LGBT is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
The LGBT community is a loosely defined grouping of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and other queer individuals united by a common culture and social movements. These communities generally celebrate pride, diversity, individuality, and sexuality. LGBT activists and sociologists see LGBT community-building as a counterweight to heterosexism, homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, sexualism, and conformist pressures that exist in the larger society. The term pride or sometimes gay pride expresses the LGBT community's identity and collective strength; pride parades provide both a prime example of the use and a demonstration of the general meaning of the term. The LGBT community is diverse in political affiliation. Not all people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender consider themselves part of the LGBT community.
São Paulo LGBTQ Pride Parade is an annual gay pride parade that has taken place in Avenida Paulista, in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, since 1997. It is South America’s largest Pride parade, and is listed by Guinness World Records as the biggest pride parade in the world starting in 2006 with 2.5 million people. They broke the Guinness record in 2009 with four million attendees. They have kept the title from 2006 to at least 2016. They had five million attendants in 2017. As of 2019 it has three to five million attendants each year. In 2019, it was also the second larger event of the city of São Paulo in terms of total revenue and the first in terms of daily revenue. In 2010, the city hall of São Paulo invested 1 million reais in the parade. According to the LGBT app Grindr, the gay parade of the city was elected the best in the world.
Brenda Howard was an American bisexual rights activist and sex-positive feminist. The Brenda Howard Memorial Award is named for her.
Cristina E. Martinez is a nationally recognized community activist, business owner and non-profit volunteer and the CEO of Mad Clik, Inc., a corporation in Texas. Openly lesbian, she is the owner and publisher of Gay & Lesbian Rainbow Pages, President of "MD Marketing & Advertising", and co-owner of Rainbow Graphics, a graphic design firm whose focus is to produce effective ad campaigns that cater to and target the LGBT community.
Discussions of LGBT rights at the United Nations have included resolutions and joint statements in the United Nations General Assembly and the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), attention to the expert-led human rights mechanisms, as well as by the UN Agencies.
Pink Dot SG, known exonymously as Pink Dot, is an event that has occurred annually since 2009 in support of the LGBT community in Singapore. Attendees of Pink Dot events gather to form a "pink dot" to show support for inclusiveness, diversity and the freedom to love in the country. In addition to the titular formation, Pink Dot events usually feature concert performances and booths sponsored by organisations supporting the LGBT community and cause.
The lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other non-heterosexual or non-cisgender (LGBTQ+) community is prevalent within sports across the world.
Petter Wallenberg is a multi-awarded Swedish artist, author, director and human rights advocate. He is the founding director of Bland drakar och dragqueens, a multi-awarded theatre production where famous drag queens perform stories to children. Petter is also the founding director of Rainbow Riots, an award winning non-profit organisation that uses arts and culture to advocate for human rights for LGBT people globally. He has composed and produced several critically acclaimed music albums and in 2013 book "Historien om Leila K" was released in Sweden.
Pune Pride is an annual LGBT pride parade that was first held in Pune, Maharashtra on 11 December 2011. It is the second Pride parade to be organized in the state of Maharashtra, after the Queer Azaadi Mumbai Pride March.
Equality Illinois (EI) was founded in 1991 to work towards building a better Illinois by advancing equal treatment and social justice through education, advocacy, and protection of the rights of the LGBT community.
Queer Azaadi Mumbai Pride March, also called Queer Azaadi March and Mumbai pride march, is an annual LGBTQIA pride parade that is held in the city of Mumbai, capital of Maharashtra, India. It usually begins from Gowalia Tank ending at Girgaum Chowpatty. It, along with the Pride Week, is organized by Queer Azaadi Mumbai, a collective of organizations and individuals working for the rights of LGBTQIA community. The participants of the march include people from the LGBTQIH community as well their "straight allies", from India and outside. In addition to being a celebration of queer pride, the pride march and related events are a platform to ask for equal rights.
Hyderabad is a conservative city when it comes to LGBT rights, compared to other Indian Metros. But since it slowly started becoming the second IT-capital after Bangalore, there has been a continuous influx of people of all cultures from across India. In the past few years, there has been some increase in LGBT activism in Hyderabad, including pride marches of 2013 and 2014. Slowly, Top MNCs have been introducing LGBT friendly policies in their Hyderabad offices.
New York City is home to one of the largest LGBTQ populations in the world and the most prominent. Brian Silverman, the author of Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day, wrote the city has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most powerful LGBT communities", and "Gay and lesbian culture is as much a part of New York's basic identity as yellow cabs, high-rise buildings, and Broadway theatre". LGBT travel guide Queer in the World states, "The fabulosity of Gay New York is unrivaled on Earth, and queer culture seeps into every corner of its five boroughs". LGBT advocate and entertainer Madonna stated metaphorically, “Anyways, not only is New York City the best place in the world because of the queer people here. Let me tell you something, if you can make it here, then you must be queer.”
Rainbow Riots is a non-profit organisation that creates arts and cultural projects to advocate for human rights for LGBTQ people around the world. It was founded in 2012 by Petter Wallenberg, a Swedish artist, musician, director and human rights activist, who creates artistic collaborations with fellow LGBT people all over the world to advocate for equality.
Gay Bombay is an LGBT social organization in Mumbai, India, which promotes LGBT rights. It was founded in 1998. The organization works to create an awareness of gay rights through workshops, film screenings, and parties. The organisation aims to create a safe space for the LGBT community.
Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Odisha, India, held its first Pride Parade on 27 June 2009. Since then Pride has happened in 2010 and then again in 2018. Hundreds of people from Bhubaneshwar, Cuttack and other parts of Odisha take to the streets to celebrate the city's LGBTQ+ Pride Parades.
Indradhanu is the official LGBTQIA+ collective of Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. The student-driven collective aims to create a safe space for LGBT+ persons in the institute's campus. Members from Indradhanu have also been petitioners in the decriminalisation of homosexuality in India. In December 2021, it was accorded official recognition by the college administration. It now holds a nominated position in the Student Affairs Council of IIT Delhi and works with the office of Diversity and Inclusion, IIT Delhi.
