Queer London
By Sanchia Saunders
London is a very large melting pot consisting of so much culture, diversity, and personality, that it is almost impossible for it not to be on your bucket list.
Whether it's to enjoy the sights, the people, the food, or the culture, London will welcome you with open arms and allow you to be uniquely yourself, without the fear of judgment.
This is very clearly reflected through the individuals that live here, as well as the individuals who continue to visit this beautiful city time and time again.
As whilst walking the sometimes gray and rainy, but also beautiful and wonderful streets of London you are bound to see a multitude of people from different backgrounds and walks of life.
Example being queer individuals, people from the corporate world, ethnic minorities and expats just to name a few.
With a
2021 consensus deeming London the most ethnically diverse region due to 46.2% of residents identifying with Asian, black, mixed or ‘other’ ethnic groups, it is no surprise that London is also the social hub and party scene for the queer community.
Even though this has been publicised in more recent years thanks to movements like pride,
same sex marriage been accepted in the UK on the 17th of July 2013, and a sprinkle of social media to help broadcast these events, London has been advocating for the LGBTQ+ scene for longer than you may think.
The History Of Soho.
If you look back to London in the 18th century it was home to a
flourishing gay subculture with Molly Houses at the center of the social scene.
With this development of new sexuality on the rise, society began to see late night venues found in places like Soho and Piccadilly, where people from the LGBTQ+ began to challenge the
conventional views of sexuality within society.
This then leads us on to today, where the challenging of these views have enabled for queer people not only to be accepted within society, but also to find love, start a family and actually live, without being fearful of the repercussions.
Queer and proud.
With London being home to many queer individuals it is no surprise that they are now utilising this new found freedom across platforms like instagram and TikTok, to show the world what they are working with.
If you look here in London, influencers like Jack Remingoton who is one half of an iconic duo with his bestie Ash Holme, have been bringing the entertainment across all social media platforms, just being himself and making the world smile.
If you haven't seen his iconic Duolingo video, do give it a watch as it will definitely brighten up your day.
[TikTok -
https://www.tiktok.com/@jackremmington/video/7239374592416976154?lang=en]
Stemming a little further to our neighbours across the pond to more known personalities like Bretmanrock and Patrick Starrr, who continuously take the beauty world by storm and keep the girlies in a chokehold, it just shows how far the world has come, and how much we are yet to see from this large international community.
Finding love.
Despite London moving with the times and hosting more venues and locations for the LGBTQ+ community, how easy is it for them to truly find love.
As even though popular online dating apps like Tinder now have features to help make dating easier for this community, as
according to their page:
“While editing your profile, you have the flexibility to manage the visibility of your gender and sexual orientation. You can choose to display this information just below your name, hide it completely, or only show certain aspects that you're comfortable with. Your gender and sexual orientation preferences will also be suppressed in locations where your identity may be penalised for your safety.”
It doesn't always mean that they feel that they are getting the support or representation that they need.
As if I look into my own circle and the queer friends that I do have, a lot of them feel like Grindr is the only platform that has truly been made for the LGBTQ+ community.
However, what do you think, are there enough features out there to aid this community, or could more be done ?
The importance of Safety when dating.
Safety is always important when it comes to dating, however for the LGBTQ+ community I do think more measures are needed to keep them safe.
As despite London coming a long way when it comes to finally being more accepting of our queer brothers and sisters, more work still needs to be done.
As if you look at the statistics back in 2020
“The rate of violent victimisation of lesbian or gay persons was more than two times the rate for straight persons”, highlighting the increased risk for queer individuals looking for love.
Therefore especially when looking for love whether online or in the real world, more campaigns like ask Angela should be implemented.
Maybe more helplines and awareness around the topic will hopefully encourage people to get back out there and date without being in fear.
Why representation matters.
As someone who falls into the ethnic minority group myself, I believe that representation for all demographics is essential to help people feel comfortable and accepted in the country that they are residing in.
Even though London is very multicultural, unfortunately minorities still experience scrutiny and racism on a daily basis for just being themselves.
Whether that is due to the colour of their skin, or their gender preference or because of the person they fall in love with, sometimes it can feel impossible to live up to outdated societal expectations.
Which is why representation is so important.
As if you look to the future generations to come it would be very unfortunate if they also have to experience such scrutiny for living their truth and being themselves.
This is why it is so special and refreshing to witness events like pride and carnival, both which take place right here in London, as it brings communities together.
It's vibrant, it is beautiful and it makes people feel connected, and I think that's all people long for.
Meaningful connection.
As when connected and accepted, that is when people can truly flourish, both as an individual but also within a relationship.
Credits:
King of Soho: https://spiritofsoho.com/lgbtq-history-in-soho/
GOV: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/same-sex-marriage-becomes-law
