St. Pete Pride’s events run from the last weekend of May until the end of June and offer festivities for all ages. Photo courtesy of St. Pete Pride
By Julia Ferrara
Every June, the streets of St. Petersburg fill in celebration of the annual Pride events, and this year is no exception.
The city is home to Florida’s largest Pride festival, hosting over 100 groups that march through the downtown route.
Bior Guigni, the Executive Director of St. Pete Pride, who hosts the parade and several other events, said their theme, “Here Comes the Sun,” was chosen because of its unifying sentiment.
“We are very much reliant on not just our internal community, but also our allies and so when it comes to the rainbow coming out, it cannot happen without the sun,” Guigni told The Crow’s Nest.
This year, St. Pete Pride will welcome back many of its popular events, such as their yearly pageant, their kickoff and street fair on Grand Central, the Stonewall Reception, Family Day on the pier, their Pet Parade, and Transtastic. They also plan to host a sapphic masquerade ball on June 13 and a waterfront concert on June 26.
The full list of events with more information can be found on their site stpetepride.org.
Guigni said that St. Pete Pride has been working with the Pride of Tampa, offering their love and support in the face of their parade being canceled.
“One thing about our community is that these challenges aren’t new. They are challenges that we have experiences for as long as we have been who we are,” said Guigni.
“The big thing about this and knowing that Tampa’s had some challenges was really stating that we’re here, we’re not going anywhere, we’re going to come out of these even stronger, and let’s make sure that we’re all working together.”
As a 501(c)(3), Guigni said that St. Pete Pride doesn’t tend to engage with the politics but instead chooses to advocate for and support other organizations that have the goals of enacting political change.
St. Pete Pride recently launched a program called Leaders in Training, which is designed to take their network of sponsors, vendors, and community leaders and provide the next generation of leaders with the connections they need to be successful in whatever industry they plan to enter.
Guigni said she is most excited about the way the community has continued to show up despite all the setbacks they’ve faced.
Their monthly events, Pride Connect, which brings together community leaders, business owners, and more have made for more positive impacts within St. Pete.
“It feels like when you make friends in school and you see people all year long, and then you finally get to graduation, or that big event, and you all come together,” said Guigni. “It’s like that feeling for us, where we work so hard all year, and we’re just really excited to see everyone and be with everyone.”
Guigni wants attendees of every Pride event to know that security measures have been taken to ensure their safety throughout the entirety of June.
She also encourages people to register for events this year, that way they can receive immediate updates about changes to locations, times, or any other communication St. Pete Pride has.
