This is a gay issue.
This is a straight issue.
This is a human rights issue.
Project Summary:
One year documenting gay pride parades around the globe to bring a spotlight on the Gay Rights movement.
Project Concept:
“Gay people, we will not win our rights by staying silently in our closets…We are coming out.” – Harvey Milk, gay activist and martyred San Francisco official.
Each year gay pride festivals are held around the globe with the purpose of empowering those in the LGBT community to be proud of their sexual orientation & gender identity, and to increase their visibility within the wider community. Annual pride parades have become a powerful part of these pride festivals, as they are a positive and entertaining way to unite a diverse group of people, while bringing out family, friends, and heterosexual supporters in a demonstrative show of solidarity.
The “Walk with Pride” Project was created to spend a year photographing a variety of pride parades from well-established marches to grass-roots festivals, in order to capture imagery that visualizes the similarities and differences in gay rights and gay communities around the world. Through social media we aspire to share our experiences, and promote the issues the global gay community is facing. We hope to breakdown the misconception that this is only a gay issue, when really, it is a basic human rights issue.
“Walk with Pride” is starting as a self-funded and self-motivated project, so we appreciate any assistance in supporting its’ long-term funding and success.
Planned Itinerary:
May
8 May, 2010 (Baltic Pride – Vilnius, Lithuania)
15 May, 2010 (Slavic Pride – Minsk, Belarus)
22 May, 2010 (GayFest ‘10 – Bucharest, Romania)
June
5 June, 2010 (Athens Pride – Athens, Greece)
11 June, 2010 (Tel Aviv Pride – Tel Aviv, Israel)
27 June, 2010 (Istanbul Pride – Istanbul, Turkey)
July
3 July, 2010 (London Pride – London, England)
17 July, 2010 (Europride – Warsaw, Poland)
25 July, 2010 (CSD Saarbrücken – Saarbrücken, Germany)
31 July, 2010 (Stockholm Pride – Stockholm, Sweden)
August
7 Aug, 2010 (Amsterdam Pride – Amsterdam, Netherlands)
14 Aug, 2010 (Queer Azaadi – Mumbai, India)
These dates make up the planned schedule for the first part of our trip. The second half of our trip will include the Cape Town, S. Africa, pride march, and will focus mainly on events in South and North America.
Before the official start of this project, Charles also photographed Taipei Pride on Oct. 31, 2009, Manila Pride on Dec. 5, 2009, and the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras on Feb. 27, 2010 – photos available on the WWP’s main website and on Flickr.
WWP Co-Founders:
Charles “Chad” Meacham (Project Photographer)
Charles was born just outside of Philadelphia, PA, and began traveling immediately after high school. He picked up a camera at the age of 30, and has since been privileged to win over 20 international awards including those from National Geographic Traveler, Smithsonian, and PDN magazines. The idea for this project was sparked after months of following the recent debates in America on gay rights issues in the news, and photographing the 2009 Taipei Pride event, one of the largest pride parades in Asia.
For other examples of his work visit: http://www.charlesmeacham.com
Sarah Baxter (Project Coordinator)
Sarah Baxter is the contact person/organizer/blogger for this project. Born in Athens, Ohio, Sarah enjoys traveling, and has lived and worked in Los Angeles, NE Thailand, North Africa, and most recently in Taipei, Taiwan. Previous writings by Sarah have focused on the idea of ‘responsible tourism’ and have been featured on the community pages of Lonely Planet.com, EthicalTraveler.org, and WildAsia.net.
Be part of the project by connecting with us:
To find out more trip details, visit our main project website and blog:
http://wwpproject.wordpress.com
