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In planning its annual Pride Month celebrations this year, Indy Pride faced a political dark cloud hovering over the LGBTQ+ community.
“It’s no secret that LGBTQ+ rights are under attack,” Hudson Gaunt, Indy Pride office manager, told TheStatehouseFile.com. “Currently, there are countless bills and things put into place that target queer rights, whether it’s laws pertaining to our rights to use the bathroom in public, dress the way we want to or obtain medical care.”
Along with that, the organization had a more difficult time finding business sponsors, which Gaunt attributed in part to corporations pulling back public DEI efforts.
Nevertheless, with 2025 marking the 30th anniversary of the Indy Pride organization, it extended its Pride festivities to two days: this Saturday and Sunday.
“We’re still having our celebration,” said Tina Robb, Indy Pride marketing director. “We’re still going. Joy is an act of resistance, and that is what we are going to do.
“While it looks like we’re having fun and partying, that’s the point. We want to show that this is not bothering us and that we’re going to continue to be here and continue to exist just like we always have. That is our responsibility as an organization, to provide that space for people and to scream at the top of our lungs that we exist.”
On Saturday, the two-hour parade begins at 10 a.m. along Massachusetts Avenue in downtown Indianapolis. Celebration on the Circle, with a long list of performers, food, and other vendors, takes place from noon to 5 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday at Monument Circle. Word of Mouth, a series of music concerts on the nearby American Legion Mall, also stretches over both days. It requires tickets.
“We allow anybody and all people to come to any of our events. We also have family-friendly events,” said Robb. “We try to make that a very big piece of what we do, is to make sure that everybody can attend our events.”
