The Pride House Podcast

Stacey Francis-Bayman and Khakan Qureshi on growing up LGBTQ+ in Birmingham and their hopes for the 2022 Commonwealth Games

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Episode notes

Episode 3 of 'The Pride House Podcast' - supporting Pride House Birmingham for the 2022 Commonwealth Games - focuses on Birmingham itself, with one of the city's most successful athletes and one of its most prominent equality campaigners in conversation with host Jon Holmes.

Stacey Francis-Bayman has won over 70 caps for England Netball since making her international debut in 2010. She grew up in Bromsgrove, a town just outside Birmingham, and she's picked up medals at both the World Cup and the Commonwealth Games during her career to date.

When the defender was announced as a Pride House Ambassador in February 2021, she spoke of "championing visibility" and helping to educate around being LGBTQ+. On this episode, Stacey joins us from Perth, Western Australia, where she's currently playing for West Coast Fever in Suncorp Super Netball.

Her fellow guest is the activist Khakan Qureshi, who is a member of the Pride House Birmingham Advisory Board team. His dedication to LGBTQ+ equality was recognised in the 2021 New Year's Honours List when he was awarded a British Empire Medal.

Khakan set up 'Finding A Voice', an organisation for South Asian LGBTQ+ people and allies. He advocates for inclusive education, and played an important role in helping to bring an end to the protests held outside Birmingham schools in 2019. On the podcast, he talks through his experiences as a gay Muslim, and his hopes that more role models from his communities in the West Midlands will step forward.

It's an emotional and uplifting conversation with two proud Brummies. You can follow Stacey on Twitter and Instagram, while Khakan can also be found on Twitter.

To learn more about Pride House Birmingham, including how to register interest to volunteer, contact us via our website or social media - just search for @PrideHouseBham

Music credit: Song: MusicbyAden - Freedom. Music provided by Vlog No Copyright Music. Creative Commons - Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported. Video Link: https://youtu.be/AUQE67tap_E