Dublin Bus: The long road to Pride by Rothco

On June 29, public service provider Dublin Bus celebrated the people who made Pride in Dublin possible, the older LGBTQ+ generations, with a new activation, ‘The Long Road to Pride’. Working with creative agency Rothco, part of Accenture Interactive, Dublin Bus decided to bring together people, young and old, from the LGBTQ+ community to create a more inclusive Pride.

Pride is known as one of the most inclusive events of the year. However, Dublin Bus and Rothco noticed that one demographic was notably absent from the celebrations: the older LGBTQ+ generations. In 2018, fewer than 1% of Pride attendees in Ireland were aged over 65. Despite their crucial role in carving out LGBTQ+ rights in Ireland today, they are often forgotten about and disconnected from their community.

This year, Dublin Bus and Rothco wanted to encourage LGBTQ+ people over the age of 65 to come along on Pride, a celebration they helped lay the foundations to. They paired older LGBTQ+ people with younger members of the LGBTQ+ community to attend the party together. The pairs all have something in common; either coming from the same place, sharing similar experiences, or occupations, so their friendship begins with a common ground.