With this in mind I made my way to Trafalgar Square at 7pm and was almost not surprised to see the too small crowd surrounding the 'No to Hate Crime' stage. With both a voice and wind ensemble at work, the curious were being attracted to the cause, with the surrounding crowd being both supportive and respectful.
By 8pm the crowd had thankfully tripled in size and many held candles protected from the wind during the two minutes of silence. As the names of the many who lost their lives were read out, the crowd remained silent, their heads bowed.
Lindsay Wolf was the first inspirational speaker on the stage, discussing the devastating effect of hate crime on the lives of elderly LGBT. Stuart Milk, the founder of the Harvey Milk Foundation was next and asked
"Where is the media? Where is anyone who is planning on running for public office?. Where were they?"
It struck me as ironic that peaceful protestors have been dominating the news, yet the many who died due to anger and intolerance don't even attract one reporter.
Two years ago 10,000 people descended on Trafalgar Square to send a public message against hate crime in all it's forms. For all our sakes, lets hope this event can galvanise that kind of support again in 2012.
Review by Ida Raine
What do you think?
Were you at the vigil, did you know it was happening? Did it pass you by completely? Add your comments below.
