Parties, parades and protest mark Pride worldwide

The month-long celebration of the 2SLGBTQ+ community reaches its exuberant grand finale on Sunday, bringing rainbow-laden revellers to the streets for marquee Pride parades across the globe.

The wide-ranging festivities will function as both jubilant parties and political protests, as participants recognize the community’s gains while also calling attention to rising anti-2SLGBTQ+ sentiments.

Here’s a look at some of the events on Sunday.

New York City

The first Pride march was held in New York City in 1970 to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall Inn uprising, a riot that began with a police raid on a Manhattan gay bar.

This year, tensions over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza are also seeping into the celebrations, exposing divisions within a community that is often aligned on political issues.

“It is certainly a more active presence this year in terms of protest at Pride events,” said Sandra Perez, the executive director of NYC Pride. “But we were born out of a protest.”

Thousands of people gathered along New York’s Fifth Avenue to celebrate Pride. Floats cruised the street as Diana Ross’s I’m Coming Out played from loudspeakers.

Pride flags filled the horizon, and signs in support of Puerto Rico, Ukraine and Gaza were visible in the crowd.

Protesters temporarily blocked the New York parade on Sunday, chanting: “Free, free, free Palestine!” Police eventually took some of them away.

Toronto

Thousands attended one of Canada’s biggest Pride parades in Toronto, where marchers carried a large rainbow flag down Yonge Street.

Like in New York City, the event was disrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters, which briefly caused an altercation between some protesters and some attendees.

Several pro-Palestinian groups participating in marches around the world on Sunday said they would seek to highlight the victims of the war in Gaza, spurring pushback from supporters of Israel.