Patrons

Phyll Opoku-Gyimah is the nucleus of the award-winning celebration and protest that is UK Black Pride. UK Black Pride is Europe’s largest celebration for LGBTQI people of African, Asian, Caribbean, Middle Eastern and Latin American descent. It is a safe space to celebrate diverse sexualities, gender identities, gender expressions and cultures.

Phyll is widely known as Lady Phyll partly due to her decision to reject an MBE in the New Year Honours’ list. Her decision to reject the MBE was a protest to Britain’s role in formulating anti-LGBTQI penal codes across its empire.

She is a community builder, organiser and a public speaker focusing on race, gender, sexuality and class. She is regularly called upon to advise nascent LGBTQI organisations around the world, to help leaders create cogent organising strategies, to establish robust partnership networks and to work effectively in service of the LGBTQI community.

Lady Phyll is also the executive director of Kaleidoscope Trust, an organisation working to uphold the human rights of LGBTQI people around the world and a patron of the Albert Kennedy Trust.

Lady Phyll on joining Micro Rainbow as Patron:

“The work of Micro Rainbow resonates deeply with me. From the beginning, UK Black Pride has been a safe place for LGBTQ people fleeing persecution and UK Black Pride is vocal in our solidarity with our asylum-seeking and displaced siblings. I’m honoured to join Micro Rainbow as Patron, particularly at a time of increased hostility to LGBTQ people across the world. We have the power to make this country a welcoming and accepting place, but until such time, I will give Micro Rainbow and those they support the visibility and support necessary to help them feel safe, at home and loved.”