PrideFest, Flag Ceremony Tops Pride Month Celebration In Abington

ABINGTON TOWNSHIP, PA —Pride Month continues through June, with several ways in Abington Township to participate in the celebration of LGBTQ culture, rights, and identity.

Abington Township will hold a Pride Flag raising ceremony at 5:15 p.m. on Thursday in front of the township administration building.

The ceremony will be followed by Pridefest, which will feature food, vendors, crafts, giveaways, music, and a meet-and-greet with three LGBTQ+ authors at the Abington Township Public Library from 6-8 p.m. in the north parking lot.

The rain date is Tuesday, June 11.

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 around the world are packed with Pride parades, parties, workshops, symposiums, and concerts.

Pride Month 2024 occurs amid a historic surge in bills targeting LGBTQ rights, according to the American Civil Liberties Union. Over the last few years, states have advanced a record number of bills attacking LGBTQ rights, especially transgender youth, the civil rights group said.

The ACLU said that while more states every year are passing laws to protect LGBTQ people, others advance bills that target transgender people, limit local protections, and allow the use of religion to discriminate.

Hundreds of pieces of legislation nationwide have been filed in state legislatures this year, according to the ACLU tracking.