Once more this summer, central Warsaw will grind to a standstill on June 9th as the Equality Parade snakes its way through the streets of the capital…

First held in 2001, the Equality Parade has survived numerous political obstacles to grow into one of the largest annual parades held in Poland. “It’s growing bigger with each year,” says Julia Maciocha, chairwoman of the Volunteers of Equality Foundation, “and what’s really encouraging is that so many young people have joined the preparation process – they want their voices to be heard and for me, that’s super cool!”

From the outset, the founders sought to make the march more than just a gay / lesbian event, a point that’s now never been clearer. “My goal was to include more groups,” says Maciocha, “so I’m really happy that more and more minorities are joining us and realizing that it’s their celebration as well. Beyond that, we’ve ten or so massive companies walking alongside us – Google, Microsoft, IBM, etc. – and the fact that they’ll be there will hopefully open the parade even more to the mainstream public.”

Don’t Miss!
Equality Town: “If you’re curious about Polish society or our struggles visit Equality Town,” says Maciocha. “There’ll be more than 40 NGO’s eager to explain what they’re doing and how they’re fighting for equal rights in Poland.”

Equality Parade: “Three hours full of color, joy and love! There’ll be amazing energy with 14 floats featuring different music and more than 40 groups with different signs. See them all!”
Open-air Concert: “Entrance is free, so no matter what your economic status is, come and celebrate with us!”

The Afterparty: “We’ll have three stages with different music in Metropolis Warsaw and Jasna 1, with all the money raised going to the next Equality Parade.” Yet while the fun aspect is well documented, Maciocha is keen to stress the underlining point. “The Equality Parade is quite unusual for Europe,” she adds. “It’s not just a party, it’s a political march that’s fighting for rights, and not just those of the LGBTQIA community.”

Equality Parade
June 9
paradarownosci.eu

(Images: Parada Równości)