June is Pride Month, a season intended to celebrate the lives and experiences of LGBTQ+ people and to protest threats to hard-won civil rights.
In the U.S., this year’s Pride celebrations are taking place as legislators in many states seek to ban drag shows, restrict gender-affirming health care, and limit how teachers can talk about sexuality and gender in the classroom. In Colorado in November, five people were killed and several injured when a gunman shot them in a gay club. In Israel, Tel Aviv celebrated Pride for the first time since the country’s new far-right government, stacked with anti-LGBTQ+ members, took office.
People listen as President Joe Biden speaks Saturday at a Pride Month celebration on the South Lawn of the White House. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
For more than a half-century, the annual marches have been an opportunity to demand action on specific issues such as the AIDS epidemic and same-sex marriage while also serving as a public celebration. These days, Pride celebrations and events — teeming with images of rainbows, a symbol of hope, unity and diversity for LGBTQ+ people — can be found all over the world.
Derrick McKissack takes a selfie with the Murfreesfurs during the Nashville Pride Parade Saturday, June 24, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
A participant smiles during an annual pride parade in Mumbai, India, Saturday, June 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)
People walk through the streets for the rights of the LGBTQ+ community, during the Geneva Pride march, in Geneva, Switzerland, Saturday, June 10, 2023. (Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP)
People take part in the Zurich Pride parade in Zurich, Switzerland, on Saturday, June 17, 2023. (Michael Buholzer/Keystone via AP)
A image for the Pride Parade is displayed on the video board during San Francisco Giants’ Pride Day as Chicago Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks, bottom, warms up during the third inning of a baseball game between the Giants and the Chicago Cubs in San Francisco, Saturday, June 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
A participant dances in an annual pride parade in Mumbai, India, Saturday, June 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)
Drag performer Neon Calypso sings and dances to Tina Turner’s version of the song «Proud Mary,» during a Pride Month Celebration, Wednesday, June 7, 2023, in front of the Statehouse, in Boston. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
People dance during the Queer Juneteenth Block Party, sponsored by The Center, Sunday, June 18, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)
A reveler poses for a photo during the annual Gay Pride Parade in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Sunday, June 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
Capi Ortiz spins rainbow-colored flags during the Nashville Pride Festival, Saturday, June 24, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
Dancers perform on a stage during the Stonewall Pride Parade and Street Festival, Saturday, June 17, 2023, in Wilton Manors, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
People shout slogans during a march in support of transgender people and their rights as part of the LGBTQ Pride week in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)
Participants wearing Star Wars costumes participate in the Pride Parade in Salt Lake City on Sunday, June 4, 2023. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
A couple hold hands at they leave the Pride Parade, Saturday, June 10, 2023, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
People take part in Poland’s yearly Pride parade, known as the Equality Parade, in Warsaw, Poland, on Saturday June 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
Participants take part in the Pride Parade in Bangkok, Thailand, Sunday, June 4, 2023. Thousands of Thai and foreigners will take part. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
People participate in the annual Pride Parade in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, June 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Participants take part in the annual Gay Pride Parade in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Sunday, June 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
Participants take part in the Pride Parade in Bangkok, Thailand, Sunday, June 4, 2023. Thousands of Thai and foreigners will take part. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
People participate in the annual Pride parade, in Athens, Saturday, June 10, 2023. June marks the beginning of Pride month in the U.S. and many parts of the world, a season intended to celebrate the lives and experiences of LGBTQ+ communities and to protest against attacks on hard-won civil rights gains. (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)
A participant takes part in the Pride Parade in Bangkok, Thailand, Sunday, June 4, 2023. Thousands of Thai and foreigners are taking part in the parade. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Participants march at the Christopher Street Day Pride Parade in Duesseldorf, Germany, Saturday, June 10, 2023. June marks the beginning of Pride month in the U.S. and many parts of the world, a season intended to celebrate the lives and experiences of LGBTQ+ communities and to protest against attacks on hard-won civil rights gains. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
A reveler smiles during the annual Gay Pride Parade in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Sunday, June 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
Chrissah Bunch wears a colorful hat during the Nashville Pride Festival, Saturday, June 24, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)
People participate in the annual Pride Parade in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, June 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)
People listen as President Joe Biden speaks at a Pride Month celebration on the South Lawn of the White House, Saturday, June 10, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
People participate in a Pride party as part of the annual Pride Week events in Tel Aviv, Israel, Friday, June 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
The Pittsburgh Pride parade, celebrating 50 years of Pittsburgh Pride, crosses the Andy Warhol bridge from downtown Pittsburgh, Saturday, June 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Participants dance during the annual Gay Pride Parade in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Sunday, June 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Tuane Fernandes)
