UIC celebrates LGBTQ+ Pride Month

The Chancellor’s Committee for the Status of LGBTQ+ People celebrates Pride Month in June. 

The month of June is designated Pride Month to commemorate the anniversary of the Stonewall Rebellion in New York City June 28, 1969. At a time when police raids on LGBTQ+ bars were common, the patrons at the Stonewall Inn and other bars fought back when the police became violent. Transgender activists, like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, were at the forefront of the fight. The Stonewall Rebellion sparked national activism and is considered the catalyst for advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights in the United States.

Pride Month honors the diversity of LGBTQ+ people and provides opportunities for the community and allies to come together. Chicago’s LGBTQ+ community held its first Gay Liberation March June 27, 1970. This march, which came to be known as the Pride Parade, encouraged people to fight homophobia, to come out and raise awareness of the issues and injustices facing the community.

This year’s parade is dedicated to the memory of Richard William Pfeiffer, coordinator of the annual Chicago Pride Parade since 1974 and a member of Chicago’s Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame. Pfeiffer watched Chicago’s first parade in 1970, was a volunteer marshal at the second, third and fourth parades, and he volunteered to be the coordinator at the fifth parade in 1974. He held the title through this year’s 50th annual Chicago Pride Parade. He died Oct. 6, 2019, at the age of 70.

The coronavirus pandemic brought Chicago Pride festivities to a standstill in 2020 and 2021, but the following Pride events are scheduled to return in 2022:

• Andersonville Midsommarfest: June 10-12.
• UIC GSC PRIDE Picnic: 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. June 15 at the Behavioral Sciences Building gazebo. Attendees must RSVP by Thursday, June 9.
• Chicago Pride Fest: June 18-19.
• Pride in the Park: June 25-26.
• Chicago Pride Parade: June 26.
• Pride South Side: July 1-3.
• Chicago Dyke March: TBD.

The Chancellor’s Committee for the Status of LGBTQ+ People reminds the UIC community that is important to remember that although things have gotten better, the LGBTQ+ community still faces violence and discrimination. Many states have pending legislation targeting LGBTQ+ people for discrimination. Examples include prohibiting gender-affirming health care for transgender youth, and conversion therapy remains legal in many parts of the United States. Please visit Lambda Legal or Transgender Law Center to learn more. The Chancellor’s Committee for the Status of LGBTQ+ People encourages all UIC community members to learn more about LGBTQ+ people. UIC reinforces its commitment to greater inclusion of LGBTQ+ individuals with the following resources:

• UIC Gender and Sexuality Center:
  • The GSC promotes deeply engaged and life-affirming thinking, learning and action with students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members. Through programs, initiatives, events and workshops, the GSC creates a more inclusive campus and catalyzes positive social change in the world. Underlying the center’s work is an understanding of intersecting identities and the multiple layers of diversity within LGBTQIA+ identities.
  • All-gender restrooms.
• UI Health LGBTQ+ Inclusive Care.
• UIC Bias Reporting Tool: Bias reporting and prevention.
• For allies: Navigating Allyship.