Mardi Gras, Sydney parade disrupted by Lidia Thorpe shouting ‘f*** the police’ on Oxford Street
Lidia Thorpe has come under fire after her bizarre protest in the middle of Mardi Gras saw her clash with police and stop the parade.
The former Greens senator, who left the party earlier this month, received boos from the crowd when she disrupted the parade along Oxford Street in Sydney on Saturday night.
He crossed his arms and yelled ‘f*** the police’, then jumped in front of the Australian Federal Police float and lay on the ground holding it back.
His antics angered spectators, who were looking forward to the event after the parade was canceled the previous two years due to the covid pandemic.
Footage shows the newly independent senator leaping onto the parade route and standing in front of an officer with arms crossed.
Later, Senator Thorpe was photographed lying on her back in front of a float attempting to travel down Oxford Street while two policemen urged her to go ahead amid “boos” from the crowd.
Footage of their protest circulated on social media on Sunday morning, and their antics drew much criticism.
‘She has zero respect for LGBTQIA people. The woman is a disgrace! one wrote.
Another added: ‘Is there somewhere Lidia Thorpe can go and act like a normal human being?
‘Is it really that hard to behave in a decent manner?’
“In a desperate bid for attention and relevance, activist Lidia Thorpe lays down in front of the #MardiGras2023 parade float preventing it from moving forward, scuffles with police and allegedly yells ‘Fuck the police,'” he wrote. a third person.
‘A total disgrace for an elected official!’
Daily Mail Australia contacted Ms Thorpe for comment.
A Mardi Gras attendee who witnessed the incident told Daily Mail Australia: “She came out of nowhere, it took us a few seconds to realize what was going on.”
“I don’t know how he got into the parade, but he ran after the police as they marched yelling ‘fuck the police’ at them and the crowd.”
‘She really got in their faces when she reached them, like inches away. Not what we expected to see tonight.
“Pride is supposed to be about unity, but she was the only one there doing it for something else. Shocking, really.’
In a scene captured and shared by other revelers on social media, the senator can be seen lying on the ground while two officers talk to her.
The crowd can be heard telling police to “get rid of her” and “get her up” before what appeared to be event organizers or bailiffs intervened.
Senator Thorpe donned Aboriginal colors and held a “No Pride in Genocide” sign at the iconic parade on Saturday night.
Footage of his protest circulated on social media the next morning and his antics continued to draw much criticism on Sunday.
When she finally got to her feet, she can be seen pointing her finger at the two police officers.
One of the officers can be seen trying to put distance between them as the crowd grows and continues to boo the controversial politician.
At one point, she can be seen visibly pushing the hand away from a police officer.
A NSW Police spokesman told Daily Mail Australia that an incident had occurred around 9pm.
“A woman was lying in front of a float in Oxford Street, momentarily impeding the progress of the parade,” he said.
“She was later removed from the parade at the request of the organizers for violating the terms of her participation.”
No charges were filed and there were no arrests.
Ms Thorpe marched with the ‘No Pride in Genocide’ float, which campaigns for zero police presence at Mardi Gras and was previously photographed wearing First Nations colors and holding an Aboriginal flag bag.
Many police officers marching in the parade waved Progreso flags, and the police officer confronted by the senator did not appear to react to their protests.
Pride in Protest, an LGBTQIA+ activist group, announced that the newly independent senator would participate in their float in an Instagram post on Thursday.
Mardi Gras board chair and Pride in Protest member Skip Blofield welcomed Senator Thorpe’s participation in the float.
“I’m proud to march with Lidia this Saturday to say that queer rights and black rights are the same thing,” Blofield said.
The group has organized floats and marched in the Mardi Gras parade for nearly a decade under slogans like “Queers Against Austerity” and “No Pride in Detention.”
“We stand firm in saying that the oppression of queer people and the oppression of indigenous peoples and refugees are the same fight.
“We find it shameful that the Australian government is continuing its prison and camp atrocities in this country,” said Mikhael Burnard, a member of Pride in Protest.
Senator Thorpe marched with the ‘No Pride in Genocide’ float, which campaigns for zero police presence at Mardi Gras.
The group welcomed ‘all members of the community’ to join them and Senator Thorpe in the march.
This is not the first time Senator Thorpe has publicly confronted the police.
In May, while still a member of the Green Party, he told a police officer “you are a disgrace” during a demonstration at Melbourne’s Immigration Transit Accommodation, where activists protested against the transport of 12 detainees to the detention center from Christmas Island.
“You are the criminals, you are the only criminals on this earth,” Ms Thorpe yelled at police in a video posted to her social media channels.
How dare you mistreat women like you did? Like you push me out of the way. You are an absolute disgrace,” she added.
Ms. Thorpe has become known for her high-profile activism in her four years in Victorian and federal politics, especially on issues of immigration, social justice, and the environment.