Chair of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Board Giovanni Campolo-Arcidiaco Retires
Image: Giovanni Campolo-Arcidiaco Facebook. Photo: Ingmar Bulk
The Chair of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (SGLMG) Board, Giovanni Campolo-Arcidiaco, has retired.
In a statement to Star Observer, Campolo-Arcidiaco said, “From my first election in 2017, to being Co-Chair in 2019 co-presenting our winning WorldPride Bid in Athens; from the pride of being the only major LGBTQIA+ event to go ahead during two years of the COVID pandemic, to the honour of being the first single Chair during the Sydney WorldPride that cemented the reputation of our Mardi Gras on the global stage. These are just some visible moments that hide 1,000s of thankless hours taken away from our private and professional lives.
“You need to be in it to appreciate the amount of honest work that goes into keeping this organisation compliant and sustainable, with every decision not taken lightly, and where challenges and strategies need responsible considerations rather than just offering an opinion. I feel incredibly humbled by the opportunity and honour to serve with passion and integrity this iconic Organisation.
He continued, “I am grateful for the support of my husband Ingmar and so many friends, engaged members and activists over the years. And I made the decision of sticking by the 3-terms-max convention knowing that Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is in a healthy position, in trusted hands with committed Directors, with a wonderful team of generous and talented professionals starting with CEO Gil Beckwith, and on the cusp of a new exciting Future. 25 years on, I look forward to more years of Mardi Gras!”
Prior to his appointment, he served two years as the Director of Sydney Gay & Lesbian Business Association (SGLBA), six years as the President of Queer Screen, and he was Co-Chair when Mardi Gras won the rights to WorldPride.
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Four Board Directors Elected
Campolo-Arcidiaco’s term finished up on December 9 at the SGLMG Annual General Meeting.
At the annual meeting, members voted to cancel the Mardi Gras Police Accord and abolish the controversial decency inspections. Members also voted to support Gender Affirmation Leave, as well as back the Equality Bill and disinvite any politician who doesn’t support it from marching in the 2024 parade.
SGLMG members elected four board directors. They are Kyriakos Gold, Louis Hudson, as well as new board directors Luc Velez and Kathy Pavlich.
“I believe solidarity must remain a central tenant of our communities and organising. Queer liberation can’t be realised in a vacuum – it is bound up with liberatory struggles everywhere,” Velez wrote in his candidate statement.
“SGLMG has a role in fighting not only homophobia and transphobia, but also colonialism, racism and capitalist exploitation. I’m an organiser, law student and socialist, working and living on stolen Gadigal Land.”
Velez went on to write, “I come to the AGM as a queer activist deeply connected with grassroots groups and left-wing organising. If you support a Mardi Gras that honours its activist history and uses its substantial cultural power to fight for our communities, I urge you to support the Pride in Protest ticket.”
‘Worked And Volunteered In Mardi Gras For Over 30 years’
Kathy Pavlich has been an active member of Mardi Gras since 1989
She said, “I feel passionately about my community and the vital role that Mardi Gras plays in supporting, strengthening, amplifying and celebrating all that we are.
“As an older lesbian-identifying woman who has worked and volunteered in Mardi Gras for over 30 years I want to contribute to the future strategic direction and 50th anniversary celebrations.”
Pavlich shared, “I support modernising of the Constitution while maintaining connection to our history and believe that my community experience and connections will support future discussions on Constitutional change and/or name change.
The Board will vote on a new chair at their December 14 meeting.
