How Pride Will March On In 2021
Event producer Jeff Consoletti shares Pride predictions and lessons about gathering together following a pandemic year.
May 26 2021 9:00 AM EDT
While the meaning of Pride is always influx, the past year has transformed the LGBTQ+ demonstration in ways that would have been unimaginable to those Stonewall Inn demonstrators over 50 years ago. In 2020, celebrations around the world were either canceled or shifted to virtual events to fight COVID-19, with drag performers and LGBTQ+ artists showcasing skills virtually via Zoom.
As plans altered online, cultural events also intervened. Last summer’s Black Lives Matter protests intersected with June, galvanizing thousands of LGBTQ+ folks from Los Angeles to New York City to leave quarantine and take to the streets in solidarity against police brutality. Support for Black transgender lives became an even louder rallying cry, as violence against that community escalated even higher in a pandemic year. And not every Pride happening was positive. Party promoters in Atlanta, for example, took advantage of the growing frustration with lockdown to plan unofficial parties in unsafe underground settings.