Raising the flag for respect and tolerance

Civic leaders in Bury have been promoting tolerance and tackling prejudice by flying a rainbow flag outside the town’s Knowsley Place.

The Mayor of Bury, Councillor Sharon Briggs, and council leader Mike Connolly were among those taking part in IDAHO Day – International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

Cllr Connolly said: “Tackling prejudice and promoting tolerance can sometimes seem a never ending uphill struggle. But sometimes it’s good to look back just a few years and see how much progress has been made. Incredibly, it was only in 1992 that homosexuality was removed from the international classification of diseases of the World Health Organisation.”

ENDS

Press release issued: 21 May 2014.

Picture attached: Raising the flag on IDAHO Day are (from left) Cllr Mike Connolly, leader of Bury Council; the Mayor of Bury, Cllr Sharon Briggs; Mike Kelly, council chief executive; the mayoress, Mrs Shirley Rabbitt; and Nikki Naylor and Natasha Franklin, vice-chair and chair of the council’s LGBT employee group, which is sponsored by Unison.