2013 NY Pre-Pride Guide

Where to be this coming Pride season

Staten Island Pride Parade and Festival
Jun 1, Tompkinsville Park, silgbtcenter.org/ parade. The Parade begins at Central and Slosson Avenues, winds through the streets of St. George, and leads right into the Pride festival in Tompkinsville Park. Entertainment, vendors and LGBT-friendly nonprofits will be on hand to keep you happy, safe and healthy!

Queens Pride
Jun 2, queenspride.org. Queens Pride promotes awareness and education within the LGBTQ community of Queens, and this year the organizers are celebrating the Queens Pride’s 21st anniversary. Festivities consist of a parade along 37th Avenue from 85th Street to 75th Street, and a festival on 37th Road between 74th and 77th Streets. Both events begin at noon.

New Jersey LGBT Pride Celebration
Jun 2, Asbury Park, NJ, jerseypride.org. Not even Hurricane Sandy can keep the Jersey gays down! Despite lingering damage from the storm, Asbury Park and attendees at the 22nd annual GLBTI Pride Celebration will be ready to party on June 2. Bank of America sponsors the day-long event, comprised of a parade, festival with top-name live acts, a family zone and more.

Women’s Pride in the Pines 2012
Jun 8, Fire Island Pines, sageusa.org. This year’s women’s event in the Pines honors Linda Gottlieb, who founded Women’s Pride in the Pines in 2011. The event draws more than 400 women to the Pines each June.  The afternoon begins with summer tea dance (2:30-6pm) and concludes with a VIP dinner with a performance by Michele Balan (7:30-9:30pm). DJ Stacy rocks the house. Proceeds benefit Services and Advocacy for GLBT Elders (SAGE).

Rockland Pride
Jun 9, Nyack, NY, gaypriderockland.org. This free, family-friendly LGBT Pride celebration includes kids’ activities, speakers, entertainment, exciting street vendors and live music from noon to 5pm.

Brooklyn Pride
Jun 8, Park Slope, brooklynpride.org. The region’s only nighttime Pride parade kicks off from a new location this year, Fifth Avenue and Sterling Place, and travels down Fifth Avenue to 9th Street. The afternoon festival, featuring vendors, food trucks and live performances, takes place on Fifth Avenue between 3rd and 9th Streets.

Long Island Pride Parade
Jun 8, Huntingdon Village, NY, lipride.org. Long Island’s largest LGBT Pride celebration touches down in Huntingdon Village, where more than 10,000 participants and spectators gather for a massive parade of floats, live acts and marchers. Afterwards, PrideFest takes over nearby Heckscher Park with more performances, food stands, local businesses and more. This year’s theme is Super Pride: “a time where superheroes in our community are called to action to celebrate Pride, while also recognizing the heroic steps we have taken towards equality.” Ka-Boom!

Garden Party 30
Jun 24, Pier 46, Charles St at Hudson River Park, gaycenter.org. At 6pm, join hundreds of LGBT foodies to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the NYC Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center’s signature Pride fundraiser. Dozens of NYC’s top restaurants participate, offering tastes of signature dishes.

Pride Rally
Jun 28, East River Park Bandshell, FDR Drive near Cherry St, nycpride.org. The official kickoff to NYC Pride takes place on the Friday before the March, not a week prior as in previous years. The rally features top music acts and speakers from the LGBT community to get people pumped for Pride.

NYC Pride VIP Rooftop Party
Jun 29, Hudson Terrace, 621 W 46th St, nycpride.org. NYC Pride and Rafferty/Mazur Events proudly present the VIP Pride Rooftop Party. Dance on one of the most exclusive rooftop venues overlooking one of the greatest cities in the world during the best weekend of the year! DJs Serving Ovahness, Marco Da Silva and Frankie Knuckles from 2-10pm.

Dyke March
Jun 29, facebook.com/dykemarchnyc. Now more than two decades strong, the Dyke March is a beloved Pride weekend tradition. More than 20,000 lesbians beat drums, carry signs and shout positive messages as they make their way down Fifth Avenue. Who needs a freakin’ permit?

Rapture on the River
Jun 29, Pier 26, West Side Hwy at Laight St, nycpride.org. The official women’s event of NYC Pride takes place at tea time and celebrates its 10th year by moving back outside to Pier 26. Miami’s favorite, DJ Dimples, and NYC’s DJ Whitney Day will be rocking the legendary event of more than 3,000 lovely ladies.

Pride March
Jun 30, starts near Fifth Ave and 36th St, nycpride.org. One of the biggest and most flamboyant Pride events in the world kicks off at noon and fills Fifth Avenue with colorful floats, marching contingents, drag stars and tanned boys in underwear. This year’s Grand Marshals are Edie Windsor, Harry Belafonte and Earl Fowlkes, three civil rights leaders who are standing up for the LGBT community’s basic equality.

Pride Fest
Jun 30, Hudson St btw Abingdon Sq and W 14th St, nycpride.org. PrideFest is the official LGBT street fair with locals, families, community leaders and business owners. PrideFest marks its 20th anniversary in 2013! Expect vendors, food trucks and stands, live entertainment and amazing people-watching.


What Do You Think?