This year's Pride Parade blends protest with joy in Boston

Boston puts on a radiant display Saturday for its annual Pride Parade festivities. The dress code called for glitter and rainbows as spectators made their way downtown to line the parade route before flooding into Boston Common for an all-day festival.

The event, which kicks off at 11 a.m., celebrates the culture and history of the LGBTQ+ community. It's one of many Pride events happening throughout the country this month.

The theme this year is “Pride as Protest since 1776." It tips to the 250th anniversary of the country’s founding while bringing focus to the tensions that exist for queer people in the U.S. today, said Adrianna Boulin, president of Boston Pride for the People, the group that organized the event.

Boulin said, for LGBTQ+ people, “to be authentically living as who you are is an act of protest,” in a world where “our very existence” is contested in national politics.

At the Boston Common, a DJ is scheduled to perform, and the overall event, Boulin said, is intended to be a mix of partying and advocacy.

At the trans memorial, community members were invited to hold photos of deceased members of the trans community “ to share that we miss them,” and “ to say their name and ensure that they are not forgotten,” Boulin said.

At the same time, Boulin said, “my hope is that everyone can connect to some form of euphoria and sense of belonging at the event.”