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Pride in the Desert is the annual LGBTQ pride event for Tucson, Arizona. [1]
Similar to Phoenix Pride, Tucson does not hold a pride parade in the traditional month of June, due to high summer temperatures in Arizona. [2]
The history of gay pride events in Tucson began after the 1976 murder of Richard Heakin. [1] Heakin, who lived in Nebraska, visited a friend in Tucson and was beaten to death by four teenagers while exiting a bar named Stonewall Tavern. [3] The attackers were subsequently tried as juveniles, and sentenced to probation. [2] At the time, hate crimes were often not punished at all. [3] Heakin's murder became a motivation behind the foundation of Tucson Pride. [1]
The first Tucson pride event, organized by an organization named Tucson Gay Coalition, was named the Gay Pride Festival & Memorial Picnic. [4] It was held at Himmel Park on June 26, 1977, also the National Gay Pride Day that year. [5]
In 1982, the Tucson Gay Pride Festival was cancelled amidst a statewide call to fight against LGBT discrimination and oppression, and the event was turned into a civil rights march from Tucson to Phoenix. [5]
Since 1994, pride in Tucson is held in October. [2]
In 2018, the parade, which was traditionally scheduled to take place on a Friday evening before the festival, was rescheduled to daytime hours, due to concerns within the LGBTQ+ community that holding a parade during the evening hours sends a bad message, as if the community is hiding in the shadows. [6] In 2019 more than 5,000 people attended the event. [4] [7]
Over the years, Pride in the Desert has become a more family-centric theme. [2]
Pride in the Desert became a virtual event for 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The event took place on October 24. [8] The event returned in-person in 2022, which was also the event's 45th anniversary. [4] [7] [9]