"We were hoping one of the new groups would step up," said Linda DeMarco, former Boston Pride board of directors member.ĭeMarco said Boston Pride's governing board decided on dissolution as opposed to transitioning its leadership after outcry last year because "you can't ask a whole board to resign without closing down an organization." Tre’Andre Valentine, executive director of the Massachusetts Transgender Political CoalitionĮven though grassroots organizations sprang up to help guide the future of Boston Pride toward more inclusive political advocacy last year, none so far have established a new nonprofit to fill the gap left by Boston Pride’s committee. “I think one of questions that the people of Boston really have to ask themselves,” Golden continued, “is ‘what is Pride?’ and ‘what does it mean to celebrate LGBTQ individuals?’” “It can be both of those things all at once, or something completely different.” “For some groups of people, Pride is having a parade, having a bar crawl and festivities, and for others, it's simply about community and gathering and ensuring that marginalized folks are represented,” said Golden. Julia Golden, interim president of Boston-area activist collective Trans Resistance MA, said it’s an opportunity for an inflection point.
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We’re wanting something that’s more inclusive.” “It almost seemed like did Pride for our allies and for the corporations,” Valentine said. The Pride Parade, he said, “Is one of the few times that the LGBTQ community can come together and not feel alone.”Īt the same time, “the previous Pride events didn’t really feel - for a lot of trans people, for a lot of people of color - like it was for us,” Valentine said, pointing to instances when big-name companies were placed in more prominent positions than community organizations, or disputes over whether “Black Lives Matter” signs should be displayed. “It is a big deal and also it’s not,” said Tre’Andre Valentine, executive director of the statewide advocacy organization Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition. Leaders from multiple organizations told GBH News the loss of the parade would not devastate the month-long celebration. But, as recently as 2018, the Pride Parade and related Pride Week events were estimated to pack a multimillion-dollar economic impact to Greater Boston.
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"It sounds like we're a little ways away from having an organization wholly set up to be able to take on the scale of preparation and logistics and all that requires, but there will be many celebrations this summer, and I stand with the organizations wanting to make sure that the foundation is strong before rushing into any event," said Wu, who recently announced a new city Office of LGBTQ+ Advancement to safeguard LGBTQ rights.īoston doesn't officially track estimates about the economic impact of events like parades, according to the mayor’s office. It also leaves some in Boston struggling to mark Pride without a centralized non-profit behind which to rally and organize. The absence of the parade comes as Mayor Michelle Wu seeks to brand the city as emerging from the pandemic.