Antwerp is Europe's next great gay city

At the end of June, Antwerp will become 'the place to be' again for the holebi (gay, lesbian & bi) community and its sympathisers, with a fiery four-day city festival bursting with a diversity of projects.

The wide range of activities on offer from the Antwerp Pride organisers include a fun network happening planned by the Diamond Museum, with gay fetish events, several dancing parties and a Sing Along, aiming to reach a target of many tens of thousands participants.

From Thursday 25th of June until Sunday 28th of June, the second edition of Antwerp Pride will break out again, the Antwerp festival for the holebi community and its sympathisers. The Antwerp corporate life, the city council, cultural and recreational organizations and stores will join hands during these four days in order to offer a wide range of events, such as a symposium on holebi rights in the world, a Sing Along with the movie Mamma Mia (in cooperation with MUHKA media and the photograph museum), a welcome party in the Pink House, a dating event in the Diamond Museum, a Gay Family Day in Antwerp Zoo, a trip by coach or by bicycle through our proud city, the Falcomfair for fetish lovers, a free entry to the most important museums and all sorts of dancing parties.

"Antwerp Pride has been consciously built around the key word 'diversity' as far as the activities, participating organisations and the visiting crowd are concerned", says promoter Bart Abeel. "Although the event aims to put Antwerp on the map in all aspects as a 'gay friendly' capital and its purpose is to honour the successful social integration and the holebi commitment - with the expression 'unknown unloved' in mind - the ideas of openness and cooperation play an equally crucial role. Therefore everybody is invited and the programme has been set up so as to interest the general public. Not only the city but also Antwerp Pride belongs to everyone!"

"To us it is also of vital importance that the social relevance of initiatives like these is not being minimised", continues the Antwerp Pride promoter. "We have indeed moved forward since the Stonewall riots in New York in 1969 that marked the beginning of the Gay Pride movement. And Belgium as well has come a long way where holebi rights are concerned, but it is of the utmost importance to cherish these advances actively and to consolidate them since they can always be taken away again."

Moreover there are still a great number of countries where homosexuals have no rights at all and are even in danger. On that level, cities like Antwerp can play an important role. Therefore Pink Power, the international symposium that will take place on 25th of June, has been partially dedicated to this theme: the development of new visions and strategies for the future as far as international activism, (trans)gender behaviour, wellbeing, health and subgroups are concerned.

At the request of the Antwerp council of aldermen, the colourful and sparkling holebi city festival emerged last year from the internationally renowned party concept NaviGAYtion ("The biggest Gay party on and by the river" that celebrates its sixth edition this year), in order to support the holebi emancipation process and the cooperation between different organizations within the framework of its policy on equal rights and diversity. The non-profit making organization Gay Antwerp, the originator of NaviGAYtion, is greatly honoured that its event has become a steady value in Antwerp and a guide for the city's holebi policy.

Antwerp Pride is a unique opportunity for the city council to have this heterogeneous group connecting with the city of Antwerp in such a positive way. The first edition welcomed a crowd of 30,000 visitors from Belgium and abroad, and the organisers' goal this year is to attract many more participants.

It is no coincidence that this four-day event is taking place in Antwerp, since our proud city is known as "The Gay Harbour". Besides, quite a few socially relevant movements find their origin in the City: the advocates of holebi rights are no exception to that. The very first Belgian Lesbian & Gay Pride Parade in 1979 was held in Antwerp, even before a parade was organised in Brussels. Of course the city takes a pride in the flourishing holebi night life, the fetish bars and holebi-friendly restaurants, as well as in the famous Red & Blue, the biggest gay club in the Benelux. Antwerp Pride is as much an ode to Antwerp as it is to its vibrant gay & lesbian community.

You can find further information on www.antwerppride.com