Everything you need to know about this year’s NYC Pride March

Though it still won’t be entirely back to normal, the NYC Pride March is back for a mostly virtual event on Sunday, June 27th. “The Fight Continues” is the 2021 theme, and there will be many advocates from the LGBTQIA+ community participating in the March and other events. In addition, there will be celebratory performances and fun activities. Ahead, we’ve condensed all the info you need to know about NYC Pride and highlighted a few other great events.

THE THEME

NYC Pride’s 2021 theme is “The Fight Continues.” As the organization explains: “With the coronavirus pandemic still ongoing, issues of police brutality, the alarming murder rate for trans POC, economic hardship, climate disasters, violent efforts to disenfranchise voters, our rights as a community being questioned at the level of the Supreme Court, and more, we are in the midst of many different fights.”

THE MARCH

The famous Pride March will take place on Sunday, June 27. For the fifth consecutive year, there will be a live broadcast on ABC-7 from 12-3pm. (You can also watch on ABC7NY.com and ABC7 New York’s Connected TV Apps.) As of now, the event will be mainly virtual, but the organizers say there will also be “to-be-determined in-person elements.” The broadcast includes live performances, on-air interviews, and exciting street-side marching activity.

Following the broadcast, at 3pm, a virtual experience of the March will stream on NYC Pride’s Facebook and Youtube. The program will feature groups and organizations that would typically take to the streets for the annual NYC Pride March, with each segment highlighting one of this year’s five Grand Marshals.

The grand marshalls are:

• Actor Wilson Cruz, who currently stars as Dr. Hugh Culber on the Paramount+ series Star Trek: Discovery. He has also appeared in the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why, in Hulu’s The Bravest Knight, and as Angel in the Broadway tour production of Rent. Wilson was the first openly gay actor playing an openly gay role on series television for his role as Rickie Vasquez on the ABC series My So Called Life. He is also an advocate for LGBTQ youth, especially youth of color.
• Ceyenne Doroshow, a compassionate powerhouse performer, activist, organizer, community-based researcher, and public figure in the trans and sex worker rights’ movements. She is the founder and executive director of G.L.I.T.S., whose mission is to approach the health and rights crises faced by transgender sex workers holistically using harm reduction, human rights principles, economic and social justice.
• Menaka Guruswamy and Arundhati Katju. Guruswamy is a Senior Advocate at the Supreme Court of India. She has defended government legislation that mandates that all private schools admit disadvantaged children and overturned section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that criminalized same-sex relations. Katju is an Indian lawyer who successfully represented the lead petitioners in Navtej Singh Johar and others v. Union of India, where the Court struck down India’s 157-year-old sodomy law.
• Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, who is the Director of the Center for Disease Control’s Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention. He has focused much of his career on the prevention and treatment of HIV and other STIs as an activist physician with a focus on LGBTQIA+ communities. He is also dedicated to improving the health of underserved communities and is passionate about addressing health equity and stigma in HIV by promoting “status neutral” service delivery and programming.
• Antiguan-American model Aaron Rose Philip, who became the first black, transgender, and physically disabled model to ever be represented by a major modeling agency in 2018. She’s actively worked towards an inclusive industry via her editorial features in i-D, Dazed, Vogue, Allure, and W magazines, in addition to campaign features in Moschino, Sephora, Marc Jacobs, and Calvin Klein.

OTHER EVENTS

There are countless virtual and in-person Pride events happening throughout the city, including many put on by NYC Pride. Here are some favorites:

The Rally
Friday, June 25 at 6pm; virtual
Community activists, organizers, artists, and more will come together for a virtual rally to take a stand against violence towards the LGBTQIA+ community and advocate for Black Trans Lives. The event will be hosted by Trans activist and author Hope Giselle and LGBTQ and gun violence activist Brandon Wolf.

Frontrunners Pride Run
Saturday, June 26 at 7am; Central Park
This year’s 40th Annual LGBT Pride Run has been transformed into a hybrid event. Partner NYRR will offer an in-person 6K (capacity is limited), as well as a Virtual 5K.

Youth Pride
Saturday, June 26 at 3pm; virtual
In 2019, during the first Youth Pride event, 10,000+ LGBTQIA+ teens came together for a day of performances, appearances, activations, and dancing at Central Park’s Summerstage. After a hiatus last year, the event is back in virtual format so young people everywhere can celebrate NYC Pride with their friends through musical performances, LGBTQIA+ center spotlights, DJ’s, and a special ballroom segment. The event will be hosted by influencers and activists Amber Whittington, creator of AmbersCloset, and Jorge “Gitoo” Wright. There will be performances and appearances by Brita Filter, Deetranada, Mia Lailani, Tarriona ‘Tank’ Ball, Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, Kate Gil, Citizen Queen, RAYE, Gotham Cheer, Serpentwithfeet, Aaron Rose Philip, Papi Juice, DJ Karaba, Devan Ibiza, and more.

PrideFest
Sunday, June 27 at 11am; Greenwich Village
Back for its 27th year, this annual LGBTQIA+ street fair combines exhibitors, entertainers, food, and activities.