Pride to offer a full month of programming for the second year in a row

For the second year in a row, Pride Toronto will be hosting a full month of programming for the festival.

And the schedule confirms that Pride Toronto has followed through on the promises made to Black Lives Matter Toronto, including the return of a South Asian stage and increased support and programming for deaf LGBT community members.

The month will kick-off with a flag-raising at Toronto City Hall on May 31, 2017, with another flag-raising at Queen’s Park on June 19.

Four human-rights panels will again be hosted at The 519 community centre. This year’s panels include a look at the legacy of the Compton Cafeteria riot, a 1966 anti-police riot in San Francisco led by trans women; a remembrance of last year’s Orlando massacre; an examination of global LGBT rights that includes recently-imprisoned Jamaican activist Latoya Nugent; and a panel on transfeminism and gender fluidity.

The Trans March and the Dyke March, both grassroots marches that have, at times, been independent of Pride Toronto, will continue to be held under the Pride banner this year.

The 33rd annual AIDS Candlelight Vigil will be held at Barbara Hall Park on June 20 and will focus on the struggles faced by indigenous communities living with HIV/AIDS.

Culturally-specific programming is also strongly represented this year, including events targeted at Middle Eastern, Latinx, South Asian and indigenous communities.

The Senior Pride Network will be hosting an intergenerational social event at The 519, the first time a senior’s event has been incorporated in Pride’s official programming.

This year’s festival is lighter on big names than 2016 but includes playwright Tony Kushner, author of Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes.