This year marks the 50th anniversary of the first ever gay pride parade. How did the so-called "Prides" come about and what is their significance?
Rainbow flags, music, allegorical chariots, various banners and sometimes controversial outfits. These are the most common things that come to mind in connection with pride parades, but there aren't that many people who actually know exactly why these parades take place and what historical events led to them.
50 years since the first public protest
It is no coincidence that most Pride festivals around the world take place in the month of June (even the Prague one regularly takes place in early August). On the morning of 28 June 1969, the Stonewall Riots broke out, which was the first impulse to form the modern gay rights movement. What exactly was it about?
The end of June 1969 marked the first ever protests by the LGBT community in response to the police raid on the Stonewall Inn in New York. This bar was one of the few places where gay, lesbian, transgender people and their friends gathered. In the early morning hours of June 28, 1969, this bar was raided by the police. This was followed by street battles, during which the LGBT community stood up publicly for their rights and freedom for the first time ever. Shortly afterwards, various activist groups began to emerge with the aim of straightening out the rights of the LGBT community.
Although America today is very progressive when it comes to gay, lesbian and transgender rights, in the 1950s and 1960s there was still an anti-gay system in place. Raids were regularly carried out in all gay clubs and arrests were no exception. It was a regular occurrence for police to break into a bar, check the ID of patrons, and anyone who didn't have it with them was arrested. Drag queens and women who were not wearing at least three pieces of women's clothing were also regularly arrested. The LGBT community thus aimed to combat these hateful attitudes in society.
The first parades
Although we are talking about the fact that this year marks exactly 50 years since the first parade of gays, lesbians, transgender people and their friends, the truth is that fifty years ago the first impetus for these events was created. In fact, the first parades were not held until a year later, as a commemoration of the events in New York.
In 1970 (on the first anniversary of the Stonewall riots), annual parades were held in American cities such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco to commemorate the 1969 event. These events began to be held regularly every year and gradually spread to other cities, growing into the large festivals we know today, often with music and other diverse accompanying programmes.
World Pride in New York
With this year being exactly 50 years since the Stonewall Riots, it's no surprise that there will be big celebrations and commemorations during the New York City Pride Festival. These even began shortly after the new year when Madonna, a well-known supporter of LGBT rights, performed at the still-operating New York club Stonewall Inn, to the surprise of all the guests. She also gave a speech at the legendary bar.
"I am proud to stand at the legendary Stonewall Inn, the birthplace of LGBTQ community pride, minutes into the new year. Tonight we come together to celebrate 50 years of revolution. Let us never forget the Stonewall Riots and the people who had the strength to say 'enough'! Stonewall became a defining historical moment. All it would take is for all the people of the world to think. They would have realised that everyone's blood is the same colour and we all need to love and be loved. We need to remember not only who we are fighting for - ourselves and others - but also, and most importantly, what we are fighting for. Think for a moment about how to bring more love and peace into 2019. You may then find that you have succeeded in turning on a light in people for whom it was previously extinguished. Are you ready?" said Madonna to the bar guests before singing a few songs. She then stated in several media outlets that it was probably the smallest stage she has ever performed on.
You can watch the full performance in the video below:
New York is thus gearing up for a festival that will last the entire month of June and will feature more than fifty different events attended by up to three million people. One of the highlights will be the parade itself, which will take place on Sunday 30 June.
Celebrations of the Stonewall riots around the world
It is not only New York that will be at the centre of the celebrations and remembrance of the Stonewall Riots. All other Pride festivals, including the Prague one, will be similar, because since 2008 the Pride parade has also been held in the Czech capital and is now known as Prague Pride. The number of participants grows every year, and last year the Prague Pride parade was attended by up to 40 000 people, including members of the LGBT community as well as many heterosexuals who agree with the equalisation of rights regardless of sexual orientation.
And Prague?
Even in the Czech Republic, it is not uncommon to encounter opinions that this is a "public promotion of disgusting and sexual differences", that it is a "campaign against the traditional family and child rearing", etc. At the beginning of March this year, even President Miloš Zeman commented on the Prague parade, calling on the Czech Social Democratic Party (ČSSD) congress not to hold the Prague Pride march this year.
On the other hand, the parade is regularly attended by politicians who support equal rights regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. The festival is regularly held under the auspices of Prague's mayors, with former mayor Adriana Krnáčová leading the parade since 2015, and in 2018, the Pride Parade also included Dutch MEP Sophie in't Veld and representatives of some Czech political parties.
The programme of this year's Prague Pride is not yet fully known, but it is to be expected that Czech visitors can look forward to some connection with the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots. The Prague Pride Festival is scheduled to take place from 5 to 11 August 2019.
