Anchorage Pridefest 2013

Anchorage, AK

Anchorage Pridefest

At the heart of Alaska Pride is PrideFest, a week-long celebration of our journey as the GLBT community which will include a variety of activities.

Pride Conference fuels the mind for Alaska Pride, allowing us to come together across the state and plan our future.

2013 CELEBRATING DIVERSITY MARCH

In every annual event there is a moment when the presenting group asks the big question.

“How can we make this better?”

Identity as the presenter wanted to make the part about being in the parade something really special. More people than ever signed up to be part of the parade last year, but many reactions were similar—not enough people came out to watch it. So we had a growth spurt and a lack of viewership at the same time. That felt like a good opportunity to make a change.

So we went back to the beginning.

There are moments in LGBT history that we should treasure. Honoring Stonewall was why parades began to pop up all over the country― as a remembrance that marked its significance to the LGBT community.

We also talked about how much the One Anchorage Campaign the year before had affected us here in Alaska. What it meant to us, how it felt like our own historical movement, how might we be able to pay homage to the campaign that brought more people to the forefront of this community than ever before?

That’s when we decided to call it a Pride March, with music and dancing and groups gathering to rally and walk, signs held high denoting their kinship to the LGBTQA community. Side by side, arm in arm, in contingents, circles, formations, whatever, as long as we hit the streets en masse. We changed the start simply to have a good vibe, start outside a business that knows us well, and supports us, staying downtown in an area where we could pump up the volume, dance and continue the experience like they do in Brazil during Carnivale, or in New Orleans at Mardi Gras time. It’s all about the people. It’s truly an homage to all our living, working and playing in Anchorage!

Please join us and make this the biggest Pride March 2013!

Related articles

• Colorado Springs Pride Announces New Location for 23rd Annual PrideFest (seasonsofpride.com)
• Milwaukee Pridefest 2013 (seasonsofpride.com)
• Long Island Pride Parade 2013 (seasonsofpride.com)
• Key West Pride 2013 (seasonsofpride.com)