How To Celebrate Pride Month in Houston

Pride month is here, and the ways to celebrate are seemingly endless. Are we here for the rainbow eyeshadow and chaps? Yes, obviously! But, at its core, Pride is a political event protesting the unjust treatment and systems faced by the LGBTQ+ community. Here’s what to know about Pride Month in Houston and how to get involved.

Why We Celebrate In June

Pride as we know it started with the Stonewall Uprising on June 28, 1969, when police raided a gay bar in New York City’s Greenwich Village and patrons fought back. The ensuing fights outside the bar continued for six days and fundamentally changed the discourse of LGBTQ+ activism. Historians note that Stonewall was primarily a shift in how white cisgender people viewed queer rights and that it was actually a culmination of years of activist efforts.

On the uprising’s first anniversary, Pride solidarity marches were held in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Chicago. In Houston, the first official Pride parade rolled down Lower Westheimer in 1979, but the foundation was set years earlier. And across the country, more and more cities joined until the federal government recognized the month officially in 1999.

Pride Today

Pride is celebrated globally with events from parades and protests to community forums and book clubs. But, as Pride has grown, it has also become more commercial. Many activists are concerned that pinkwashing and giant corporate sponsors have taken away from the original message of Pride at a time when there is still a lot of work to be done. To combat this, many local activists have established independent Pride events.

How to Celebrate in Houston

Here’s how Montrose became the LGBTQ+ hub of Houston.