The month-long celebration of the 2SLGBTQ+ community reaches its exuberant grand finale on Sunday, bringing rainbow-laden revellers to the streets for marquee Pride parades across the globe.
The wide-ranging festivities will function as both jubilant parties and political protests, as participants recognize the community’s gains while also calling attention to rising anti-2SLGBTQ+ sentiments.
Here’s a look at some of the events on Sunday.
New York City
The first Pride march was held in New York City in 1970 to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall Inn uprising, a riot that began with a police raid on a Manhattan gay bar.
This year, tensions over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza are also seeping into the celebrations, exposing divisions within a community that is often aligned on political issues.
“It is certainly a more active presence this year in terms of protest at Pride events,” said Sandra Perez, the executive director of NYC Pride. “But we were born out of a protest.”
Thousands of people gathered along New York’s Fifth Avenue to celebrate Pride. Floats cruised the street as Diana Ross’s I’m Coming Out played from loudspeakers.
Pride flags filled the horizon, and signs in support of Puerto Rico, Ukraine and Gaza were visible in the crowd.
Protesters temporarily blocked the New York parade on Sunday, chanting: “Free, free, free Palestine!” Police eventually took some of them away.
Toronto
Thousands attended one of Canada’s biggest Pride parades in Toronto, where marchers carried a large rainbow flag down Yonge Street.
Like in New York City, the event was disrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters, which briefly caused an altercation between some protesters and some attendees.
Several pro-Palestinian groups participating in marches around the world on Sunday said they would seek to highlight the victims of the war in Gaza, spurring pushback from supporters of Israel.
Chicago
Tens of thousands of people packed sidewalks along Chicago’s parade route, a scaled-back event from previous years.
City officials shortened the North Side route, and the number of floats was cut to about 150 from 199 over safety and logistical concerns — including to better deploy police into evening hours, as post-parade parties have become more disruptive in recent years.
Chicago’s parade, one of the largest in the United States, routinely draws about a million people, according to the city.
Bangkok
Revellers marched in Bangkok to celebrate Thailand’s passing of the marriage equality bill, which made it Asia’s third territory to legalize same-sex unions.
Istanbul
Turkish police detained protesters in Istanbul on Sunday for participating at a banned Pride rally, searching the streets after participants had dispersed. Police declined to comment.
The Istanbul Governor’s Office said earlier on Sunday that the Pride march would not be permitted. Turkish police blocked central Istanbul to prevent the march from taking place, shutting down metro stations and blocking traffic on the main streets.
India
The Indian town of Dharamshala celebrated its second-ever Pride with a march accompanied by drums.
A Pride event was also held in Kolkata, in India’s West Bengal state.
Source Agencies
