Uniforms OK'd for soldiers at gay parade
Sweden’s Armed Forces have done an about face and decided to now allow soldiers to march in Stockholm’s gay parade while wearing their uniforms.
“Now we will be able to walk at the head of the line internationally and be a precedent-setting country in the GBT context,” said the Armed Forces’ GBT (gay, bisexual, and transsexual) liaison, Petra Jäppinen, in a statement.
Rules governing the wearing of Swedish military uniforms currently prohibit soldier’s wearing their uniforms during political demonstrations.
But now the Armed Forces have adopted guidelines which specify that gay pride parades are not political demonstrations. Therefore, soldiers are now free to dress in their uniforms when attending the August 2nd Pride Parade in Stockholm.
“The decision shows how far the Armed Forces have come in its diversity and discrimination work,” said Jäppinen, who was named to her post in May, making her the first GBT liaison in the world to work for a military organization.
During Europride, which will be held this year in Stockholm between July 25th and August 3rd, the Armed Forces plan to have its own information booth and arrange a seminar on GBT people’s experiences during service overseas.
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“Now we will be able to walk at the head of the line internationally and be a precedent-setting country in the GBT context,” said the Armed Forces’ GBT (gay, bisexual, and transsexual) liaison, Petra Jäppinen, in a statement.
Rules governing the wearing of Swedish military uniforms currently prohibit soldier’s wearing their uniforms during political demonstrations.
But now the Armed Forces have adopted guidelines which specify that gay pride parades are not political demonstrations. Therefore, soldiers are now free to dress in their uniforms when attending the August 2nd Pride Parade in Stockholm.
“The decision shows how far the Armed Forces have come in its diversity and discrimination work,” said Jäppinen, who was named to her post in May, making her the first GBT liaison in the world to work for a military organization.
During Europride, which will be held this year in Stockholm between July 25th and August 3rd, the Armed Forces plan to have its own information booth and arrange a seminar on GBT people’s experiences during service overseas.
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