The date of 17 May was chosen to mark the World Health Organization’s 1990 decision to remove homosexuality from its International Classification of Diseases, a milestone in the global struggle for the rights of LGBTQIA+ people.

The 2026 theme is “At the heart of democracy” - a reminder that truly democratic societies must be grounded in justice and freedom for everyone.

As my workplace LGBTQ+ network chair, I presented in our all staff briefing about IDAHOBIT. I mentioned - Microaggressions - ⁠Vandalism of Pride flags in Forest Gate - ⁠Hate crimes - ⁠Worse access to healthcare, outcomes and experiences than the general population I asked colleagues to think more about what we need to do as an NHS organisation to reduce those inequalities and be better allies. Good responses from colleagues. I’m going to follow up with meeting primary care to talk about pride in practice and what they are doing across north east London on access to hormones for gender affirming care. 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈 If I had more time I would have talked about why Pride and queer spaces matter, and the inequalities of laws around the world.