Gallery | Under the rainbow, Shepparton gathers to celebrate IDAHOBIT

By Taylah Baker and Megan Fisher

May 23, 2024

**Nicole Robinson and Deb Chumbley were big fans of Shepparton’s IDAHOBIT celebration.** Photo by Megan Fisher

It’d be an understatement to describe the sight of people donned with rainbows and beaming with pride for IDAHOBIT as anything but uplifting.

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IDAHOBIT, the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, and Transphobia, is a Pride event held annually on May 17 to celebrate increased acceptance and reduced discrimination.

Under a canopy of trees and rainbow embellishments, attendees traipsed through the Queen’s Gardens in Shepparton, relishing live music, food, and various activities.

A chorus of voices from the LGBTIQA+ community, including Tone Jessup and Sam Spinks, delivered striking speeches, expressing what IDAHOBIT meant to them.

Ms Spinks, the chair of the LGBTIQA+ advisory committee, shared the history of the day.

“IDAHOBIT is the anniversary of May 17, 1990, when the World Health Organization removed homosexuality from the Classification of Diseases,” she said.

“The purpose of IDAHOBIT is to celebrate the progress made since then while also raising awareness for the discrimination that LGBTIQA+ people still face.”

Crowds that had flocked to listen turned their heads skyward to see the Pride Progress flag hoisted.

It symbolised vibrant hope and aptly honoured the day.

The News photographer Megan Fisher roamed the gardens to capture the festivities.