R U OK? Listened with Love at the 40th Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade

For the second year in a row, R U OK? participated in the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras on Saturday March 3 to help promote the suicide prevention charity’s second step to a life-changing conversation; Listen.

The 4 conversation steps being Ask, Listen, Encourage action and Check in.

The yellow and black R U OK? colours - enhanced by a healthy dose of biodegradable gold glitter – stood out, as the 80 plus dancers and ambassadors made their way along Oxford Street to the roar of the massive crowd.

‘Listen with Love’ was the theme of the float and reached a potential audience of around 300 thousand people who were said to have attended the event on the night and thousands more via the SBS televised, live stream and Sunday night broadcast.

In near perfect weather conditions, celebrity ambassadors including singer Casey Donovan, actor and comedian Steven Oliver, singer Luke Antony and Jake Gablonski wowed the crowd with their high energy dance moves on the disco dressed float and had plenty of conversations with fans in the marshalling area.

Luke Antony’s single, Separate Ways, featured as one of the three songs the dance troupe performed to. Luke filmed an Instagram video while on the float, telling his followers it was one of his proudest moments to look out and see everyone dancing, singing and cheering to his song.

Steven Oliver emotionally addressed the dancers prior to the parade, expressing his gratitude to them.

“This means so much to me to be here in this community and see you all supporting the R U OK? message. I’ve lost too many friends and family members to suicide and we need to let people know that it’s safe for them to open up and they should feel ok to check in with anyone that’s going through a rough time in their life,” he said.

If you or a loved one need immediate support Lifeline is available 24/7 on 13 11 14. Other supports can be found here.

Find conversation tips and resources here.