Boston Pride's 45th Anniversary Celebration Is a Success

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Molly Dolan
mdolan@oneillandassoc.com
o: 617-646-1067 | c: 617-678-8303

Boston Pride’s 45th Anniversary Celebration Is a Success
Thanks Community and Friends for Celebrating 45th Anniversary - #WickedProud

(June 19, 2015) BOSTON, MA- Boston Pride’s 45th Anniversary celebration from June 5-14 was an enormous success. With more than 50 events over 10 days, the 2015 Pride Week was the largest one ever. This year’s parade consisted of over 35,000 marchers from over 240 contingents with over 500,000 spectators and roughly 125,000 attended the festival and free concert at City Hall Plaza.

“We want to thank our volunteers, our community partners, our sponsors and the City of Boston for making this our best Pride ever as they helped us provide a safe and welcoming environment for everyone to enjoy and celebrate who we are,” said Sylvain Bruni, President of Boston Pride. “Our theme this year, “45th Anniversary - #WickedProud” honored the diversity of this great city as Boston Pride represents everyone in our community whether they are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, questioning and our straight friends and allies.”

Since 1970, Boston Pride has grown as an organization seeking equality for all, and has witnessed milestones for the LGBT community including the enacting of anti-discrimination laws regarding employment, adoption, health care, and the historic Massachusetts Supreme Court decision as the first state to legalize marriage among same sex couples.

Several highlights of this year’s Pride week included the first ever gala honoring Harry Collings with the Mayor Thomas M. Menino Pride Award, a panel discussion presented by Boston Pride’s Human Rights & Education Committee on immigration and asylum issues facing the LGBT community worldwide. Additionally, Boston Pride was #WickedProud to support Black Pride and Latin@Pride with more than a dozen events during pride week to bring together communities of color through a common theme “Carnaval – a celebration of culture, life and Pride – “una celebracion de cultura, vida y orgullo”.

Boston Pride also acknowledges the participation of Parade Grand Marshals Erica Kay-Webster, David Bermudez and Samuel Brinton, Parade Marshals Woody Glenn and Ellyn Ruthstrom, Parade Honorary Marshal Mayor Thomas M. Menino’s family, Friends of Boston Pride, the Boston Pride Advisory Council, the organizations that marched in the parade and were represented at the festival, the community from Boston and beyond, particularly the Back Bay and Jamaica Plain neighborhoods that hosted the annual block parties.

Boston Pride will be seeking volunteers for next year’s Pride celebrations. “Boston Pride is an all-volunteer organization and we are dependent on the countless hours spent by a small group of dedicated volunteers. We welcome all who would like to join us and help us plan for another fantastic Pride Week in 2016. We will post notices about meetings and volunteer opportunities on the Boston Pride website and Facebook page,” said Bruni.

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram @BostonPride.

About Boston Pride
Boston Pride produces events and activities to achieve inclusivity, equality, respect, and awareness in Greater Boston and beyond. Fostering diversity, unity, visibility and dignity, we educate, communicate and advocate by building and strengthening community connections. www.bostonpride.org

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