Cork's LGBT+ parade: Looking back with Pride over the years 

The highly-anticipated Cork LGBT+ Pride Festival made its return in recent days with a series of events in the city and county, culminating in the Cork Pride Parade in the city centre tomorrow.

The theme for this year’s festival is ‘30 Years On...’, marking the 30-year anniversary of the 1993 decriminalisation of homosexuality in Irish law.

“This year’s theme ‘30 Years On..’ reminds us how far we have come as both a community and a country, as consecutive Governments have legislated to progress, protect, and enshrine the rights of LGBT+ citizens across the State,” chairperson at Cork Pride, Clive Davis, said, speaking ahead of the commencement of the festival.

“David Norris paved the way over 30 years ago for LGBT+ rights and this year’s festival will be in celebration of those rights and what rights are hopefully to come for the generations that follow us.”

While Pride events had been held in Cork in previous decades, 2006 marked a milestone year as the inaugural Pride parade was held in Cork.

“Gay men, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people will participate in a series of events set to take place in the city during the week - including Cork’s first ever Gay Pride parade through the city on Sunday, June 4,” an article in the then titled Evening Echo on May 17, 2006, stated.

The article continued: “The co-chairman of Cork Pride 2006, Paul McAndrew, said that the parade which will be led by the Alternative Miss Cork ‘Lucy Furr’, promises to be a colourful celebration of what it means to be Gay in modern day Cork.

“‘The parade will be a flamboyant and colourful occasion, with up to 500 people taking part.

“‘There will be a 120-metre Gay Pride flag carried along by people, as well as colourful floats and of course plenty of music’, said Mr McAndrew.

“‘Parades are by their very nature a celebration of some aspect of life. This is our way of saying that the Gay scene in Cork is alive and vibrant.

“‘There has been a Gay float in the St Patrick’s Day parade for many years. This is simply a natural extension of that,” he added.”

Speaking at the time, Mr McAndrew had said organisers wanted to “create the same sort of buzz that surrounds other well-known parades such as Notting Hill and Rio di Janeiro”.

“This is the first year that we have felt there would be enough support from within the Gay community for a parade.

“We are confident that everyone, not only Gay people, will join in the fun,” he added.

Cork Pride supports and encourages a positive social, cultural and economic landscape for the Cork LGBT+ community.

Each year, the festival includes events and initiatives such as its family fun day, work with Pride diversity and inclusion conference and the much-loved Cork Pride parade followed by the ‘Party at the Port’.

Over the years, the festival has grown in popularity.

Last year, the 2022 Pride parade drew a crowd of almost 15,000 people, while the overall attendance for events across the week was over 30,000.

The parade tomorrow will assemble on the Grand Parade at 1pm and will commence at 2pm, with organisers promising an afternoon of “magical floats, music and mayhem, sequined drag queens glitter-covered guys and girls, families, friends and allies”.

‘Party at the Port’ takes place afterwards from 3-8pm at the Port of Cork, with Dublin pop band Wild Youth announced as the headline act for the post-parade event. For more see www.corkpride.com.