Despite parliamentary backing for gay marriage bill, fight against discrimination is 'not yet a job done', says society on eve of 2013 Pride parade
Discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people remains rife in everyday areas of British life, the Law Society warned on the eve of Saturday's 2013 Pride parade in London.
Despite the recent parliamentary backing for the marriage (same sex couples) bill, which details government plans for same-sex marriages in England and Wales, the society's president said it was "not yet a job done" and "won't weed out deep-rooted cultural discrimination".
Lucy Scott-Moncrieff added: "Gay inequality is closer to home than most people think. It's not a foreign phenomenon. Our neighbours, our friends and our children are being discriminated against and treated adversely."
"Despite legal protections in place, gay inequality remains rife in the UK. A tendency to discriminate against LGBT people is present in everyday areas of life – in the workplace, in the playground, at the sports arena. This is unacceptable, embarrassing and shocking."
The Law Society, which represents solicitors in England and Wales, pointed to four areas where it said discrimination was still taking place, including access to housing and using hotels, restaurants and banks.
In employment, the society said many LGBT people still faced taunts, ridicule and other forms of discrimination in the workplace, while LGBT asylum seekers were put under increasing pressure to "prove" their sexual orientation, after facing extreme stigmatisation, isolation and physical and mental harm in their countries of origin.
Meanwhile, David Cameron has said that equal marriage reforms will allow gay schoolchildren to "stand a little bit taller".
Writing in the official Pride guide, he said: "There will be girls and boys in school today who are worried about being bullied and concerned about what society thinks of them because they are gay or lesbian."
"By making this change they will be able to see that Parliament believes their love is the same as anyone else's love and that we believe in equality. I think this will enable them to stand that bit taller, be that bit more confident and I am proud of that."
The Pride parade will travel through the heart of London, along Oxford Street and Regent Street before ending up on Whitehall, and will be followed by events across the city.
Organisers said around 150 groups are involved in this year's parade and urged visitors to join in the celebrations.
Michael Salter, chairman of Pride in London, said: "London is an amazingly diverse city attracting the most talented people from across the world, which is vital to the economic welfare of our city."
Among the sponsors is the mayor of London, Boris Johnson, who apologised after making a controversial joke at a gala dinner for Pride in London earlier this week about gay men taking their husbands "up the Arcelor" – a reference to the ArcelorMittal Orbit sculpture in the Olympic Park.