Jun 29

Jun 29 Gone Mainstream

Chicago, Chicago Tourism, Demonstrations, Donald J. Trump, Festivals, Parades, Performance, Protest, Public Declarations

If it is the last Sunday in June, it’s time for Chicago’s Annual Gay Pride Parade; this year the 54th. Starting at Sheridan, the parade heads south on Halsted, makes it way down Broadway, and then turns onto Diversey Parkway, coming to its terminus at Cannon Drive (the far north side of Lincoln Park). In 2024, the parade began at Montrose, so this year the parade is six or seven blocks shorter.

But before providing any more details, the backstory. Feeling somewhat under the weather, I decided to alter my prior parade-day routine. Rather than heading to the parade’s starting point, I walked south to the endpoint. I then headed west, grabbing a position on Diversey just as the Dykes (and others) on Bikes turned east at the three-way intersection where Broadway, Clark, and Diversey merge. Had I adhered to past practice, I would have spent 90 minutes in the parade’s staging area, which offers great portrait opportunities.

Separately, I screwed up when packing my camera bag. I always carry two cameras, one with a 70-200 telephoto lens, and the other with a 24-70 zoom. My mistake today: I grabbed the wrong camera. Three-quarters of the way through the parade, my error became readily apparent. The camera I mistakenly grabbed had a full battery, but no SD-cards. Without “digital” film, none of my well-composed wide-angle images were preserved. I’ve never made this make before, and I won’t make it again.

For the last decade of covering this event, my reaction has been the same: Gay people are now mainstream. When I first attended the parade 31 years ago, there were lots of skinny boys, clad in little more than a Speedo or other revealing garb. In other words, people played to type. But with the passage of time, drag queens and leather boys have given way to Chuck in accounting and Sally in legal. Don’t take that as a criticism. It is living proof that Gays are no different than anyone else. Resembling the population at large, many in the LGQBT Community have simply traded washboard abs for a few extra pounds in the midriff.

Of course, if the parade were exclusively corporate, I wouldn’t bother covering it. Fortunately, enough people “dress” for the occasion, making the parade a visual feast. Ya gotta love the Pups, Leather People, and Drag Queens.

Were those who accessorize for the occasion to skip the parade, its mundanity would be even more apparent. Far too many groups simply walk the parade route. Years ago, marchers danced to ear-splitting disco music blaring from large speakers. While there is still recorded music, the volume is now much lower. The floats largely consist of people seated or standing on flatbed trailers decorated with balloons or crape-paper flowers.

Many standing on the floats mingle with each other rather than interacting with the crowds standing behind the barricades. With heads tilted downward, many who are seated simply gaze at their phones, sapping the parade of energy. How about some horses, antique cars, clowns, or even a giraffe or two? In all seriousness, the parade would be far better if the marchers were more performative.

With the Trump Administration in the first year of its second term, I was surprised that the parade was not more outwardly political. Watching the marchers, I saw very little signage calling out the Trump Administration or the U.S. Supreme Court. But there was a subtle undercurrent flowing through the streets. The signage addressed equality, HIV as a disease rather than as a crime, historical contributions made by the LGQBT community, and the need for LGBQT issues to be addressed in the schools.

Trump’s attack on DEI was quite apparent. In contrast to prior years, I did not see as many accounting, law, consulting, or other professional firms fielding marching units or buses filled with employees. With the exception of health care providers who fielded floats, corporate sponsorship appeared to be down .

Illinois politicos remained visible, including Governor Pritzker, who just announced that he will be running for a third term, Congressman Michael Quigley, and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. I didn’t see Senators Durbin or Duckworth. Most likely, both were in Washington, D.C. grappling with Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, which is now being considered by the Senate following last night’s procedural vote.

Chicago’s sports teams showed up, with the Bulls, Blackhawks, and White Sox showcasing their team mascots. The Chicago Cubs also had a marching unit. Several consumer product companies were visible, including DoorDash and Smirnoff Vodka.

Watching the marchers and floats pass by, I saw plenty of rainbow-colored flags, banners and other displays. Particularly noticeable this year was the blue and pink color scheme symbolizing the Transgender Community. Undoubtedly, many of the flags bearing those colors were carried by transgender people, but non-transgender members of the LGBQT also showed their solidarity.

Each year, the media outlets report that close to one million people line the parade route. I’ve always been skeptical. Without walking the entire parade route, I can’t say whether the number of spectators was down this year. Where I had taken up residence, though, there were far fewer spectators than in years past I was able to grab a front-row position at several points along Diversey. At most, the spectators were two deep. During the last five years, a number of mid-rise apartment buildings have gone up along Diversey. I did not see a lot of people on balconies or in open windows.

Normally, I spend time at the very end of the parade, photographing participants exiting the parade route. The police normally lock down that area, keeping spectators off the roadway. Not today. The chokepoint was relatively people-free.

For years, the City of Chicago had to police the parade route for hours after the parade ended due the sort of rowdiness associated with bar time. As I write this (10:00 PM), I can hear a police helicopter overhead, but I suspect the streets are a bit more reserved this year. I certainly don’t hear the loud yelling from the street below, which was a hallmark in prior years. The earlier 11:00 AM start time apparently is keeping some of the rowdiness in check. It may also explain what appears to have been a lighter turnout.

By and large, however, the atmosphere surrounding the parade is convivial. The parade provides the LGBQT with the opportunity to celebrate itself and the hard-won acceptance it has earned over the decades.

Even the Christian nationalists may have finally come to accept the LGQBT community. In prior years, the Chicago Police Department designated a space near the parade’s terminus for counter-protesters, who were far-right religious zealots, some of whom traveled from as far aways as Florida to heckle the marchers. The police used barricades to keep the two groups separated from each other, but one year, I saw a young man led away in handcuffs after he breached the barriers. The police may have changed the location for the designated area, but today I saw no counter-protesters or barricades in the usual spot.

The images that appear below may seem to contradict my thesis. While there were far more Sallys from legal and Chucks from accounting walking the parade route today than people dressed more exotically, other than their mothers, who wants a photograph of Sally or Chuck?

[Postscript: I headed home about 15 to 20 minutes before the parade concluded. By that time, the parade had lost any resemblance to a parade. People were simply walking down the street. I have since seen online video showing a pro-Palestinian unit, including people carrying a large, outstretched Palestinian flag by its sides, marching in the parade This group must have been one of the last units in the parade.]

[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]