This year the theme for Pride is "One World, One Pride, One New York City – Unite in 2019." It is also the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riot.
June 12th, 2019
The LGBT marches started in 1970 and they’re still as relevant as four decades ago. With millions of spectators marching all over the world, the annual Pride is one of the biggest events in contemporary times.
This year, NYC expects the largest celebration in history due to the commemoration of the Stonewall uprising 50 years ago, which is considered by many as the catalyst for modern gay rights movements.
It all started on the early morning of 28 June 1969 with a police raid against LGBT people in the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in Lower Manhattan. The patrons refused to follow police orders as they didn’t make real sense to them and a confrontation began. A spark was ignited, and due to a feeling of community in the air and a strengthened desire to combat discrimination, more riots occurred over the following nights as well as the creation of various LGBT organizations. One year later, the first gay pride marches took place in many cities across the country as a commemoration of the riots, and they’ve been spreading worldwide ever since.
This year NYC will be holding the march on June 30th, along with other 50 official events such as conferences, culinary experiences, The Rally and the PrideFest. The city will be expecting 7 million people for this occasion, four million in Manhattan alone.
Even though the New York City Pride March is a major event, followed by other cities like Rio de Janeiro or Los Angeles, several countries around the world are still fighting their own battles when it comes to LGBT rights. Apart from all the fun, PRIDE is also an annual reminder of the struggles faced by the LGBT in present days, resulting in a worldwide show of support. It’s a day (week or month) to celebrate love and life, with a powerful atmosphere and no dress code (have fun!) or age regulations made, but it is also a moment to understand that there’s still a long way to go when it comes to equality. As Michael Kotis said to NYT in 1970 after the first Pride March,
“The main thing we have to understand, (...) is that we're different, but we're not inferior.”
By Valeria Rangel / Victoria Speyer
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Are you going to PRIDE?
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