Revamped Pride festival moves out of Steele Indian School Park
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The Phoenix Pride Festival will be a lot different this year as the organization grapples with financial problems.
Why it matters: The annual festival is a source of inclusion and belonging for members of LGBTQ+ communities.
State of play: The 45th annual Pride festival is moving out of Steele Indian School Park, where it's been held since 2003, to the Arizona Center in downtown Phoenix this weekend.
- Instead of a two-day festival, it'll be a one-day event on Sunday with a concert on Saturday night featuring Madison Rose.
- The Pride parade Sunday morning will begin at Third and Portland streets and end at Third and Taylor streets, near the Arizona Center.
Zoom in: Instead of being a ticketed event, this year's Pride will be free, Phoenix Pride spokesperson Jeremy Helfgot tells Axios.
- Tickets will be required for a "next-tier area with some of the heavier headliner entertainment" and a VIP experience Sunday, he says, as well as for the Saturday night concert.
What they're saying: Despite the shorter and smaller festival, Helfgot predicts it'll be "every bit as big as it is every year in terms of what's being offered."
- "It's going to be a little more intimate. It's going to have that kind of tighter community feel that Rainbows has, but with the full-blown scale of a Pride festival," he says, referring to the Rainbows Festival that Phoenix Pride hosts every spring.
Catch up quick: Phoenix Pride announced in May that it was declaring bankruptcy, citing "rising operational costs, economic uncertainty, shifts in sponsorship and fundraising partly due to the current political climate and administration, and increasing demands on nonprofit organizations."
- "It's no secret Pride is undergoing Chapter 11 proceedings. But there's still a solid and unwavering commitment to deliver what the organization does for the community," Helfgot says.
- It was part of a larger trend that saw Pride organizations nationwide struggle with decreased corporate sponsorships.
- Tucson Pride announced in January that it was dissolving after nearly 50 years.
Context: Pride Month is in June, but Phoenix's Pride Festival isn't until October due to the Valley's intense summer heat.
Zoom out: There will also be peripheral events that aren't organized by Phoenix Pride, and Helfgot recommends keeping an eye on bars and clubs in the community.
- "It's going to be a busy weekend on Melrose, for sure," he says.