTQI+ and there allies to train for fitness, social or even competitive boxing in a safe and friendly environment. The Sydney Hookers welcome anyone with no prejudice based on age, race, sexuality or gender identity or ability. 

We are not only Sydney’s, but Australia’s first and only LGBTQI+ Boxing club.

We started Sydney Hookers to provide a safe space for the LGBTQI+ and their allies to get involved in the sport of  boxing and learn the skills, techniques and joy boxing gives people.  

We want to provide opportunities for LGBTQI+ and their allies to train for fitness, social or even competitive boxing in a safe and friendly environment. The Sydney Hookers welcome anyone no matter age, race, sexuality or gender. 

The University of Sydney

The University of Sydney seeks to provide meaningful, practical and community informed support for staff and students of all genders, sexualities and sex characteristics.  

Our 2032 Strategy channels our sense of responsibility to contribute to a better world, building on our past decade of significant change and challenges.  Social equity is at the heart of our past and our future. By 2032 our community will be more diverse and inclusive, helping us all to shape a positive future. 

We’ve made significant investment to support our LGBTQIA+ staff, students and community through internal and external social and professional connection opportunities, meaningful programming, and partnerships. Much of this activity is centred around:  

Our ever-growing Pride Network  

Providing clear, community led pathways to gender affirmation support for staff and students, increasing organisational awareness in respect to LGBTQIA+ youth food insecurity and priotising opportunities to put on lunches for trans and gender diverse students prepared by trans and gender diverse staff. 

Participation across the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras calendar of events as well as consistently coming together as an institution in recognition of LGBTQIA+ dates of significance such as: International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersexism and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT), Wear It Purple Day, and Bi+ Visibility Day.  

Ensuring all LGBTQIA+ staff and students have access to community resources through our digital assets (social media accounts, staff intranet, OUT for Now student webpage, public website). Our intention that any LGBTQIA+ community member that accesses our content, irrespective of whether they are formally connected to the University, feels informed, affirmed and supported by our messaging.  

Refreshing our LGBTQIA+ Student Support Liaison Officer program, integrating LGBTQIA+ support across University areas, faculties and Schools. Whilst this program is targeted at students, staff have and often do benefit from this support pathway.  

Our ongoing mission is to facilitate community led, intersectional and accessible environments for all LGBTQIA+ students and staff to thrive at the University of Sydney.  

‘Our future is interwoven’ reflects the University’s focus on inclusion and equity, and celebrates the diversity of our community. Joining the Mardi Gras Parade for the ninth year, we value the lived experiences of our staff and students, fostering a place of work and learning where everyone can be their authentic selves.

Timor Leste Pride

Timor – Leste 

 Marching participants is coordinated by Sydney Drag Performer Ashley Swift ( Nuno Carrascalao)

Made up of The Angels of Dili  and The Timor Leste Trans Marching Band. 

This float highlights “The Future” theme of Sydney Mardi Gras 2024 by inclusion and the importance of relationship with our Pacific partners.

“Can you hear the drums oppresors? Step into the isladn beat of ‘Angelic Resonance’ where we unite Timorese trans drummers, draped in angelic wings, to march with pride and rhythm at Sydney Mardi Gras 2024. Celebrating resilience and unity, we merge Timor-Leste’s rich cultural heritage with LGBTQIA+ vibrancy. Our message, ‘Harmonising Futures,’ embodies hope, acceptance, and the collective strength of diverse communities. As we beat our drums and march, we symbolise the rhythm of change and progress. Join us on this transformative journey where Timor-Leste’s trans voices guide the path to an inclusive, brighter tomorrow, harmonising love, diversity, and our shared human spirit.”

Total Metamorphosis

We are small group who have marched with other groups in the past and who organised our own entries in 2022 & 2023.  We dress up to attend Mardi Gras events (launch, Fair Day, Parade, & Party) to contribute colour and buzz to the festivities

Our ideal future is a world where LGBTQIA+ people are fully represented and have freedom of expression.  In that spirit, our entry is representing each of the world’s continents with a famous animal, each being chosen for its rainbow colour.  Our message is that LGBTQIA+ people bring colour, diversity, creativity and interest wherever in the world they are free, and the denial of these talents and gifts is a loss for any community.  

Tourette Syndrome Association Australia

Tourette Syndrome Association of Australia is a not for profit dedicated to supporting and improving the lives of people with Tourette Syndrome and their families, through education and social events/support.  

Large numbers of our community identify as LGBTQIA+ (as many neurologically diverse people do), due to the nature of their condition, their tics can often leave them octracised from large events and gatherings.

For people with Tourette Syndrome, people often see and hear our tics before we are able to explain ourselves.  We offend before we get a chance to explain.

For our future, we want people to See Us, Hear Us and Accept Us for all parts of our identity.   It’s so important to be able to be your whole self…this is what we want for our future.

Trans Pride Australia

TRANS PRIDE AUSTRALIA fosters a sense of belonging and empowers trans and gender diverse people across Australia through social networks and advocacy. We are a proud group of trans and gender diverse people and run one of Australia’s largest online and offline social community groups. TRANS PRIDE AUSTRALIA was founded by Trans and gender diverse people for Trans and gender diverse people and now is able to offer support and education through lived experience to its allies and the wider community. 

The entry of Trans Pride Australia to the Mardi Gras event in 2024, titled “After a Hurricane Comes a Rainbow”, showcases the strength and positivity of the trans and gender diverse community. The theme is inspired by the challenges faced in the past and represents the idea that even in the darkest times, brighter days will come. This theme aligns with TPA’s ongoing mission to advocate for the community, highlighting the group’s evolution from its grassroots beginnings to its current influential role. TPA serves as a symbol of hope, emphasising the beauty that emerges from perseverance and representing the promise of a brighter future after enduring life’s storms. This entry stands as a testament to the power of unity, resilience, and renewal.

Transport for NSW

Across the state, there are more than 35,000 people at Transport. 

Whether our people are working on our roads, public transport network, waterways or behind a desk, one thing unites us – our purpose: To make NSW a better place to live, work and visit.

In the past, we worked as separate agencies and focused on transport modes.

But now we’re one Transport team, working together to ensure our cities and neighbourhoods are integrated and connected with all modes of transport, making our places, streets and open spaces functional, beautiful, inclusive and inviting for our communities, passengers and our colleagues to enjoy.

Our Culture

Since 2018 we have been on a significant journey to define and embed the culture and leadership we need at Transport. 

Our culture guides us each day: People at the heart, Customer at the centre, For the greater good. 

How we live our culture in what we think, feel and do each day helps us make Transport a great place to work. 

Our Commitment to Inclusion, Diversity & Wellbeing

Transport for NSW is committed to workplace inclusion and diversity. This commitment includes the LGBTIQA+ community, both within Transport and the communities we serve.  

We want Transport to be a safe, respectful, and supportive workplace for everyone including our LGBTIQA+ people, which aligns with Transport’s People Strategy, and Inclusion and Diversity Strategy.

Transport has been proud to support the annual Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival through our participation in the Parade since 2010 and decoration of our key Public Transport assets. 

Transport also acknowledges the following days of significance to recognise, support and celebrate LGBTIQA+ inclusion:

– Wagga Wagga Mardi Gras

– International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT)

– Wear It Purple Day

– Broken Heel Festival

In addition to events, Transport has the second largest LGBTIQA+ network in the NSW public service. This network is in place to seek feedback and lived experience from rainbow allies within the organisation to inform programs as well as providing our people with a safe space to connect and network. This network is aligned with the sector-wide commitment through ‘Pride in the NSW’.

From Albury to Alexandria. 

Bondi to Broken Hill. 

Tallawong to Tamworth. 

Westmead to Wagga. 

Today and in to the future Transport for NSW is proudly connecting friends, families, lovers and communities right across our beautiful state. 

At Transport we are creating environments that empower LGBTIQA+ people to feel safe, supported and connected in our workplaces and on our transport network right across NSW. 

We acknowledge that many of the transport routes we use today follow the traditional Songlines, trade routes and ceremonial paths that our nation’s First Peoples followed for tens of thousands of years. 

Trikone Australia

Founded in 2008, Trikone Australia is a community organisation for LGBTIQ+ South Asians living in Sydney. Our mission is to empower queer South Asians to live their best life. We organise events, host regular meet-ups and help build an environment of pride and support.

The growing queer South Asian community in Australia makes a bold statement this year. Historically shackled by rhetoric like “what will people say” and “don’t make a scene”, they’re turning this on its head and blazing their own trails to live freely. 

Just as the international South Asian community has increasingly stepped into the limelight over the past year – from the Oscars and Coachella to representation in significant corners of society – it’s this colourful collective’s time to shine. This marks their moment to manifest endless possibilities. Vibrant, sassy and unapologetic, they’re here to Make a Scene! 

Turing Circle

We are a friendly group of LGBTQIA+ scientists, engineers, technical professionals, and students.

Scientists, engineers, and technical professionals work every day to create the future, but as queer individuals, we aren’t always able to be visible as we do it. The future imagined by science fiction enables us to not only be seen, but also to explore and ground our identity. It has been at the forefront of championing the rights and demonstrating the visibility of the larger LGBTQIA+ community with its evocative imagery, and the creation of inclusive spaces by its fandoms.

Our message is one of accepted individuality and embraced uniqueness as our world marches forward into the future, having fun and embracing our full queer selves as we do it!

Twenty10 inc. GLCS NSW

Twenty10 incl. GLCS (Twenty10) supports people across Sydney and New South Wales who may be LGBTIQA+. That means we support people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or gender diverse, intersex, queer, asexual or those who are questioning their identity.

Twenty10 inc. GLCS began in 1982 when a group of passionate community volunteers created a housing refuge in response to the increased houselessness of young LGBTIQA+ young people in and around Sydney. Twenty10 takes our name from the Darlinghurst postcode where the original housing refuge was located, 2010.

In 2012, Twenty10 merged with the Gay and Lesbian Counselling Service NSW (GLCS NSW) in 2012 – a service which began in the 1970s to provide free, anonymous peer-to-peer support to young LGBTIQA+ folks across NSW during a difficult time of extreme persecution.

Today, we celebrate our heritage of supporting young LGBTIQA+ folks for over 40 years. We’re committed to continuing to provide a broad range of free, accessible mental health and psychosocial support programs, as well as creative and digital programs, events, safe spaces, and delivering specialist capacity building training all over NSW to continue building a world where LGBTIQA+ people of NSW are secure, connected and celebrated.

Twenty10 is also the official NSW partner of QLife, a nationwide telephone and web peer-based support service. QLife is organised by the National LGBTI Health Alliance and funded by the Australian Government.

Young LGBTIQA+ people are our future Queerleaders! Stronger together, we call people of all generations to fight for justice including climate justice, accessibility and the end to discrimination. We want a future where our planet is cared for and LGBTIQA+ people  are celebrated, affirmed and thrive! Twenty10’s entry features artwork by a young artist, Arrow and slogans for a better future written by young people. The sprouts and flowers represent nourishing and caring for the world and LGBTIQA+ communities. 

Union Pride (Unions NSW)

Union Pride is the NSW Trade Union Movement’s committee responsible for advancing issues & events that impact the LGBTIQ+ community in NSW & beyond.

Today, and every day, Union Pride stands in solidarity alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people calling for a process of truth-telling and treaty.  Together we fight for equality and equity.

Tonight, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander union members walk alongside union leaders including Lara Watson, Thomas Mayo, Mark Morey and Sally McManus as we celebrate all we have achieved, and continue to look towards a brighter, more united future.

Uniting NSW.ACT

We are a large, complex, faith based, values driven non-LGBTQIA+ organisation with 10,000 employees and 1000 volunteers who are committed to providing welcoming safe and inclusive services for 120,000 clients. Our services focus on people experiencing disadvantage and vulnerability and we value diversity and always welcome everyone, exactly as they are. Uniting is responsible for the social justice, community services and chaplaincy work of the Uniting Church in NSW and the ACT. We provide care and support for people through all stages of life, with a focus on people experiencing disadvantage and exclusion. Our purpose is to inspire people, enliven communities and confront injustice. We value diversity and always welcome everyone, exactly as they are. 

Uniting is staging a protest for a more progressive, inclusive, and caring future for LGBTQIA+ people, focusing on the advocacy and service issues that directly affect our LGBTQIA+ clients, colleagues and communities.

“We Want a Safer, Fairer, Brighter Future for LGBTQIA+ People”.

Use Me Up Wear Me Out

Use Me Up, Wear Me Out is a collective of creatives connected by a passion for transforming trash into elevated queer objects of adornment. We are a group of queer friends who value creativity, community, nature and conservation. We create dynamic and inventive costumes from old and discarded items – to take them into the future.

Some of our members used to feel MG was not inclusive or creative enough in past years. It didn’t reflect us or the things that we wanted to celebrate about queer culture. It was all body boys, and worthy but drab community groups. We wanted something creative and inclusive, that helped make queer life visible, interesting, and inspiring.

We are creative queers with a social conscience. We express the creative artistic side of queer culture, but also with an important environmental message. It’s not all shallow glitz and glamour. We want to look good, but also have something important to say.

Use Me Up, Wear Me Out (UMUWMO) connects with a rich lineage of artists of transformative craft and wearables, whose material contributions to Mardi Gras have been generation-defining. Artists like Peter Tully, Brenton Heath-Kerr, Ron Muncaster, Philipa (Pip) Playford, Billy Yip, Jac Vidgen and many more. In this way, we also pay homage to our queer ancestry.

We are also inspired by Australian Bower Birds, collecting shiny objects which, in our modern disposable world, is invariably trash. Bower Birds collect and transform these items to attract a mate’s attention. We’re using it for similar trashery and peacockery – with a message of recycling and elevated repurposing.

TRASHFORMATION – Use Me Up Wear Me Out.

Our costumes are beautiful and radiant – transcending the used up, rubbished, discarded origins of the fabrics and objects we collect and reuse. We embody transformation – from discarded trash to beautiful treasure. 

This process of reinvention and transformation mirrors the lives of many queer people. Our intrinsic value, perspective and usefulness is invisible to the ignorant. 

We turn unwanted and discarded trash into something artistic, glamorous and beautiful. We are transformed queer works of art. Our troupe make ourselves very visible, and there is no mistaking us for useless junk.

W Hotels 

Marriott International and the W Hotels brand has been a contributor to LGBTQI communities over a number of years. 

Marriott is proud of our culture of inclusion and fairness that welcomes all our associates and all our guests. This includes the LGBTQ community, and their families and allies. Marriott is a Platinum Global Sponsor & Proud Board Member of IGLTA.org. 

Globally, the W Hotels brand has been a long time ally of LGBTIQ+ communities. Some key partnerships W Hotels have worked on are: them. x W Hotels Summer Book Club, a collaboration with them., the next-generation media platform that provides news and commentary through the lens of today’s LGBTQ+ community. By harvesting the power of storytelling, W Hotels and them. hope to bring further attention to queer authors and audiences by shining their collective spotlight on three moving literary titles throughout the summer of 2021.

W Amsterdam & W London’s floats in their respective Pride Parades, which you can read more about here: http://theangle.whotels.com/topic/pride/

As part of #LoveTravels, Marriott International launched the #LoveTravels Beyond Barrier Social Innovation Investment. This unique investment program provides $500,000 in grants to groups and individuals who are actively breaking down barriers and leading unique strategies to promote inclusion, equality, peace and human rights. The first four grant recipients include Jordan Reeves, the Founder of VideoOut, a digital library of LGBTQ coming out stories that spans the globe.

Embrace your individuality and join W Hotels as we take a stand for love, individuality, music, connection, community, equality and pride.

W Hotels is more than just a place to stay; it’s a hub for self-expression and acceptance. With 70+ locations across the globe, W Hotels has established itself as a champion of diversity and inclusion, creativity and self-expression.

Join us as we march together, celebrating our collective power and paving the way for a brighter future. What do you stand for?

Waverley Council

Waverley Council is a diverse and innovative local government orgnaisation located in the heart of Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs. Taking in some of Sydney’s most beautiful and iconic beaches including the world famous Bondi Beach, and encompassing a part of Sydney’s Global economic corridor at Bondi Junction. The Waverley local government area, managed by Council, includes the suburbs of Bondi, Bronte, Queens Park, Dover Heights, Rose Bay and Tamarama. 

Waverley has proudly hosted many LGBTQIA events over a number of years, including for Mardi Gras as part of the Mardi Gras festival and also at the Bondi Pavilion arts precinct. 

Waverley council supports the rights, achievements, culture and aspirations of all people including the LGBTQIA community. 

Earlier this year Waverley supported and hosted the 2023 Sydney World Pride Beach Party, the council run Waverley Library has a regular Drag Queen Story Time. Waverley is home to many members of the LGBTQIA community.  

In 2016 Waverley Council commissioned and endorsed an art work for Marks Park Tamarama. In 2021 the art work “RISE” was installed to honour all the victims and survivors of a wave of violence that took place in the 1970s through to the 1990s and which often targeted gay men.  RISE is a respectful memorial to the lives that were lost and a symbol of remembrance and healing for all those who were impacted.

We are a proud ally of all LGBTQIA people everywhere and Waverley proudly counts many members of the LGBTQIA  community as friends, colleagues, neighbours and family. 

Celebrating the vibrancy of our local community from Bondi Junction to the sea, Waverley Council joins the Mardi Gras Parade for the very first time. Home to Australia’s most famous beach, Bondi, council officers will be joined by community members who will march together to celebrate every colour in the sea.

We are Framily

We call ourselves Framily (a portmanteau of Friends and Family) because we are more than queer friends and allies, we are a chosen family. The Framily are a collective. A diverse creation and the epitome of what it means to find your tribe. We are as young as two years old and as old as sixty, we are gendered and non-gendered, queer, and heterosexual, we are married, single and in open relationships. Just like traditional families, the branches of our tree reach out to multiple relationships and across generations. We continue to grow, flourish and are evergreen with the knowledge that we are stronger together, ready to face even the harshest of seasons.  As individuals we bring our own unique perspectives and lived experiences but are bonded together with roots of support, trust, unconditional love, and a freedom to be our authentic selves. To the children in our framily we are all referred to as Aunty or Uncle because regardless of blood relation, that’s who we are to them. Framily is not about birthnames, similar appearance or backgrounds, its support system, a community of people who we intentionally choose to love, support and uplift. It is a reminder that family is what you make it! We are Framily.

Sworn to protect the future of LGBTQIA+ communities. The Protectors are travelling back in time from the Rainbow Era, with a message of hope. They carry artifacts from our past; moments in time that paved the path forward. Today is one of those moments. Feel proud. Move toward our future.

WearItPurple

Wear It Purple strives to foster supportive, safe, empowering and inclusive environments for rainbow young people. Since 2010, when Wear it Purple was co-founded by Katherine Hudson and Scott Williams, Wear it Purple has developed into an international movement. New generations of rainbow young people continue to be dedicated to promoting the annual expression of support and acceptance to rainbow young people.

With this year’s theme, Legacy of Love, Wear It Purple pays homage to the past that has enabled our future. We are using our float to archive and celebrate the strength of Queer pioneers who blazed trails before us in music, design and dance. Their love and protest has become the foundation for the authentic lives we live today. The float will mix anthems that facilitated queer joy and resilience from the 70’s to now, feature queer history and quotes from the protest speeches that enabled the rights we have today, and bring intergenerational queer local icons to the forefront of the visibility work Wear It Purple does every day. We take on this legacy in our ongoing work, supporting and celebrating Queer youth, and showing up authentically everyday as Queer folks. Wear It Purple is proud to carry on this legacy for our Queer Youth.  

Western Sydney University

Western Sydney University is home to some leading diversity, intersectionality, equity and inclusion initiatives across its campuses which are spread throughout the Greater Western Sydney region, one of the most diverse regions in Australia.  Celebrating diversity, providing opportunity and a welcoming, inclusive environment for all students, staff and communities are at the heart of what we do. Our university is a leader in sexuality and gender diversity research in Australia. We proudly have our own LGBTIQA+ Inclusive Teaching Community of Practice where academics across the University meet to exchange Queer-inclusive teaching and curriculum initiatives. We have previously been awarded the Australian Workplace Equality Index Bronze Employer Award for being an LGBTIQ-inclusive workplace. Our Western Pride Network includes eleven groups of Queer and non-Queer students and staff such as Queer Collective (students), Rainbow Western (staff) and Ally Network, who work together to create a Queer-inclusive, supportive, safe, and respectful place of work and study. Our Western Pride Network will drive the University’s 2024 Mardi Gras presence which will be our very special tenth anniversary of consecutive participation in the Parade. We will celebrate this decade of showcasing our University’s commitment to support LGBTIQA+ students, staff, alumni and communities across Greater Western Sydney, NSW, and beyond.

As number one in the world for social, ecological, and economic impact, at Western Sydney University we are proudly building Our Future of a more vibrant and LGBTQIA+ inclusive communities where all people are respected right across and Beyond The Rainbow. In all our research, teaching and service, we are instigating enduring social change and proudly working together towards a holistic pride Beyond The Rainbow.

Wettones Swimming Club

Wett Ones Swimming Club  is the largest Masters Swimming Australia-affiliated swimming club in Australia, providing a safe, friendly and supportive swimming club for the gay and lesbian community, and our friends, in Sydney.  

With a membership of more than 150 people, we are the largest Masters Swimming club in Australia and the LGBTQIA+ swimming club in the Southern Hemisphere.  

Founded in 1991, we provide seven coached swimming classes per week for members ranging in age from their early 20s to their 70s.  We swim at Sydney University, Andrew ‘Boy’ Charlton, Ian Thorpe and Prince Alfred Park pools in inner Sydney.

Wett Ones is a proud member of Team Sydney, IGLA (International LGBTQ+ Aquatics), the Gay Games Federation (GGF) and Masters Swimming Australia. 

In 2023, we proudly collaborated th the Sydney Stingers Waterpolo team to host the AQuA Aquatic festival during World Pride 2023.

Wett Ones is the largest LGBTQIA+ swimming community in Australia and along with our sister swim clubs, Aqualicious (Brisbane), Glamourheads (Melbourne), Adelaide Dolphins and the Perth Rainbow Swans,  we welcome all swimmers regardless of age, cultural background, gender or sexual orientation. Through our love of water and swimming, we find fitness, fun, friendship and family!

You are Unique!

To promote creativity and diversity of our gay community to the world. The Sydney Mardi Gras is a breathtaking event and a fabulous celebration of gay diversity, creative and life. My aim is to encourage people from all walks of life, young and old, to be confident, strong and proud of who you are because EVERYONE is UNIQUE.

Rainbow colour represents joy and happiness. Peace sign headdress represents love, freedom and that’s what the world needs for OUR FUTURE , our new generation.

Yourtown

Kids Helpline is a 24 hour/7 days a week free counselling and crisis support service that supports young people between the ages of 5 and 25 years of age.  Many of our clients identify as part of the LGBTQIA+ community.  Kids Helpline counsellors are fully qualified counsellors with either degrees in counselling, psychology or social work. 

Kids Helpline is uniquely positioned to support LGBTQIA+SB young people (Ages 5 – 25) 24 hours a day and 365 days a year. Our motto is anytime for any reason.

Kids Helpline strives to provide a safe space for young people to explore their relationship with gender, sexuality and overall wellbeing; with the skills of qualified mental health professionals.

The virtual nature of our service allows us to support queer youth in remote areas Australia where LGBTQIA+SB services may not exist. Kids Helpline is a free service that allows accessibility for young people from all socio-economic backgrounds.

澳纽彩盟 ANTRA

Australia & New Zealand Tongzhi Rainbow Alliance (ANTRA), officially registered with NSW Fair Trading, is dedicated to promoting community awareness and growth among individuals who identify as Chinese or Chinese-speaking LGBTQIA+. While our base and registration are situated in Sydney, we proudly represent a broader population of Chinese LGBTQIA+ communities across various Australian states and in New Zealand.

ANTRA was established with a fundamental commitment to celebrating and embracing diversity, with a special focus on providing a point of contact and support for Chinese LGBTQIA+ community members, especially migrants, international students, and newly arrived diasporas.

Our key objectives at ANTRA include:

– Creating a social networking platform for members of the Chinese and Chinese-speaking LGBTQIA+ community.

– Advocating for the rights, interests, and well-being of Chinese and Chinese-speaking  LGBTQIA+ community members.

– Providing support and guidance on the health and self-identifying journey for individuals within the Chinese and Chinese-speaking LGBTQIA+ community.

Our journey began in 2013 when we started connecting with young Chinese LGBTQIA+ communities through social chat groups on platforms such as WeChat, LINE, Facebook, and various online forums. Today, we are proud to have a community of over 2,000 members and followers across WeChat, LINE, Facebook, Weibo, and Instagram.

Join ANTRA as we celebrate the vibrant Queer Chinese community at the Sydney Mardi Gras Parade! Our entry, titled “JIA,” embodies the spirit of home, solidarity, and resilience. Together, we advocate for the rights and recognition of the Chinese Rainbow community, demonstrating our unwavering support for our communities and friends. Let’s come together to create a sense of belonging and empowerment for all!!