DENVER — A coalition of protesters interrupted the main stage at Denver PrideFest Saturday to highlight the Stonewall anniversary, advocate for trans and queer rights, and express solidarity with Palestine.
"There are several different organizations out here today. We aim to do kind of like taking back pride, like a people's pride," said Julia Swezy with Freedom Road Socialist Organization. "As opposed to just taking part in, kind of the regular Pride festivals and things like that. We want to have like a particular character to this event that is more militant, calls attention to the attacks that are happening, and also this is a promise to fight back against those kind of things."
Organizer Z Williams led the group from Cheesman Park to the Colorado State Capitol, taking stops along the way for other community advocates to address the crowd. Williams explained that this is a coalition-organized event featuring a diverse range of groups coming together as one.
"We saw people pouring in from the houses leaving brunch," said Williams. "It was really exciting, especially to walk around the historic queer parts of Denver and come into the Pride festival."
As the group made its way through PrideFest, some people joined in the march while others applauded the action. There was some opposition to the group taking over the stage.
Brandon Rattiner, senior director of the Jewish Community Relations Council, explained how certain messages are harmful to the Jewish community, especially after recent events.
"I would say that the story is not people being scared to come here. The story is what happens when this rhetoric really takes root in people's hearts and minds. When you have people from the stage shouting 'Globalize the Intifada!' over and over and over and over again, you're going to get what they mean, which is an attack in Boulder just a few weeks ago where 12 people were lit on fire because they support Israel," Rattiner said.
Denver7 is a sponsor of Denver's PrideFest and, throughout Pride month, has been hearing the voices of Colorado's LGBTQ+ community and sharing their unique stories for a special segment.
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