Motor City Pride 2025: Over 60K Celebrate with Political Support From Whitmer, Slotkin and More — See the Pics and Video!
Weekend festival in Detroit draws massive crowds and unprecedented political support
Motor City Pride 2025 proved that Detroit's LGBTQ+ community remains strong and united, drawing more than 60,000 attendees to Hart Plaza for Michigan's largest Pride festival and parade on June 8-9. The weekend celebration stood as a powerful counterpoint to rising anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment across the country.
"It was a great weekend as more than 60,000 people came out to celebrate, advocate and support each other," Motor City Pride Executive Director Dave Wait told Pride Source. "During this time of hateful rhetoric going on throughout the country, it was as important as ever for us to stand together."
Sunday's parade featured LGBT Detroit Executive Director A. Nzere Kwabena as grand marshal, highlighting the community leadership that has helped strengthen Detroit's LGBTQ+ advocacy efforts.
The festival showcased remarkable political support, with appearances from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, U.S. Sen. Elissa Slotkin, congressional representatives, state legislators and city council members. Slotkin toured the entire festival grounds and presented Motor City Pride with a Certificate of Congratulations that will be included in the Congressional Record.
"There are not many other Pride celebrations that have a governor, a mayor, a U.S. senator and representatives from Congress, members of the state legislature and city council member who step out to support the LGBTQ+ community here in Michigan," Wait said.
The weekend featured three stages with more than 50 acts and more than 200 performers, alongside an expanded historical exhibit designed by Milwaukee Pride's Vince Tripi. The display highlighted the 1969 Stonewall riots and celebrated LGBTQ+ leaders and advocates throughout history.
Detroit's corporate support remained strong despite national trends showing decreased Pride sponsorships due to anti-DEI initiatives. Only one sponsor withdrew from Motor City Pride, and that spot was quickly filled. The event ultimately secured backing from more than 140 sponsors, vendors and nonprofit organizations.
Wait highlighted Detroit's unique distinction in professional sports support. "I don't know if there's a city in the U.S. that has every professional sport supporting the festival and our commitment to equality," he said. "We had the Tigers, the Lions, the Pistons, the Red Wings, the Motor City Cruise and Detroit City Football Club."
The celebration marks 53 years since the first Motor City Pride parade in June 1972, when several hundred people marched down Woodward Avenue. This year's festivities demonstrated how far the community has come while acknowledging ongoing challenges to LGBTQ+ rights and visibility nationwide.
Photos: Andrew Potter
Photos: Andrew Potter
Read More
Why Jeremy Moss Won't Be Bringing a Pie Chart to a Knife Fight as He Runs for U.S. Congress
When I spoke with Jeremy Moss in November, he was weeks into recovering from a car accident that shattered his dominant arm. Another driver ran a red light, he [...]
The Social Psychology Behind the Trans Terrorism Panic
This story was originally written for Gay Times Magazine and appeared on Uncloseted Media. Joseph McConville’s first memory of being online was at 13 [...]
Passing the Torch at The Gay & Lesbian Review
The year was 1993. Nearly a million people had just marched on Washington demanding LGBTQ+ rights. Don't Ask, Don't Tell would be signed into law by year's end. [...]
Reports Say Renee Nicole Good, Killed by ICE, Was Part of LGBTQ+ Community
Washington Blade, Courtesy of the National LGBT Media AssociationA U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis as she [...]
'We Exist and Matter Here': Mike McGuinness on Serving Pontiac as Its First Openly Gay Mayor
On Oct. 29, just days before Pontiac's mayoral election, City Council candidate Dawn Hannah grabbed a microphone at a local nightclub and urged the crowd to [...]
Lessons From Michigan's LGBTQ+ Trailblazers for a New Year
Over the past year, our “Where Are They Now?” series has reconnected readers with some of Michigan’s most influential LGBTQ+ advocates — [...]
