Yasmin Finney needs no introduction as she takes her stage. The crowds, gathered for the denouement of Pride Month in Trafalgar Square, swell around the actress, undeterred by the London drizzle that falls gently on them. Dressed in a sheer lace slip dress, with a new Mia Farrow-inspired crop, Finney bellows, ‘What time is it?!’ from the foot of Nelson’s Column, to which the crowd shouts back, ‘It’s Trans Pride!’
If anything, it’s Yasmin Finney’s time — and she is rising to the occasion with characteristic elan. ‘For me, every month is Pride Month,’ she explains, when we meet in the quieter setting of The Design Museum in Kensington. ‘When Marsha P Johnson threw the brick at Stonewall, it was a pivotal moment. She was a Black trans woman, but she did it for all queer people. I feel like I have a little bit of Marsha P Johnson in me. I feel a spiritual connect to all of my ancestors that came before me and the power that I hold, the power that they held and the power that keeps on giving.’ Does that great power come with even greater responsibility? ‘It’s a huge weight that I don’t know if I’m ever going to fathom. I think, “Wow, what can I do next? What can I do to really make a change politically, environmentally, and [also] my well-being? What can I do to make sure that I’m healthy and that my mental health is always first, but also putting my community first and impressing everyone and trying to fight for my rights at the same time?”’
