To mark Pride month 2026, a member of Rainbow Sisters – our solidarity group for LGBTQ+ women seeking safety in the UK – has written this piece about her experience. We hope you enjoy! 

My name is Olubunmi. I’m a bisexual woman, a daughter, a mother, a writer, and I’m still here.

This Pride month, I’ve been asked what I’m celebrating. Honestly? I’m celebrating that I exist.

I’m Nigerian. I grew up hearing “you’re just confused”, “pick a side”, “it’s a phase”. Now I live in the UK, where I can say my name and my truth out loud without looking over my shoulder. That freedom is a gift. But freedom doesn’t erase where I come from.

There are days I feel whole here in the UK. Days when I walk past Pride flags in London and breathe easier. Days when I write and no one tells me to hide. Days when I express myself and no one tells me to be mindful.

There are also days I feel the distance. I think of bi girls in Lagos, Enugu, Kano, Port Harcourt, who still have to be silent because of the Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act, 2014. I think of my sister’s voice on the phone, and my mum’s prayers, and the kitchen table in Nigeria where I first learned to code-switch.

So this Pride I’m holding both. I’m celebrating safety in the UK, and I’m celebrating my sisters back home. I’m celebrating that my bisexuality taught me empathy, taught me that love doesn’t fit in one box, taught me how to survive in two worlds at once.

To every Nigerian bi girl reading this from London, Manchester, Birmingham, or from back home: You are not “too much” and you are not “not enough”. You don’t owe anyone a perfect label. Whether you can speak freely or you have to whisper, your existence matters.

This Pride, I celebrate me. I celebrate us. I celebrate a future where a girl in Nigeria won’t have to leave home to say “I am”.

We are still here. Both here, and there. And we’re not going anywhere.

Happy Pride 🌈