Cape Town Pride

Last updated
Cape Town Pride
Cape Town Pride Logo.png
StatusActive
Genre Pride event
Location(s) De Waterkant, Cape Town
Years active31–32
Inaugurated1993 (1993)
Previous event2025
Next event2026
Activity Pride parade
Mardi gras
Organised byCape Town Pride
OUTReach Africa [1]
Website https://cptpride.org
The Cape Town Pride march, on its route along Somerset Road, in the Gayborhood of De Waterkant, Cape Town, in 2025. Cape Town Pride 2025 (1).jpg
The Cape Town Pride march, on its route along Somerset Road, in the Gayborhood of De Waterkant, Cape Town, in 2025.
The Rainbow Crosswalk is the official starting point of the Cape Town Pride parade. This photo is from the 2025 parade. Cape Town Pride 2025 (2).jpg
The Rainbow Crosswalk is the official starting point of the Cape Town Pride parade. This photo is from the 2025 parade.
Pride parade attendees on a float at Cape Town Pride 2014. 20140301-IMG 2347 (12885469545).jpg
Pride parade attendees on a float at Cape Town Pride 2014.
Cape Town Pride 2014 attendees. 20140301-IMG 2304 (12885781085).jpg
Cape Town Pride 2014 attendees.

Cape Town Pride is an annual gay pride event, featuring a collective of sub-events that includes the Cape Town Pride Parade. It is held in Cape Town, South Africa, and serves as a major opportunity to bring the LGBTQIA+ community together to celebrate their strength, freedom, and diversity.

Contents

It usually runs from around the end of February and is a week of festivals, parties and other events. [2]

History

The first pride parade in Cape Town was held in 1993, and has been held as an annual event since. [3] [4] :169

The parade resumed after a period in 2001, as part of a week-long Cape Town Pride event, [2] [4] :172 from 10 to 17 December.

The 2001 event was met with a protest organised by local Anti-abortion organisations outside the Church of the Sacred Heart in Somerset Road where a Gay Pride "Dignity and Diversity" Interfaith Service was being held. [5] A similar protest by religious groups occurred at the start of the 2024 Parade. However, the small group was essentially ignored, and did not manage to disrupt the march proceedings. The group of people was dispersed by police, and the Parade ended up taking place as planned.

Cape Town Pride was not held in 2003, when the event timing was moved to February. [2]

In 2006, the event adopted the theme "Uniting Cultures of Cape Town", in 2007 "The Carnival of Love", in 2009 "Pink Ubuntu – Uniting Cultures of Cape Town", [6] and in 2011 "Love Our Diversity". [7]


Events

Cape Town Pride includes the following events:

Traditionally, the Cape Town Pride Parade is held on a Saturday at the beginning of March. It starts at the rainbow crosswalk in Somerset Road, in the Gayborhood of De Waterkant. It then goes along Somerset Road and Granger Bay Boulevard, and ends at the Green Point Track, where various Pride-related festivities are held. The Green Point Track event includes food and craft stalls for visitors. [8] [9]

While the end-of-parade event is ticketed (by means of online bookings for a low fee), the march is free to attend. [10] [11]

Themes

Each year, Cape Town Pride has a particular theme. Some of these are in the table below.

Cape Town Pride Themes
YearTheme
2006Uniting Cultures of Cape Town
2007The Carnival of Love
2009Pink Ubuntu [6]
2011Love Our Diversity [7]
2025RainbowID [12]

Sponsors

Among the official sponsors of Cape Town Pride are; the City of Cape Town, Cape Town Tourism, the European Union, the Swedish Institute, and the Consulate General of Belgium in Cape Town. [13]

See also

References

  1. "About us". Cape Town Pride. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 "The Cape Town Pride Festival". Western Cape Events. Cape Travel Information. 14 February 2011. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
  3. de Waal, Shaun; Manion, Anthony, eds. (2006). Pride: Protest and Celebration. Jacana Media. pp. 6, 37, 64. ISBN   9781770092617 . Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  4. 1 2 Tucker, Andrew (2011). Queer Visibilities: Space, Identity and Interaction in Cape Town. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN   9781444399776 . Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  5. "Making a stand for Truth – Catholic Action Life League". The Roman Catholic Faithful. Archived from the original on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2014.
  6. 1 2 "Photo Galleries". Gap Leisure. Archived from the original on 13 May 2013. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
  7. 1 2 Matsebula, Peter (19 January 2011). "Love Our Diversity at this Year's Cape Town Pride". Behind the Mask. Archived from the original on 20 July 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
  8. 1 2 "Pride 2025". Cape Town Pride. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  9. Sundeeka Mungroo (28 February 2025). "Cape Town Pride Parade set for this weekend". MSN. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  10. "Cape Town Pride Mardi Gras 2025". Cape Town Pride. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  11. "Cape Town Pride Annual Parade March 2025". Cape Town Pride. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  12. "Message from the CEO". Cape Town Pride. 18 February 2025. Retrieved 23 March 2025.
  13. "Sponsors and Partnerships". Cape Town Pride. Retrieved 23 March 2025.