Pride Around the World: Photos from Tokyo to Croatia and More

In honor of June being Pride month, we have rounded up photos from this year's Pride festivities all around the world. Most of the cities featured made The Advocate's Gayest Cities of 2012 list, so enjoy these photos from their festivals, parades and other Pride events.

Europe's Pink Parade and The Rainbow Parade:

The 9th Pink Parade was held in Nice in southeastern France, June 16, with the national slogan: "In 2012, equality is just waiting." Organized by Aglae, an LGBT group, attendees met up at avenue Saint-Jean-Baptiste and headed toward the Promenade des Anglais. A minute's silence was observed at the Centennial Monument, at Albert I garden. The parade ended at Mamac, where pink drinks were served outdoors on the terrace of C'Factory with DJ Lady Power.

People took part in the 11th annual Strasbourg Pride parade on June 16, in the French eastern city of Strasbourg. Drag queens, civil rights activists, and scantily clad gay and straight couples made their way through the city to the thumping of dance music.

Athens, Greece Gay Pride:

Participants in the Athens Gay Pride event lsiten to live music at a central Athens square.

A christian woman wields a holy icon in centrail Athens during the Gay Pride parade.

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Boston, Massachusetts Gay Pride:

Under a warm sun, thousands of revelers lined up along the route for the 2012 Boston Gay Pride Parade on June 9, whooping and cheering for marching bands, bike clubs, and Mayor Thomas Menino.

The parade, which is in its forty-second year, began in Copley Square, wound through Clarendon, Tremont, and Berkeley streets, and ended at City Hall Plaza. 

Grand Marshall Fast Freddy Murphy

Massachusetts Transgender Prolitical Coalition director Gunner Scott

Headline Act Rye Rye

Headline Act Alexis Jordan

Festival at Boston City Hall Plaza

Parade passing the State House

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Tokyo, Japan Rainbow Pride:

Some 1,000 LGBT folks and their supporters took part in Tokyo Rainbow Pride at Shibuya shopping district.

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida PrideFest:

The wonderful thing about Florida weather is that they can have their parade and festival in March, while the rest of the nation is still bundled up. Possibly the first city each year to have its celebration, this year PrideFest 2012: Beyond the Rainbow rocked Fort Lauderdale on March 17 and 18 with featured performer Taylor Dane.
Enjoy these great images by J.R. Davis and Steve Shires from the great folks at Pride of South Florida.

Taylor Dane

Bev McClellan, The Voice Season 1 finalist

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Tel Aviv Pride:

Our friend in Tel Aviv, Roy Youldous Rosenzweig, reports to us directly from the Pride party:

After being crowned the gayest city for 2011 by the LGBT travel website GayCities, no one would expect a less than amazing festival. Also known as the "white city,” Tel Aviv was dressed in rainbow hues with an estimated 15,000 tourists from all around the world who came to celebrate.

People from the U.S., Germany, Russia, France, and even far away as Australia and Japan partook in the parade, party, and peaceful celebration.

The parties started in the Tel Aviv gay center in Gan Meir, the only gay center in the world fully budgeted by the City Council. The parade took off, passing through the streets, attracting enthusiastic supporters from Israel and abroad all the way to a spectacular beach party.

The parade in Tel Aviv is the biggest gay event of the month, but not the only one. Nine more parades are taking place this year all around the country – including in Jerusalem (July 31). Following the pride weekend is the TLVFest – the International Gay Film Festival, which will took place the week of June 9.

Croatia Gay Pride:

Activists waved rainbow flags as they participated in the parade in Split. More than 300 people marched through the city guarded by 900 riot police.

Brazil Gay Pride:

About 3 million people were expected to take part in the parade under the 2012 theme “Homophobia Has a Cure.”

Revelers perform atop a float during the annual Gay Pride parade in Sao Paulo, Brazil. 

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