With the 53rd annual Chicago Pride Parade set for Sunday, June 30, Art Johnston has decades of wide-ranging memories and emotions around Pride Month, which culminates locally on the last Sunday of June with the rainbow-drenched parade through multiple northside Chicago neighborhoods in front of about 1 million spectators.

PRIDEChicago – the all-volunteer organization that has produced the iconic Chicago Pride Parade for 50 years, today announces the 2024 theme is “Pride is Power,” highlighting the fundamental role the Chicago Pride Parade has played in creating visibility and advocating for effective change for the city and region’s LGBTQ+ community for five decades.