Mardi Gras survey set to close

A survey calling for input on the decision to change the name of Sydney Mardi Gras is set to close this Friday.

The survey lists potential reasons for supporting or opposing the name change, including “feeling betrayed”, feelings of connection to gay heritage and personal identification with the terms ‘gay’ and ‘lesbian’.

The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras (SGLMG) organisation, which oversees the festival every year, changed the festival’s name to Sydney Mardi Gras in November 2011 in a move that upset some in the LGBTI community who felt the name-change left them excluded.

In November 2012, SGLMG announced it would conduct community consultation to gauge how the name change was being received a year on. The organisation hosted two feedback sessions earlier this year for community members to air their concerns and ask questions.

The survey’s results will be taken into account at Sydney Mardi Gras’ Extraordinary General Meeting at the end of May.

You can take part in the survey here.