Long Beach Pride 2018 Theme: Remember the Past, Create the Future

Long Beach Lesbian and Gay Pride is proud to announce the theme for our 35th annual celebration: “Remember the Past, Create the Future.” It was chosen by InterPride, the international association of Pride organizers, of which Long Beach Pride is a member.

The festival runs May 19 and 20, 2018, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. along Shoreline Drive. The parade steps off Sunday, May 20, at 10:30 a.m. on Ocean Boulevard.

One Theme, Shared Around the World

InterPride brings together the people who produce Pride events for the LGBTQ+ community. Every year its members choose a single theme, and Pride organizations around the world carry it into their own celebrations. The group also helps organizers stay in touch and share news, and it encourages communities of every kind to hold and attend Pride events.

Long Beach has a real place in that network. In 2010, our city hosted the 28th InterPride Conference.

Remembering Where We Started

The first half of this year’s theme comes easily to us. Our founders, Judi Doyle, Marilyn Barlow and Robert “Bob” Crow, met for the first meeting of Long Beach Lesbian and Gay Pride, Inc. in 1983. The first festival and parade followed in June 1984, when about 5,000 people gathered for a two-day celebration at Palm Island.

Bob remains the only founding member who still volunteers with us every year. In February 2018 he was named Person of the Year by the Consolidated Association of Pride (CAPI), an association of Pride organizations that Long Beach helped found in 1987.

Creating the Future

From that first weekend, our celebration has grown into one of the country’s premier Pride events, drawing more than 80,000 people over two days. The festival has six large dance areas, and the main stage has welcomed Grammy Award winner Jennifer Hudson, Queen Latifah, Chaka Khan, Maya, India.Arie and Village People.

The future part of the theme is already taking shape. For the first time, the 2018 festival will open a Senior Fun Zone for guests 50 and older, with free bingo, karaoke, games and drawings for prizes on Saturday and Sunday.

Groups and individuals who want to march under this year’s theme can still apply. Parade applications are due April 1, 2018. Keep an eye on longbeachpride.com for updates as May gets closer.