Pride Month celebrations planned for Triangle towns this June. Here’s where.

Pride Month begins Saturday, June 1, marking over 50 years since the first parades celebrating the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community.

The first parades came a year after the Stonewall Riots in New York in June 1969 when people fought back against police brutality of patrons and employees in lesbian and gay clubs. June was officially designated for celebrations in 1999 when President Bill Clinton declared Gay and Lesbian Pride Month. In 2011, the declaration was expanded by President Barack Obama to include the entire LGBTQ+ community.

In the Triangle, the biggest Pride Month celebrations are in Raleigh and Durham, but in recent years, LGBTQ+ groups and their supporters have organized Pride parades, requested proclamations, and worked with governments in the area’s smaller towns to host events.

This June, those smaller towns will be celebrating Pride for the second and third year in a row while others will just be getting started.

June 1: Chapel Hill Pride Promenade

▪ Downtown Chapel Hill, Peace & Justice Plaza, 139 E. Franklin St., noon to 3 p.m., chapelhillarts.org

• 12 p.m.: Gather at Peace & Justice Plaza

• 12:30 p.m.: Speakers

• 12:45 p.m.: Walk with Pride! begins

• 1 p.m.: Arrive at 140 West Franklin Plaza for a street market, music and sweet treats

June 1-2: PBO Pride Festival

▪ The Plant, 220 Lorax Lane, Pittsboro, beginning 6 p.m. on June 1, pbopride.com

• June 1: Drag Show & Dance Party, The Plant, ages 18 and up
  
  

• June 2: Festival and Parade, The Plant, Noon to 5 p.m., all ages, music, food trucks, local vendors, and activities

June 7: Pride Celebration in Morrisville

▪ Music in the Park, Health Food Hub, 280 Town Hall Drive, 6 to 8:30 p.m., morrisvillenc.gov

The town’s Music in the Park series will celebrate Pride with local band Sayer McShane and a drag bingo led by Miz Marsha Mellows. There will be food trucks and sweet treats.

June 8: Apex Pride Festival

▪ Town Hall Campus, 73 Hunter St., Downtown Apex, 11 to 5 p.m., apexnc.org/1605/pride-festival

This is a community event by the Apex Pride Committee and the Knowledge Exchange Research Group. There will be food trucks, music, local vendors, kid’s inflatables and games. Town Hall poarking will be closed from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

June 15: Fuquay-Varina Pride celebration

▪ Downtown Fuquay-Varina, beginning at 8 a.m., fv-pride.org

• 8 a.m.: Workout of the Day — Stonewall at Crossfit Shoofly, free entry
  
  

• 10 a.m.: Fuquay-Varina Pride Strut from the Council Gym in Falcon Park to Town Hall, all ages, 0.5 miles

• 11 a.m. to noon: Fuquay-Varina Farmers Market

• Noon to 4 p.m.: Fuquay-Varina Pride Celebration at Mason Jar Lager Co., 341 Broad St. Suite 151, all ages
  
  

• 3 to 6 p.m.: Crazy Glaze Pride Paint Day, tickets required, crazyglaze.net

• 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.: Teen Social at Stick Boy Bread Company, 127 S. Main St., ages 13 to 17

• 7 to 10 p.m.: Crazy Glaze Pride Night Paint, tickets required, crazyglaze.net
  
  

• 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.: Pride After Dark — Karaoke at the Brickhouse Bar & Grill, 213 Fayetteville St., ages 21 and up
  
  

June 22: Out! Raleigh Pride Festival

▪ Downtown Raleigh, Fayetteville Street, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., outraleighpride.org

The annual event is held by the LGBT Center of Raleigh. Admission is free and features about 100 vendors, music on two stages, speakers, artists, entertainment, food, a kid’s zone, beer garden, and more.

Pride Month in Cary

▪ Allies & Icons Pride Film Festival, The Cary Theater, beginning May 30, more information at thecarytheater.com.

▪ June 4 to 7: Art Exhibition: Pride Through the Decades, Cary Arts Center. Photographs, films and writings from the New York Library and the Library of Congress will be on display.

▪ June 1 to 5 & June 20 to 30: Downtown Pride Light Show. Lights are displayed at the Cary Arts Center, Downtown Cary Park, and the marquee of the Cary Theater.

▪ June 18: The History of PFLAG in Cary - The Sally Zumbach Story, the Page-Walker Arts & History Center, 7 p.m., free. The event tells the story of Sally, a Cary resident, who served as president of the Triangle chapter of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, PFLAG, in the 1980s and 1990s.

▪ June 22: Pride Cary Night Market, Downtown Cary Park, 5 to 10 p.m. Join Triangle area LGBTQ+ artisans and allies for locally sourced food, drinks, and music.

▪ June 23: #ForTheLove Pride Celebration with the North Carolina Courage, WakeMed Soccer Park, 6 p.m. Wear your best rainbow outfit as the team plays against the Chicago Red Stars.

▪ June 30: Family Pride Ride, Trek Bicycle of Cary, 10 a.m. Come early to adorn yourself and your bike in Pride decorations. Registration required.

▪ June 30: Pride in the Park, Downtown Cary Park, 12 to 4 p.m. This is an all-inclusive picnic with lawn games, arts and crafts, and more.

For more information about each event, visit carync.gov/recreation-enjoyment.

Fall Pride celebrations

Durham: Sept. 28-29

The LGBT Center of Durham is hosting its Pride celebration for a weekend in September.

Details about the event have not been shared yet but updates can be found at lgbtcenterofdurham.org.

Holly Springs: Sept. 7

The Pride of Holly Springs Committee is planning a Pride celebration that includes a parade, according to Jack Turnwald, a member of the committee.

More details about the event are to come.

Wake Forest: Oct. 5

▪ Downtown Wake Forest, East Owen Ave. & Brooks Street, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., free, wakeforestpride.org

For the first time, Wake Forest will be celebrating Pride this year. Wake Forest Pride is hosting the event.

The day is full of festivities like live music, food trucks, kid’s activities, and local vendors. The event is inclusive of all ages and identities.