Vancouver Pride is now just weeks away, and the 2022 season schedule is ready to roll out a mostly in-person return to Pride. The Vancouver Pride Society (VPS) has planned a variety of signature and partnered events with a selection of digital experiences for those who prefer to experience Pride at a distance.
This year’s festival is themed Together Again, aiming to highlight the excitement and importance of 2SLGBTQAI+ communities taking up space and gathering for in-person, community-focused events once more. While events take place all summer, Vancouver Pride Week from July 21 to August 1, features the signature events including the Vancouver Pride Parade and Sunset Beach Festival.
“It’s been three years since we’ve had our major in-person Pride events in Vancouver for a variety of reasons,” said Lee Keple, Interim Executive Director of VPS. “COVID-19 has presented a number of challenges for event organizers like us as well as the 2SLGBTQAI+ communities that we serve. To have our signature programming safely return to Vancouver, to see these communities coming together again to celebrate Pride—it’s something we’ve been waiting for and working towards for a long time.”
Vancouver’s Pride Parade once again brings thousands of participants and spectators to the streets of downtown Vancouver on July 31. VPS has announced this year’s Grand Marshals, selected through a public nomination process, are Annie Ohana, an educator and community activist with a background in organizing and anti-oppression work; Emperor Victor the Victorious and Empress Fancy Pants representing the Dogwood Monarchist Society, a not-for-profit organization tasked with providing social interaction in Vancouver’s 2SLGBTQAI+ community, and Kristen Rivers (tiyaltelut) a member of Squamish Nation Council and a strong advocate for women and 2SLGBTQAI+ rights.
Throughout Pride week, VPS has a lineup including online discussions, a series of partnered pop-up lounges that will pop up throughout the city including a new location on Granville Island, as well watch for the return of Drag Deliveries—a drag road crew taking the streets of Vancouver to perform trivia and giveaways for innocent bystanders.
“Each year, the Vancouver Pride Society is an opportunity to celebrate the progress we have all achieved for the 2SLGBTQAI+ community and a reminder that there is still more work to do,” said Grant Minish, National Manager – 2SLGBTQAI+ Business Development, TD Bank Group. “We are thrilled to continue our long-standing support of the Vancouver Pride Society and remain committed to helping create a more inclusive tomorrow. Together, we are helping create the conditions needed for all members of the 2SLGBTQAI+ community in Metro Vancouver to fully participate and succeed in a changing world.”
For a complete Vancouver Pride Schedule of Events visit vancouverpride.ca