Inspirational lesbian and bi-sexual women will be discussing the issues facing LGBT women in Manchester to mark International Women’s Day tomorrow.
The Lesbian and Gay Foundation (LGF) will host their eighth annual Sugar and Spice Festival this weekend.
The free Sugar and Spice festival is running on March 8 and 9 and open to anyone who self-identifies as a lesbian or bisexual woman.
One of the main highlights of the event is the panel discussion, which is entitled ‘Make Love Not War’ this time around.
The panel sees a number of prominent lesbian and bisexual women discuss issues facing the community in Manchester today and will be asking the question: “Are our battles won?”.
Speaking about the event Siân Lambert, Women’s programme coordinator for the LGF, said: “We are thrilled to have a really exciting line-up of inspirational lesbian and bisexual women coming to lead the discussion at Sugar & Spice.”
This year’s star-studded panel includes; the stand-up comedienne Bethany Black, Paralympian and Captain of Team GB’s sitting volleyball team Claire Harvey and Executive Director and co-founder of UK Black Pride Phyll Opoku-Gyimah.
Freelance writer and bisexual activist Sali Owen and local businesswoman Claire Richter round out the panel.
Panellists will hope to discuss whether lesbian and bisexual women now have equality and whether the current economic situation has caused greater inequality for women.
Alongside the discussion, the Sugar and Spice festival will a variety of attractions, including: workshops, film screenings, networking, massages, food, music, crafts and sport.
The event amassed more than 180 people last year, and Sian expects LGF to exceed that this year as it’s being hosted over two days, she said: “Manchester has such a vibrant community of lesbian and bisexual women and we’re sure that many of them will want to join us for the free Sugar & Spice festival.”
Full details of what is planned for the festival are available at: www.lgf.org.uk/sugarandspice
