Yearly Community Events Include:

Mister & Miss Phoenix Pride Pageant: Yearly in late February/early March

Phoenix Pride Parade: First Saturday in April
Phoenix Pride Festival: First Weekend in April

Pride Brunch: Every June

Rainbows Festival: First Weekend in October
Mister & Miss Junior Phoenix Pride Pageant: Held at Rainbows Festival

THE HISTORY OF PHOENIX PRIDE

In 1981, a group of gay & lesbian activists organized the first Pride march thru the streets of downtown Phoenix to the state Capitol building. It was a politically focused march to bring awareness to gay rights issues in Phoenix.

Nearly ten years later, a group of volunteers joined together to coordinate the annual Pride festival. This committee, best known as the Phoenix Lesbian and Gay Pride Committee, Inc. helped establish a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization known today as Phoenix Pride.

The organization was created as an educational non-profit to continue to educate and promote issues that affect the LGBTQ community in metro Phoenix. Under the leadership of Phoenix Pride, there has been an annual march, festival, parade or celebration in metro Phoenix for more than 30 years.

The organization is a leader in the metro Phoenix LGBTQ community. During the past several years, the organization has been able to make significant contributions to other LGBTQ focused non-profit organizations and has awarded scholarships to deserving LGBTQ individuals continuing their education. It is the goal of the organization to continue developing community programs to benefit the LGBTQ focused non-profit community and to continue to raise public awareness about the LGBTQ community in hopes to eliminate homophobia, transphobia and discrimination still very much prevalent some 30 years later.

In 2014, the LGBTQ community celebrated the 34th Anniversary of the first LGBTQ march in Phoenix. Phoenix Pride will continue to honor and celebrate our community by promoting April as “Pride Month” in Phoenix, Arizona and by continuing the “10 Days of Pride” started in celebration of our 30th Anniversary in 2010.