Thousands of people gathered at Porte de La Villette in the early afternoon for a Pride March whose motto this year is the fight against transphobia.
The Parisian LGBTQ+ pride march, for which several tens of thousands of people are expected, set off early Saturday afternoon from the north of the capital to reach Place de la République, with the slogan this year the fight against transphobia.
A young crowd gathered at midday, at the Porte de la Villette, a popular district in the north of Paris, repeating in a festive atmosphere slogans such as “put glitter in your life”, “the fight, it’s my pride”, “against transphobia: transsolidarities”.
“Here we feel surrounded”
This last slogan is also written on the banner at the head of the procession. Lily and Noah, two sisters aged 16 and 20 who came from Normandy for the march, prefer to remain anonymous because their mother is worried: “In our small town, being out as a lesbian is difficult, here we feel surrounded and safe.”
Colorful floats, unicorn-shaped balloons, hearts or disco balls, percussion concert or London-style bus from the Act-up association, the procession must reach the Place de la République where a concert is planned from 4:30 p.m. with headliners Eddy de Pretto, Bilal Hassani, Desire, Louïz and even the drag queen Piche.
A die-in, a demonstration where participants lie on the ground to symbolize those who died from AIDS, is also planned.
According to a police source, the authorities expect 50,000 to 80,000 participants.
