The Brighton & Hove Pride parade has been accused of being a “Hamas haven”, with displays of support for the terrorist group, leaving a Jewish group feeling “devastated and completely betrayed”.

Jewish and Proud, which includes 50 to 100 LGBT+ members and is concerned with combatting antisemitism, was denied an official place in the parade because its application “did not meet the criteria” of putting LGBT+ identity as the group’s primary focus, the JC understands.

Instead, the group stood on the sidelines last weekend as the official parade went past.

Jewish and Proud, which describes itself as a “community activist group”, is now accusing Brighton Pride of making demands of Jewish groups “that are not made of others” after seeing other groups taking part in the parade that were not primarily LGBT+ organisations. 

Palestinian flags alongside Brighton Pride parade, August 4, 2024

Brighton Pride is also being slammed for failing to remove national flags carried by parade delegations, despite having created a rule barring them from this year’s event.

Queers 4 Palestine announced it would be boycotting Brighton Pride after organisers did not agree fully to their demands, which included dropping parade sponsors Coca-Cola and Costa Coffee, no police presence at the march and no representation of political parties.

In a letter to Queers 4 Palestine, Brighton & Hove Pride called for the release of the hostages, but did not condemn the October 7 massacre. They also said that future sponsorships, including Coca Cola, would be reviewed.

Watermelon imagery and inverted red triangles alongside Brighton Pride parade, August 4, 2024

Despite the alleged boycott, “a dozen or so” Palestinian flags were flown, and inverted red triangles – widely associated with Hamas, and distinct from the inverted pink triangle, which is a symbol of the LGBT+ community – were present “throughout” the parade, according to attendees.

Footage and images from the day showed individuals carrying Palestinian flags, watermelon imagery and signs that read “no pride in genocide” and marching at the very front of the parade. Ukrainian flags were also flown, contrary to parade rules.

A Jewish and Proud organiser told the JC that parade organisers “did nothing” to stop the “Hamas apologists leading the convoy”, allowing them to march alongside the official delegations “for a long while”.

'No pride in genocide' sign at Brighton Pride parade, August 4, 2024

'No pride in genocide' and 'Fight Israeli pink washing' sign at Brighton Pride parade, August 4, 2024

Other home-made placards carried slogans such as “Fight Israeli pink washing”, “Victory to Palestine”, and “Health Care not War Fare” with the As replaced by slices of watermelon.

“I was surprised when I saw Palestinian flags and no attempt to remove them after organisers explicitly told us that no national flags would be allowed. But then it got even worse when we saw all the red triangles. It felt like a Hamas haven,” a Jewish and Proud attendee said.

They added: “It feels devastating and a complete betrayal that they would treat the Jewish delegation so poorly. Brighton Pride organisers have shown their clear bias and it’s extremely hurtful to be turned away at a time of rampant antisemitism.”

Queers 4 Palestine

Variations of the Israeli flag, previously hidden by the Jewish delegation to abide by parade rules, were brought out when Palestinian flags were being paraded passed them. Some flags, which had been shipped over from Tel Aviv, featured enlarged yellow stripes as a reference to the Gaza hostages.

Ahuv de Chazal, a Jewish and Proud member who, like the rest of the delegation, watched the parade from the sidelines, said: “Brighton Pride is levelling excuses at the Jewish group that they wouldn’t do to other groups, and requirements are made of the Jewish group that are not made of others. Racism in the UK is very subtle; that’s the danger of it.”

Despite not being officially part of the parade, Ahuv says the Jewish group was warmly received by other people watching the parade.

“I was scared going into it, worried what would happen if we were to be attacked, but when we got there, we had people join us left, right and centre. It was important for us that other people saw that we were there and for other Jews and Israel supporters to not feel alone.

"It turned out that many people were so happy to see a Jewish presence, which, for me, made attending worth it.”

Jewish and Proud delegation sidelined from the parade, holding a 'No pride in antisemitism' banner, August 4, 2024

A statement from Brighton Pride did not specifically address the allegation that it allowed Palestinian and Ukrainian flags to be flown by parade delegations, nor the fact that other non-LGBT+ groups were invited to take part in the parade.

Brighton Pride promised “to look into” the allegations made against it as part of its after-event debriefing process, including a “multi-agency review of all aspects of how the parade was delivered and any lessons learnt”.

It said the parade was “disrupted several times due to protest activity from different groups along the route. All interactions with protesters followed multi-agency approved security measures and were taken following advice from event control including the Police and Council.”

“We are welcoming to people of all faiths and races. Pride is an inclusive international protest movement that exists to campaign for global LGBTQI+ rights. We have openly condemned antisemitism and repeatedly said that our city is a place where antisemitism, Islamophobia and all hate crimes must be denounced and rejected.”

Brighton Pride added: “We recognise the right to protest. We are keen to continue constructive conversations with groups who are petitioning us and protesting for action.”