106 Photos of Motor City Pride You Won't Forget

Motor City Pride is the largest Pride event in Michigan, with over 40,000 participants. The theme this year was “Rise. Unite.Win.” On Motor City Pride's website organizers state, “Pride is a celebration of solidarity and the value of equality central to our movement. Today our communities are under attack, but time and time again, our Union has shown that everyday people can take on billionaires like Trump and win. When we rise + UNITE — we WIN!”

In 1986, a relatively new organization, the Michigan Organization for Human Rights, organized Michigan's first gay and lesbian march in Detroit.

Since 2009 Motor City Pride has been headed up by a core group of Triangle Foundation volunteers that form the Motor City Pride Planning Committee. Triangle Foundation merged with Michigan Equality to form Equality Michigan; in 2012 Equality Michigan expanded the festival to two days and saw the return of a parade to the festival lineup. The festival grew to drawing over 35,000 participants and featuring over 200 performers. In 2017 Equality Michigan assisted Motor City Pride founding its own 501(c)3 nonprofit organization so the planning committee could concentrate on growing the festival, and to allow Equality Michigan to concentrate on its core mission of victim services, education, and policy work.

Thanks to Marcie Killian Connally of Pink Moon Photography for the great pictures!