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ATL's Black Gay Pride is the principal LGBTQ gathering of the South.
Black Pride 2023 succumbed to Atlanta's Labor Day Weekend, with several parties, events, fundraisers, and community awareness workshops. The festivities came to an extravagant conclusion by way of the 11th annual Pure Heat Community Festival. What commenced as backyard events in the 1980s, continued to expand into what is now a prominent LGBTQ cultural event of the south.
A number of vendors, celebrity influencers, live performers and community members gathered in Piedmont Park. The 'free day of unity' also brought some special appearances, including Joseline Hernandez, Tamar Braxton, and others.
Atlanta resident Quentin Rose attended Black Gay Pride for a second time, much to his delight. He shares with Gaye Magazine that this year's festival was more fun and felt like a family gathering.
"This year was a lot more fun for me than my previous experience. This year felt like a family gathering. Down to the entertainers, everyone was engaging with one another. That meant a lot. I attended Piedmont Park, club Marquette & Bulldogs. Piedmont Park was my favorite.
Everything met my expectations during this year's Black Pride Weekend...The city does just what it needs to do for us every year!"
Each year the organizers of the Pure Heat Community Festival present the Icon, Humanitarian, and Trailblazer awards to well-deserved names in all aspects of Black LGBTQ culture.
This year's recipients were Grammy award winner Big Freedia (Icon Award), radio + media personality Gary 'With Da Tea' Hayes (Trailblazer Award), and Gilead Sciences VP of Health + Black Equity Rashad Burgess (Humanitarian Award).
The Pure Heat Community stage brought several performers, like Steezo, Austin Rogers, Cliff Vmir, Mooney, Johnni Blaze, and Suni MF. The entertainment surpassed music and choreography, including a hair battle presented by My Black is Beautiful.
Having celebrated for over 20 years, Black Gay Pride serves over 135,000 LGBTQ members, generating over 2 million dollars in revenue for Metro Atlanta. This year's proceeds will benefit homeless LGBTQ youth as well as HIV/AIDS affected individuals through The Vision Community Foundation.
View More Photos from this year's Pure Heat Community Festival:
