These Trans Pride posters are literally printed on the Gender Recognition Act

“This campaign came about because there’s a need for trans people to be able to tell the truth about our story,” explains Fort London’s creative director Jamie King. “During Pride season, there are so many campaigns that lean into making everything look fantastic and like nothing’s going wrong. The broader conversation around Pride tends to not give us that raw, honest space to say exactly how it is.”

Through collaborating with Calling, the creatives aimed to refocus Pride with a reminder that trans people have always been on the frontline of the protest. “It comes back to the idea that trans rights are human rights,” adds EJ Scott, founder of Trans Pride UK. “We need everyone to come together and put this at the top of their agenda.”

The posters highlight the very basic rights called for by the trans community printed on top of legislative documentation that threatens the freedom of gender-nonconforming people. In the background, viewers will see snippets from The Gender Recognition Act which diminishes the rights of trans people in civil partnerships.

Each one has been screen printed by a trans person. “We’re trying to lean back into that organic, offline, real and gritty history of Pride – the grassroots, activist history that goes back into protest and feeds the community,” says King. “We had somebody researching and finding all of these places, loopholes and spaces where trans people are legally oppressed. A lot of people think that we have it all right, legally, it’s just a social issue, but it’s actually really quite incessant.”

Some of the 17 posters read ‘No Safety Without Trans Safety’ and ‘No Justice Without Trans Justice,’ which really hits home the message.

“Trans people’s lives have been made political against our will,” he continues. “We’ve been used as pawns, brought into debates and people are hesitant to take sides because they don’t want to be too political.”

In the past few months alone, brands have come under fire and often succumbed to right-wing pressure after featuring a trans person in ad campaigns. Bud Light is one of the most publicized examples.

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“The honest, sad truth is that when I look at Pride campaigns from brands or individuals, I see all of this happiness. And while I love that and I’m so glad because we need to cultivate our joy, cherish it and hold on to it, it is also difficult to see that it is just that when we are in a desperate, desperate situation or peril. Things are not good for trans people right now and they are getting worse.”

To coincide with the campaign, T-shirts with the slogan will be available to buy and the team is encouraging people to come down with a blank T-shirt the day before Trans Pride to print their own or make a sign. “Everything feeds into each other and creates community.”

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