Just Stop Oil protesters disrupt London Pride over ‘high-polluting’ sponsors
Watch the moment protesters halted a London Pride bus
A number of protesters have been arrested after blocking the road in front of a Coca-Cola truck.
The Metropolitan Police said that protesters sat in the middle of the road on Piccadilly at 1.30pm, causing the parade to stop.
After 16 minutes, police arrested seven protesters for public nuisance offences and the parade continued again one minute later.
Video posted online showed officers picking up protesters and carrying them away.
Just Stop Oil has previously warned it would take action as it called on organisers of the major event to ban floats from “high-polluting” sponsors and to condemn new oil, gas and coal.
In a statement, LGBTQ+ members of the group said: “These partnerships embarrass the LGBTQ+ community at a time when much of the cultural world is rejecting ties to these toxic industries.”
LGBT+ people are “suffering first” in the “accelerating social breakdown” caused by climate change, they added.
“Pride was born from protest,” the statement continued.
“It speaks to how far we’ve come as a community that high-polluting industries and the banks that fund them now see Pride as a useful vehicle for sanitising their reputations, waving rainbow flags in one hand whilst accelerating social collapse with the other.”
Just Stop Oil said earlier on Saturday: “If London Pride fails to take these basic steps necessary to protect our community, we will have to consider potential escalations which may result in the disruption of Pride.
“We will also call for the entire LGBTQ+ community to join us in protest and boycott – for the safety of LGBTQ+ people everywhere.”
Ahead of the parade on Saturday morning, London Mayor Sadiq Khan was asked if he supported Just Stop Oil.
He said that the group puts pressure on those who have power and influence.
“I agree with protesting in a way that is lawful, safe, and peaceful,” he said.
“I think that Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil are really important pressure groups trying to put power on those who have power and influence.
“I fully support the right to protest.
“It’s really important to recognise the joy of a democracy is protest.”
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know...