Do It London at Pride
Pride is protest. Pride is celebration. Pride is community. And Do It London is proud to be part of it.
The origins of Pride
Pride didn’t start with rainbows and sponsorships. It started with resistance.
In June 1969, LGBTQ+ people—led by Black and Latinx trans women—fought back against yet another police raid at the Stonewall Inn in New York. A year later, people marched in the streets to mark what became known as the Christopher Street riots. That spirit of protest spread across the US—and across the Atlantic.
In 1972, around 2,000 people marched through London in the UK’s first Pride. They marched for the right to live openly, safely, and with pride.
Through the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980s and 1990s, Pride became a space for grief, for action, and for change. While governments hesitated, LGBTQ+ communities raised funds, cared for each other, and demanded better. They helped build the services we have today—and changed the way the world talks about HIV.
As well as a celebration, Pride continues to be a protest. Too many people living with HIV still face discrimination and injustice, as too do many in the LGBTQIA+ community. This July, we’ll be marching through the heart of the capital alongside organisations working to end HIV in London—loudly, proudly, and together. Because HIV prevention is for everyone. And so is Pride.
Do It London
Since 2015, Do It London has been the public face of the London HIV Prevention Programme—a city-wide commitment by all 33 London boroughs to end new HIV transmissions. We promote testing, condoms, PrEP, and U=U. We fight stigma with facts. And we show up for every Londoner.
At Pride, we march to honour the past, celebrate the present, and build a future where HIV is no longer a barrier to love, sex, health or happiness.
Resources for LGBTQIA+ folk
London has a wide range of free, confidential services for members of the LGBTQIA+ community looking to prevent HIV, and living with HIV.
These include but are not limited to:
- HIV and STI testing (in-person and postal)
- Access to PrEP and PEP
- Clinics offering gender-affirming and sexual health services
- Community-relevant peer support groups
- Mental health and wellbeing support
Fighting Stigma Together
HIV stigma still exists. It shows up in silence, in assumptions, and in shame. But the truth is clear: with treatment, people living with HIV can’t pass it on through sex. That’s U=U—Undetectable = Untransmissible.
Stigma hurts everyone. It stops people from getting tested, starting treatment, or talking openly. That’s why we’re working to end it—for LGBTQIA+ people living with HIV, and for every Londoner.
