This year Antwerp Pride is celebrating its 6th edition. The first Antwerp Pride was launched in 2008 and was an initiative of the City of Antwerp and a few other gay hospitality operators/organisations. Following this initial ‘try out’ it soon became obvious that the event had much more to offer and several people/organisations wanted to jump on the bandwagon to make it an annual event. The 2009 edition was supported by the Roze Huis (Pink House), Active Company and Cavaria (then called the Holebifederatie) as well as SME’s. The city also provided a contribution not just with a view to tourism but also to actively support emancipation and diversity. In order to manage the increasing size of the event and the growing involvement of various organisations, entrepreneurs and individuals, the vzw Antwerp Pride, a nonprofit organisation, was born in April 2010. This nonprofit organisation is made up of representatives from involved LGTB organisations, LGTB hospitality and businesses, the city (tourism, culture, diversity, etc.), museums and people who simply want to be involved in this city event without any other obligations. There is a General Meeting (held on an annual basis), a Board of Directors and a steering committee that meets on a monthly basis to prepare for and organise the Pride event.
The aims of the association are: - To present Antwerp as a gay-friendly city on a local, regional, national and international level and to attract as many gay visitors and supporters as possible to Antwerp. - To organise the Antwerp Pride event. - To manage communication for the Antwerp Pride event and to assemble initiatives that are organised, by third party commercial as well as non-commercial actors, under the same name. - To be a contact point and channel of communication for initiatives involving Antwerp in addition to existing LGBTQ (Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transgender) organisations. - To establish sustainable links with actors in the City of Antwerp who work for LGBT organisations. One particular priority for the nonprofit organisation is to build bridges between commercial and non-commercial, public and non-public actors. We are pleased to hear from anyone interested in working with us or who just wants to become a member. For now we hope you have a ball at the 6th Antwerp Pride event!