Manchester Pride is spreading its wings. Internationally known and recognised for their work within in the LGBT+ community, they have recently created a first-of-its-kind charter with a vision to tackle discrimination faced by LGBT+ people in all its guises.
The equality and inclusion charter, which takes the form of a website, will support LGBT+ equality while also promoting equality for other characteristics, including race, religion and gender identity.
During the Big Weekend in 2016, Mark Fletcher - chief executive of the charity - experienced racial discrimination first-hand, and the cogs started turning.
Realising that ignorance could rear its ugly head even within the accepting and joyful atmosphere of the city's annual LGBT+ celebrations, Mark got thinking about how to educate people. How to make sure people of all backgrounds could walk the city's streets safely.
The Manchester Pride equality and inclusion charter was the result - a set of guidelines and best practices for businesses across Greater Manchester to follow.
It's a revolutionary concept, and Manchester will be the first city to implement such a thing.
Mark told the M.E.N.: "Within five years I'd like 60-70% of all organisations in Greater Manchester to have pledged to this, or certainly to have taken action towards it.
"It's a way to make our city even better. Why would you not want to be part of an initiative that's going to make our city even better?"
Mark's vision originally started small, hoping to make Manchester Pride's Big Weekend a safe festival for all people of all backgrounds.
"We are fighting against discrimination amongst ourselves here as well as asking everybody globally to support the advancement of LGBT+ equality.
"People were telling us that they'd had unwelcome experiences with their punters and just didn't know what to do about it. We want to educate people.
"There are so many forms of discrimination that exist within LBGT+ spaces, around the city and around the region. For example there was a particular comedy act whose jokes centred on misogynism, racism, biphobia, transphobia. For an entertainer to exploit any characteristic for cheap laughs is not okay.
"It had become clear that we couldn't tolerate this at our events. That's a change that I can make, I can make sure our events are safe and welcoming and that the people we work with respect that.
"We outlined a plan for how we would tackle that at our own events and now we're expanding it across the region."
The charter website will feature different levels that a business can put into practice and work towards, whether they're a small business or a corporate giant.
"The charter is a statement to say, 'This city will not tolerate this'," Mark said. "We're asking all our partners and suppliers to pledge to this charter, to make sure they know what actions to take if they should ever recognise any form of discrimination, how to call it out, how make sure that the person at the receiving end of that discrimination feels safe.
"If someone is seeking a safe space and knows that a business is part of the charter, they can feel protected and know that they are valued as a customer or an employee.
"As long as people want to make a change within their own organisation, however big or small it is, we'll continue to develop this charter. It's a living breathing document that won't go out of date - it's a website that will be constantly administrated and updated and monitored.
"It's accessible, digestible and easy to understand to the public and to business.
"What's so different about our charter is the peer-to-peer support that we're encouraging. We've formed a network in Manchester of LGBT+ professionals who are all learning best practice from each other. If you've got a policy that you can share, a policy that makes your workplace better, share it! Use it as a blueprint. Support each other. This is not a competition.
"I'd like for the charter not to be needed. I'd like for it to be obselete. We just want to make Manchester the most welcoming city in the world."
Have you been affected by discrimination? Manchester Pride would love to hear from you through their inclusion and equality survey - you can fill it out here.
