Kicking off Pride month June 1 was Transpire Help’s 5th annual Pride on the Block fundraiser.

Check out our most-read stories from last year.

The Stonewall Riot of 1969 changed the course of human history, but the visceral memories of the sound of breaking glass, the smell of burning fires, and the images of overturned police cars are fading.

Sometimes it was raining and sometimes the sun was shining. But rain or shine, pride partiers were rocking the boat. On June 8, the fifth annual FLoatarama sailed down the New River from Esplanade Park, down to the Intercoastal, and up to the Galleria Mall.

Pride is something that has various meaning to each of us within the LGBTQ community, especially in the year of 2024. My first pride was in Fort Myers around 2002, when I was just a young gay boy living my life. Pride was a small event compared to the giant parties we have come to know and love in South Florida. With about 500 people from our community, we thrived to find family, friends, and our place in this world.

Juneteenth is America’s true Independence Day. It celebrates the day that news of emancipation reached Texas, the last state to learn of liberation. Though this is only the fourth year it’s been recognized as a federal holiday, it’s long been celebrated as a true day of independence. This year the celebration expands.