June 14th. Albany Pride. And not just any Pride. This year, nearly 5,000 people are going to march through the streets of New York’s capital city. This will be the largest parade we have ever put together. And The largest parade Albany has ever seen.
It is also the largest Pride festival in the entire northeast, outside of Boston and New York City.
That is us. That is this community.
And I am so proud. Proud of our community, our sponsors and allies. And our incredible Dream Team of dedicated volunteers and deeply committed staff who have put their hearts and souls into creating this amazing celebration of love and solidarity.
And visibility - a huge, jubilant display of who we are. This is resistance; our refusal to disappear, no matter what is thrown at us. We are here, we are queer, and we are not going back.
We started the month with flag raisings all across our region. I want you to really stop and look at those flags when you see them. Somewhere, a kid is going to walk past one and feel something shift inside them. That flag says: you are not alone. You are seen. You belong here. That is not a small thing. That is everything.
Pride says the same thing, along with a heck of an amazing party.
What makes it even more meaningful is knowing where this all started. In 1970 - one year after Stonewall, when people were still bruised and angry and fired up - Albany took to the streets. We were one of the first. More than 50 years later, we are still here, and we are bigger than we have ever been.
None of this happens without the sponsors, the allies, the community members who refused to back away from us and our mission, and who show up not just in June but all year long. The businesses who march with us. The neighbors who line the streets. The people who have been showing up for decades and the ones who are coming for the very first time. Thank you. Genuinely. This is yours too.
And that's the thing I really want to leave you with today — Pride is not just a weekend. It's not a parade, as spectacular as this one is going to be. Pride is and will always be a protest - a joyful refusal to go back into the dark and hide, a celebration of our authentic selves, no matter who tries to deny us or our existence.
Pride is every day that someone lives as their full self. Every day a community center opens its doors. Every day an ally speaks up. Pride is a practice. And right now, it matters more than ever.
Deb Vincent is the president of the Pride Center of the Capital Region. A longtime, outspoken advocate for the community, when she is not out fighting for folks' right to exist and live in peace, she can be found hanging out with her grandkid or on a river in her kayak.
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