We want to sincerely apologise for bad communication

We recognise that our communications in relation to Israel and Palestine from Winter Pride until now have been unsatisfactory and have caused confusion and nervousness amongst our partners and the public, and that we should have been more open in our dialogue with you, and we are sorry: You deserved better from us.

We made clear mistakes when we stated in February that we would ask questions about our partners’ business activities in Israel and Palestine. We do not ask questions or make demands from our partners on Israel and Palestine, so it was a poor choice of wording from our side. The reason that we mentioned questions around Israel and Palestine was to ensure those who had concerns that this was of course covered by our ethics policy practice. And just to make it clear: Copenhagen Pride does not ‘take a side’ in the conflict nor does it ask its partners to do so. 

For more than ten years we have asked questions of our partners in relation to their business activities to make sure they are a right ‘fit’ for a partnership with us. This is not something that is exclusive to Copenhagen Pride but is a standard practice in most Pride organisations around the world as well as in most other human rights organisations. In 2022, we introduced and published an Ethics Policy to bring a more formal structure to the process. It is comprehensive and it is the only ethics test we apply to our partners who have already approved it, and new partners agree to it when they become a partner. 

Copenhagen Pride is proud to work with commercial partners and values the various contributions they make to our events, our organisation and community. We are truly sorry that we have brought doubt to these relationships, and we are committed to working together to find a way forward. We are looking forward to celebrating Copenhagen Pride Week in August with the collaboration and support of our trusted partners.

For contact with Lars Henriksen, please contact Michael Feder from Have Kommunikation on mobile 22434942 or email [email protected].