In late March—which feels like a decade ago—LA Pride producer Christopher Street West announced that, like all major events, it was postponing the 50th anniversary of the LGBTQ celebration, with no makeup date made available for the West Hollywood tradition.
But on Thursday morning, CSW announced that it “has decided the responsible decision is to not host any in-person celebrations for the remainder of the year” due to public health concerns. In other words, any in-person version of the LA Pride Parade and Festival has been canceled for 2020.
The news comes a few days after the West Hollywood City Council decided to defund city events for the rest of the year, including the West Hollywood Halloween Carnaval, in order to free up its budget for citizens in need.
Though Pride won’t be taking place in person, CSW has vowed to still mark the occasion with some sort of digital celebration, including participation in this year’s virtual Global Pride; expect more details to be announced in June. The organizer has also vowed to mark this year’s milestone anniversary with the hopeful return of a physical celebration in 2021.
“Although we cannot celebrate Pride with a Festival or Parade, CSW will make sure that the spirit of Pride is not forgotten,” said Estevan Montemayor, president of the CSW board of directors, in a statement. “The LGBTQ+ community has overcome many obstacles over the years and has always emerged stronger and more unified. The 50th anniversary will be one to remember regardless of a physical experience this year, and our hope is to resume in-person events for our incredible milestone in 2021.”