Phoenix Pride Festival kicks off Saturday after four decades in the Valley

PHOENIX — Alero Mills has welcomed thousands of folks to Steele Indian School Park for the annual Pride Festival since 2002. The longtime volunteer witnessed the growth of a movement firsthand.

“It was probably like half the park when I started out,” said Mills. “It really says a lot in general, not only for Phoenix Pride but just for the community as a whole,” he said.

Phoenix Pride Festival 2023: Everything you need to know about the parade, event

Dating back to 1981 with the “We Are Here” march to the state capital, the Phoenix Pride Festival would become a symbol of acceptance for four decades, growing from a few thousand attendees to more than 50,000 expected this year.

“When you come to Pride, I want to make sure that you leave here knowing that you have a support system, knowing that you have people that, regardless of what you’re going through, we’ll be there for you,” said Mills, who is now in her 50s. “When I was growing up, it was different, I couldn’t be me and to see kids and young adults be themselves. I’m really happy for them.”

“By Saturday afternoon, this dance floor is going to be packed with people,” said Pride spokesperson Jeremy Helfgot, while pointing to the dance floor.

Helfgot says the festival of course provides a fun and safe place for the LGBTQ+ community and its allies to gather, but honors those who were on the frontlines of history to help provide a better opportunity for so many.

“We have seven stages of entertainment running throughout the weekend, but the parade is really the symbolic heart in that it does symbolize and harken back that very first march in 1981,” said Helfgot.

The weekend culminates with thousands cheering along 3rd Street between Thomas and Indian School roads on Sunday morning beginning at 10 a.m. Those marching embrace their authentic selves and, for Mills, it's an event she looks forward to most of all.

“We’re not just going to celebrate in this park, we’re going to be celebrating throughout this whole community of Phoenix, you’re gonna see rainbows,” said Mills.