At last year's Pride festival, a 400-foot rainbow banner became the largest flag ever displayed in the state. This year, organizers are upping the ante.
A 600-foot pennant — which istriple the length of the event's 2023 flag —will be unveiled May 30.
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The flag will travel through the city throughout the weekend, starting at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and ending in the Gayborhood — stopping in Independence Mall and other yet-to-be-revealed historic locations along the way. Volunteers cansign up to hold a section of the flag while it's on the move.
The banner is a custom design by Daniel Quasar called the Progress Pride Flag. It features an arrow of white, pink and blue stripes for the trans community and black and brown stripes for communities of color. The black stripe is also in honor of those who lost their lives to AIDS.
Pride weekend will be May 30-June 1 in Philadelphia. It will feature a number of events culminating with a march and festival on Sunday. The march, which will include the flag, starts at 10:30 a.m. at 6th and Walnut streets and ends in the Gayborhood. The festival runs from noon-7 p.m. with performers, vendors and food trucks on stretches from Walnut to Pine Streets and Quince to Juniper streets, with some additional road closures in the area.
Last year's Pride march and festival drew 100,000 people and brought in almost $5 million for LGBTQ-owned small businesses, performers,bars and restaurants,organizer Philly Pride 365 said. It was a significant increase from 2023, which saw 65,000 attendees.
“Pride provides a boost to small businesses, especially our nightlife community, who do more than just entertain — they are often on the front lines of advocacy and are often pushed to the margins even within our own community,” Arun Prabhakaran, president of Pride sponsor Urban Affairs Coalition, said in a statement. “In truth, I believe that this is partly due to the efforts of so many in the community who work tirelessly to make Philadelphia a vibrant, safer and affirming place for our LGBTQ+ siblings.”
This year's Pride event will honor the 50-year anniversary of former Pennsylvania Gov. Milton Shapp signing an executive order banning workplace discrimination against LGBTQ+ state employees.