The group halted the parade in front of a Coca-Cola truck (Picture: Martyn Wheatley/i-Images)
A group of LGBTQ+ supporters of Just Stop Oil have disrupted the London Pride March.
Thousands have gathered today for the annual parade to celebrate all things LGBTQ+.
At around 1:25pm, nine LGBTQ+ Just Stop Oil supporters blocked the parade in front of the Coca-Cola float.
Some sat in front of the vehicle whilst two others sprayed pink and black paint over the road.
Several were arrested, the Metropolitan Police have since confirmed.
The force tweeted: ‘At 1.30pm a small number of protestors sat down in the road at Piccadilly junction with Down Street causing the #PrideInLondon Parade to stop.
‘At 1.46pm hours, seven people were arrested for public nuisance. At 1.47pm the road was cleared and the Parade has continued.’
Just Stop Oil had called on London Pride to issue a statement condemning new oil, gas and coal.
Pink paint was sprayed over the road as part of the demonstration
Just Stop Oil took umbrage with controversial sponsors of Pride in London (Picture: Martyn Wheatley/i-Images)
Activists asked that the organisation cease accepting sponsorship money from ‘high polluting industries’.
This afternoon’s action comes after LGBTQ+ representatives from Just Stop Oil met with London Pride to discuss their demands, after it was revealed Just Stop Oil would consider disrupting the event.
Meanwhile, at 1pm, a group of eco-activists set off marching from Parliament Square on their own Pride-themed slow march.
A Just Stop Oil spokesperson said: ‘Pride was born from protest. 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.
‘It is queer people, and particularly queer people of colour in the global south, who are suffering first in this accelerating social breakdown.
‘What would those who instigated the gay liberation movement, during the Stonewall riots in 1969, make of the corporatised spectacle Pride has now become?
‘These partnerships embarrass the LGBTQ+ community, at a time when much of the cultural world is rejecting ties to these toxic industries.
‘We call on Pride to remember the spirit in which it was founded and to respect the memory of all those who fought and died to secure the rights we now possess, whilst taking the necessary steps to protect our community long into the future.’
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The group halted the parade in front of a Coca-Cola truck