Grampian Pride will take to the streets of Aberdeen later this month with the a new central theme focusing on “winter style”.
In both 2020 and 2021, Grampian Pride along with other events was held virtually due to the Covid pandemic.
Four Pillars, who stage the event each year, have decided to organise a new Winter Parade during the later half of 2021 to coincide with the easing of restrictions on large gatherings in Scotland.
The theme of this year’s pride is “winter style” which Four Pillars says allows for “even more rainbows and glitter.”
Grampian Pride celebrates the LGBTQ+ community in the north-east with over 6,000 people attending the event in 2019.
The Winter Parade will take place on the October 24 leaving from Holburn Junction at 11am and finishing at Marischal College at noon.
Due to Covid, paraders must have purchased a ticket or wristband to take part.
Adam Simpson, event volunteer, said: “Our main focus this year will be the parade where we can all remember our past, celebrate our present and embrace our future. However, we are working with our partners to secure a fun-filled afternoon/evening for you all.”
Winter Parade will bring together communities
This year’s Grampian Pride offers a chance to celebrate the community organisations and NHS keyworkers that have supported LGBTQ+ people throughout the pandemic.
Deejay Bullock, event lead coordinator, said: “It’s important during these challenging times we are able to bring the community together.
“To show individuals, that maybe feeling isolated or in difficult situations of their own, that they are not alone and there is a large community around them.
“It is vital that during these times we don’t forget our LGBT+ community, we have to remember our history, celebrate our present and embrace our future.
“And right now, no one knows what that future will look like, so we have to embrace it together, now more than ever.”
Four Pillars itself is a major LGBTQ+ charity in Aberdeen offering support services to the community.
It was set up in 2016 because the founders were dissatisfied with the lack of services available to the LGBTQ+ community in Grampian.
The Hub, run by the Four Pillars, at Regent Quay will be open during the event as a Covid vaccination clinic to encourage people to get vaccinated.
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