MISSOULA The Missoula Pride parade and block party brought thousands of people downtown for a community celebration over the weekend.
The parade — which is just in its second year — had twice as many entries as the year before, saw an increase in vendors participating in the block party and an outpouring of community support.
With any big event, there is always concern about potential threats or violence breaking out, However, the Missoula community kept the event peaceful.
“It was really awesome to be able to look back and realize we had fully over-prepared. I mean, we really were preparing kind of for the worst, which you have to do when you’re planning a big event like that, but I think even more is that it says about the Missoula Community," said Missoula Pride Co-Director Devin Carpenter. " The fact that so many people were willing to come together and even if there were going to be people who wanted to cause trouble there, they were going to be so far outnumbered because of the overwhelming sort of joy and support from the community.”
As far as what the community can expect in the future for Missoula Pride, Carpenter simply stated, “Keep your eyes peeled for our dates for next year.”
Montana Pride will host its parade in Helena on Aug. 5, 2023. Visit https://montanapride.org/events for additional information.
