In honor of Harvey Milk Day and June Pride Month, the City of Irvine will host its third annual Pride in Irvine event. Come stand together Wednesday, May 22, 5–7 p.m., at the Irvine Civic Center Piazza, as the City raises the Progress Flag in front of City Hall in recognition and support of our LGBTQIA+ community.
Attendees will have opportunities to explore programs provided by local advocacy and support organizations, enjoy refreshments and activities, learn about valuable resources, make connections, and celebrate Pride at this free event.
Harvey Milk was the first openly gay politician elected to public office in California, serving on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors from 1977 to 1978. His life and political career embodied the rise of the LGBTQIA+ civil rights movement. While in office, Milk advocated for the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community. Milk was assassinated in 1978 by Dan White, a former colleague on the Board of Supervisors. On October 11, 2009, former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger established Harvey Milk Day to be held as a significant observance on May 22, Milk’s birthday.
The Progress Flag is a symbol of the diversity and intersectionality of LGBTQIA+ persons and communities around the world. The flag will be flown from May 22 to June 30 to mark two important turning points in the fight for LGBTQIA+ rights. June 26 marks the anniversary of the historic Obergefell v. Hodges Supreme Court decision in 2015, which ruled that the fundamental right to marriage is guaranteed to same-sex couples and is law in all 50 states. Pride Month also celebrates June 28 as the anniversary of when the Stonewall riots began in 1969 and are widely considered to be the defining event that transformed the LGBTQIA+ movement.
The Irvine Civic Center Piazza is located at 1 Civic Center in Irvine. Learn more about Pride in Irvine at cityofirvine.org/pride.