Pride 2023: Flag Raising, Community Picnic, Dance Party In Princeton

PRINCETON, NJ — June is Pride Month across the country and people celebrate the contributions of the LGBTQI+ community. It also looks to educate people on the issues faced by the community.

Princeton will kick off this year’s celebration with a Pride Flag raising ceremony on Friday. Mayor Mark Freda and members of the council, the Civil Rights Commission and Community Partners will be present at the ceremony to be held at Monument Hall at 12 p.m.

The same day, the Bayard Rustin Center for Social Justice will be hosting a Pride Family Breakfast from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. at the BRCSJ headquarters.

Later on Friday evening, from 8:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. there will be an outdoor Pride Dance Party. The event will be hosted by the Arts Council of Princeton in collaboration with Princeton Record Exchange. The party will be held at the Arts Council’s parking lot.

On Saturday, gather at Palmer Square in Princeton to celebrate inclusivity, acceptance and tolerance at the community Pride Picnic. The event is a community collaboration by the Princeton Public Library with McCarter Theatre Center, HiTOPS, YWCA Princeton, Arts Council of Princeton, Princeton Civil Rights Commission, and Princeton Human Services. The picnic will be held from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the green space of Palmer Square.

On June 17, the BRCSJ will be hosting the pride parade from 11 a.m. onwards. There will also be an afterparty, later that day.

Pride Month occurs during June in deference to the Stonewall Uprising, a tipping point in the struggle for equality among people who identify as LGBTQ. New York City police raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar, in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969. Such raids were common, but patrons fought back, resulting in days of violent clashes across Greenwich village.

The observance started as Gay Pride Day on the last Sunday in June, but soon grew to the point that June calendars are packed with pride parades, parties, workshops, symposiums and concerts across the nation and around the world.

In New Jersey, about 4.1 percent of the population identifies as LGBTQ, according to the Movement Advance Project, which tracks legislation targets. They represent 4 percent of New Jersey’s workforce. The organization gives New Jersey 39.25 points out of a possible 43.5 points.

Pride Month 2023 occurs amid a historic surge in bills targeting LGBTQ rights, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. Nearly 500 pieces of legislation nationwide have been filed in state legislatures this year, according to the ACLU tracking.

Have a correction or news tip? Email sarah.salvadore@patch.com