LGBTQ Pride month kicks off with protests, parades, parties
- This year’s events take place in a contentious political climate in which legislators have sought to ban drag shows and prohibit gender-affirming care
- This month has been an important month for the LGBTQ rights movement since New York City’s first Pride march in June 1970, following the 1969 Stonewall uprising
The start of June marks the beginning of Pride month around the US and some parts of the world, a season to celebrate the lives and experiences of LGBTQ communities and to protest against recent attacks on hard-won civil rights gains.
This year’s Pride takes place in a contentious political climate in which some state legislators have sought to ban drag shows, prohibit gender-affirming care and limit how teachers can talk about sexuality and gender in the classroom.
Events have been disrupted. Performers have been harassed. And in Colorado in November, five people were killed and several injured when a gunman shot them inside a gay nightclub.
“What we’re seeing right now is probably the worst that it’s been since the early days, in terms of the demonisation of our communities,” said Jay W. Walker, one of the co-founders of the Reclaim Pride Coalition, a New York City-based group.
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But that won’t stop people from coming out to mark Pride this month, he said.