SAN DIEGO, Calif. – At the forefront of this year’s San Diego Parade, LGBTQ open and affirming interfaith leaders will march together in solidarity to show their support for LGBTQ equality and justice. The Pride Parade begins Saturday, July 15 at 11 a.m. at the Hillcrest Pride Flag. Attendance is free. For more information about the parade and San Diego Pride weekend pick up a free copy of LGBT Weekly’s 2017 Pride Guide at locations throughout the city where LGBT Weekly is distributed.
A statement from San Diego Pride read, “LGBTQ equal protections are coming under attack across the country with so-called ‘religious liberty’ bills. We as the LGBTQ community know that supporting religious freedom and LGBTQ equality is not inherently contradictory. We want to kick off the parade with a message directly aimed at anti-LGBT legislation that is popping up around the country.”
More than 50 interfaith leaders have signed up to be at the forefront of San Diego Pride’s annual Parade to show their support for LGBTQ rights. These interfaith leaders will be carrying a banner that reads “Faith for Freedom: Interfaith Leaders for LGBTQ Justice”.
“Faith plays a vital role in the lives of many people including the LGBTQ community,” said Fernando Lopez, director of operations for San Diego Pride. “Pride gives us an opportunity to show our community that leaders of faith stand with us, and to highlight the fact that protecting religious freedom means protecting LGBTQ rights, not chipping them away.”
San Diego Pride hopes to highlight the ever-growing group of clergy, tribes, synagogues, churches, mosques, people of faith and their groups who feel called to stand up for religious freedom and the protection of the LGBTQ community.
“In our Christian Scriptures, the author of 1 Corinthians reminds us that we are—all of us—part of one body,” said Reverend Mary Sue Brookshire of Pioneer Ocean View United Church of Christ. “When one part of the body suffers, we all suffer. When one part rejoices, we all rejoice. Sadly, the Christian church has inflicted suffering on its own body in the ways we have harmed the LGBTQIA community. But on July 15, we come together as people of different religions to celebrate the ways that our faith unites us in our commitment to love and have justice for all.”
If you are an interfaith leader interested in representing Pride, please visit the registration form here: form.jotform.com/7094585708096
