Good Withdraws From Johannesburg Pride

GOOD Statement by Keagen Gertse, GOOD National Leadership Committee LGBTQIA Representative:

The GOOD Party will not take part in Johannesburg Pride, set to take place on Saturday, 25 October.

GOOD has proudly supported Pride marches across South Africa since our inception in 2018. We are one of the few political movements to have included a progressive LGBTQIA+ rights policy in our founding manifesto when we first contested national and provincial elections in 2019.

However, following a successful Cape Town Pride campaign earlier this year, GOOD has re-evaluated its participation in Johannesburg Pride. The growing division within the LGBTQIA+ community surrounding the event has highlighted a broader and deeply concerning trend, one that has affected Pride marches in several major metros, including Cape Town and Tshwane.

Essentially, Pride has lost its purpose. What began as a protest movement for equality has increasingly become a social event and photo opportunity, detached from the real and ongoing struggles faced by LGBTQIA+ people. Too often, Pride events fail at their core mandate of inclusivity, catering largely to middle-income, suburban, and white audiences, while sidelining Black, Coloured, and working-class queer people.

Prides are now held in wealthy suburbs, effectively excluding township and working-class communities. In addition, the lack of transparency around sponsors and funding raises serious questions about whether Pride still stands for liberation or has become a vehicle for corporate branding.

Far more must be done to confront the hate, violence, and discrimination that LGBTQIA+ people continue to face daily. Pride should be a powerful platform for education, advocacy, and unity, yet for many, it remains out of reach.

GOOD calls on Pride organising committees across South Africa to re-centre their focus on community, inclusivity, and accessibility. Pride must return to its roots: a unifying voice for equality and human rights, not a showcase for commercial partnerships or exclusionary spaces.

The divisions that have surfaced over the past few days should serve as a turning point, an opportunity to rethink how Pride is organised, where it is held, and who it truly serves. The LGBTQIA+ community cannot afford further fragmentation, especially from a platform meant to unite us all.

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