Windsor Pride vs Trump’s Red Carpet: Why This Town Deserves Better
Windsor Castle has seen its fair share of pomp and circumstance. Royal weddings, jubilees, state occasions — the full weight of British tradition draped in flags and finery. But this September, Windsor prepares for a very different kind of spectacle: the state visit of Donald Trump.
And that prospect has lit a fire under Windsor & Eton Pride.
In a sharply worded press release, organisers made their stance crystal clear:
“Windsor & Eton Pride condemns President Trump’s state visit to Windsor.”
That’s not a phrase you see every day. Pride organisations don’t issue condemnations lightly. But the reasons they give cut to the core of what Pride stands for: safety, equality, and love for everyone.
✊ Pride’s Vision vs Trump’s Legacy
Windsor & Eton Pride’s mission is simple but radical: create platforms where people know they are welcome, safe, and embraced for who they are. As their chairman Steve Harris put it:
“Our town deserves better than to be associated with his legacy of division and villainisation of our communities. Pride stands for equality, unity, and love, and our values must be defended loudly and proudly.”
While they respect the office of the US President, they argue the current holder has undermined diversity and inclusion around the world. This isn’t partisan mudslinging; it’s about lived reality. Trump’s record includes:
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Rolling back protections for trans people in healthcare and the military.
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Stacking courts with judges hostile to LGBTQ+ rights.
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Fueling culture wars that paint queer communities as threats.
For a grassroots Pride organisation in its infancy, those policies are not abstract — they’re personal.
🌍 When America Sneezes…
The press release draws a sharp line between Trump’s policies and their ripple effects across the globe.
“As it’s said, ‘When America sneezes, the world catches cold.’ The negative influence of this Trump presidency’s intolerance has been felt by Pride organisations across the UK.”
The UK Pride Organisers Network (UKPON) has reported struggles since Trump’s return to power: sponsors withdrawing, funding cuts, local Prides scaling back. Reading Pride — Windsor’s neighbour — is one of the casualties.
In other words, Windsor Pride’s outrage isn’t theoretical. They’re living with the fallout.
🏳️🌈 Pride as Protest
It’s easy for outsiders to dismiss Pride as a colourful party. But Windsor Pride reminded everyone of its roots:
“Pride is not just a celebration — it is, at its heart, a protest.”
From the Stonewall riots of 1969 New York to Windsor’s streets in 2025, Pride has always been about resistance to intolerance and injustice. Trump’s state visit is the antithesis of that history: power draped in ceremony while prejudice festers underneath.
For Windsor Pride, silence isn’t an option.
🚨 The Circus Arrives in Town
And then there’s the practical reality. Trump’s Windsor visit is shaping up to be a security lockdown on steroids:
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Police drones circling the skies.
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Airspace restrictions over the castle.
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A heavy police presence on the streets.
Already, protesters have made their presence known — projecting Trump + Epstein images onto Windsor Castle, unfurling banners, preparing for more demonstrations.
This is the atmosphere into which Trump parachutes. Not celebration, not welcome — but division and disruption.
🏠 Why Windsor Pride Is Right to Care
Some will say, “What’s the fuss? He’s just another head of state.” But for Windsor & Eton Pride, it’s about more than one man.
Their Pride is new — their first was in July 2025. It was grassroots, joyful, fragile in its beginnings. Their constitution commits them to being “inclusive by design.”
Trump’s presence in the same town, at the same castle, feels like a slap in the face to that mission. Rainbows in July; red carpet for intolerance in September. The contrast couldn’t be starker.
🔥 The Last Word
The press release ends with a question that doesn’t just hang in the air — it lands like a gauntlet:
“When leaders empower prejudice, how can communities like ours remain silent?”
That’s the heart of it. Pride has never been about staying quiet while power tramples over progress. Windsor & Eton Pride are carrying forward the spirit of Stonewall by calling out hypocrisy at their doorstep.
As the red carpet is unrolled at Windsor Castle, the rainbow flags in the town stand as a reminder: our communities deserve better.
Because in the end, rainbows don’t fade just because someone drapes velvet and gold over the cobblestones. Pride is here to stay — loudly, proudly, defiantly.
