At Sydney Mardi Gras Fair Day, a mass hand-holding as part of Pride House Sydney.

At Fair Day this Sunday 9th February, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras and the Gay and Lesbian International Sports Association Asia Pacific (GLISA-AP) are joining forces to stage a mass photo of people holding hands,pass4real as a statement of solidarity with LGBTQI athletes participating in the Sochi games, and LGBTQI people in Russia, at the commencement of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

At 2pm, everybody will be invited to assemble in front of the Main Stage and hold hands for a photo, which will be the largest contribution to date to the Same Sex Holding Hands Initiative (SSHI), an international project of Pride House International.

Fair Day attracts over 70,000 people, and this photo will have major international impact in the light of the discrimination and human rights abuses being suffered by LGBTQI people in Russia, which have been subject to intense scrutiny in the leadup to the Sochi games.

This is Sydney’s opportunity to add our voice to the international response to injustice being suffered by LGBTQI people under the Russian government’s anti-gay propaganda laws.

Pride House International host a Pride House at each Olympic Games, which is a venue welcoming LGBTQI athletes, fans, and others and their allies. The Russian government has banned a Pride House in Sochi, so a series of international satellite events are being held around the world to ensure LGBTQI visibility is a part of the Sochi games. GLISA-AP is hosting the Australian satellite event of Sochi Pride House, and throughout the day people will be able to get their photo taken and added to the SSHI blog (holdhandsinsochi.tumblr.com).