Travel plays a bigger role in Pride celebrations than you might think.
June could come and go like any other month.
Now, it’s helping millions more around the globe including me express themselves.
The Empire State Building is lit in rainbow colors to celebrate Pride weekend in New York City on June 28, 2020 as seen from Weehawken, New Jersey.Credit: Gary Hershorn/Getty Images
I attended my first Pride in London in my 20s.
That’s why I’ve continued to travel for Pride each year.
From the very beginning, Pride was a draw for LGBTQ travelers.
Revellers travel on a double-decker bus during the Pride in London parade on 06 July, 2019 in London, England. The festival, which celebrated 50 years since the Stonewall Uprising, attracts hundreds of thousands of people to the streets of the British capital to celebrate the LGBT+ community.WIktor Szymanowicz/NurPhoto via Getty Images
“Before anyone knows we are gay, we are Black.
Our safety is always our number one concern, so we typically celebrate Pride in more accepting places.”
With hate crimes rising, feeling safe isn’t a given for LGBTQ travelers.
People hold up rainbow flags at the start of Virgin Australia’s special Pride Flight bound for Sydney on March 05, 2021 in Brisbane, Australia. The one-off Virgin Australia flight entirely operated by LGBTQ+ cabin crew and allies is bringing more than 120 passengers to Sydney.Don Arnold/WireImage
That’s why the travel sector plays a crucial role in furthering the acceptance of the queer community.
Perhaps that’s what makes the rise of LGBTQ+ travel companies and Pride-centered trips so significant.
People participate in the LGBTQ Jerusalem March for Pride and Tolerance on June 02, 2022 in Jerusalem, Israel. The annual event often draws right-wing and religious counter-protests. At the 2015 parade, a teenage participant was fatally stabbed, and several others were wounded, by an ultra-Orthodox extremist.Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images
Members of Dykes on Bikes ride in the annual Pride Parade on June 12, 2022 in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles, California. After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Los Angeles Pride Parade has abandoned its historic route through West Hollywood for a new one through Hollywood. The event was first held on June 28, 1970, exactly one year after the historic Stonewall Rebellion in New York City.David McNew/Getty Images
Attendee of the Pride Parade in San Juan, Puerto Rico on June 5, 2022.RICARDO ARDUENGO/AFP via Getty Images