By Susan Payne
A trio of grand marshals will take this year’s LA Pride Parade to another level Sunday, June 11 at its original historic location in Hollywood.
The Icon Grand Marshal is comedian, actor and activist Margaret Cho, who has achieved major milestones with their career and industry. The Community Grand Marshal, which celebrates a group or individual who has had a powerful influence through their work and dedication to and for the LGBTQ community is the ACLU of Southern California.
New this year, is the posthumous tribute to Emmy-winner Leslie Jordan as the Legacy Grand Marshal, in honor of Jordan’s everlasting impact on the community.
“I’m thrilled and incredibly honored to be the Icon Grand Marshal,” said Cho, in a news release from Christopher Street West Association (CSW). “We need this Pride more than ever. I have been attending Pride celebrations since 1978 and this time around the need to celebrate as well as unite is more urgent than it has ever been. Our love is greater than their hate.”
“On behalf of Leslie Jordan, we are overjoyed by Christopher Street West’s heartfelt recognition to name Leslie as LA Pride’s Legacy Grand Marshal,” said Jana “Cricket” Jordan. “This honor further solidifies the positive impact he made in the world, but more importantly for the LGBTQ+ community. His spirit continues to bring love and light.”
“For a century, we’ve been on the front lines fighting for people to be their true, authentic selves,” said Hector Villagra, executive director of the ACLU SoCal. “We’re honored to be the Community Grand Marshal and proud to love, live among, and protect LGBTQ Californians.”
THE GRAND MARSHALS:
Multi-hyphenate artisan and activist Cho is a five-time GRAMMY and Emmy nominee. Cho staunchly supports the causes that are important to her: anti-racism, anti-bullying, gay rights, all while fulfilling her successful creative side with a legendary stand-up career that has yielded 10-plus comedy tours. Her recent television appearances include Season 2 of The Flight Attendant (HBO Max), Season 2 of Hacks (HBO Max), and two Netflix is a Joke comedy specials: Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration and Jane Fonda & Lily Tomlin: Ladies Night Live. Her most recent feature film role includes the well-reviewed Fire Island.
Leslie Jordan was one of the most consistently recognizable faces in popular entertainment. His journey towards stardom provided one of the quirkier, impressive, and varied career trajectories of the past few decades. Through it all, Jordan remained constant, relevant and – above all – funny! His ability to take it all in stride kept him moving onward, upward but never straight. Jordan received an Emmy in 2006 for his role in Will & Grace and was most recently seen on Fox’s comedy series “Call Me Kat”. He conquered the international stage and remained an in-demand mainstay as a performer, voice-over artist, fundraiser, spokesperson, out artist, equal rights activist, and all-around Southern Baptist celebutante.
The ACLU Foundation of Southern California (ACLU SoCal) works to defend the civil liberties of all people as enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights through litigation, policy advocacy, media advocacy, and organizing. Founded in 1923, the ACLU SoCal is one of the largest affiliates in the country with over 100 staff members across the southland. For 100 years, the ACLU SoCal has fought to expand and protect the civil rights of all people — women, youth, people of color, LGBTQ people, immigrants and refugees, members of minority religions, disabled people, people experiencing poverty or houselessness, and people who are incarcerated. In 1970, the ACLU SoCal joined CSW in a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Commissioner to obtain a parade permit to commemorate the one year anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York City. The case was won in California Supreme Court, enabling CSW to hold the first permitted gay parade in the world.
PARADE VILLAGE DETAILS
This year’s LA Pride Parade, on Sunday, June 11, starting at 11 a.m., will feature a special drag performance presented by the ACLU SoCAl and staged by Morgan Michaels to music by 14-time Oscar nominee Diane Warren, and will air live on long-time LA Pride broadcasting partner KABC/ABC7.
The parade will also air nationally on ABC News Live and Hulu, and wherever viewers stream ABC7 including abc7.com and the ABC7LA mobile app. Anchor Ellen Leyva and reporter Christiane Cordero from ABC7 Eyewitness News will co-host the ABC7 broadcast.
Beginning at Sunset Boulevard and Highland Ave, the parade will head north, then east onto Hollywood Boulevard, then south onto Cahuenga Boulevard, ending at Sunset Boulevard and Cahuenga Boulevard.
SPONSORS
This year’s LA Pride Parade partners include our Icon Sponsors: Corona Extra, Corona Hard Seltzer and SVEDKA Vodka: Hero Sponsors: Toyota Mirai, TikTok and H&M; Activist Sponsors: Delta Air Lines – the Official Airline of LA Pride, The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) – Official Transit Partner of LA Pride, Glamazon, Kim Crawford Wines, L.A. Care Health Plan, Los Angeles Tourism, Nordstrom, Optum, Sony Pictures Entertainment; Advocate Sponsors: AEG, including the LA Kings, LA Galaxy, and AEG Presents, Albertsons/Vons/Pavilions, Coca-Cola, Grindr, Honda, LADWP, LVMH, Rare Beauty, UCLA Health, Warner Bros. Discovery and Kenvue CARE WITH PRIDEⓇ; Ally Sponsors: Activision Blizzard, the Dream Hollywood hotel, FOX Pride, Moxy/AC Marriott, NBCUniversal, Target, Tiffany & Co., as well as returning television and digital broadcast partner ABC7, and official radio partner iHeartMedia Los Angeles and PRIDE RADIO on the iHeartRadio app. A&CO (www.aubryandco.com) serves as LA Pride’s official partnership agency of record.
Additionally, The Hollywood Partnership, the non-profit organization that oversees the public realm in the Hollywood Business Improvement District (BID), has once again partnered with LA Pride to bring the LA Pride Village back to Hollywood Blvd. LA Pride Village is the official place to be after the LA Pride Parade, with festivities taking place from 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., just steps from the official parade route. When the iconic LA Pride Parade returned home to Hollywood Blvd last year after more than four decades, it prompted the start of new traditions and celebrations in Hollywood, including LA Pride Village, a free and open to the public street festival. The second annual LA Pride Village celebration promises to be even bigger and better, with a new location on Hollywood Blvd, between Vine St. and Gower St., to make room for more booths featuring local vendors and non-profits, an expanded beer garden, delicious food trucks, two performance stages for twice the entertainment, and more comfortable crowd space for dancing. All details can be found here: https://lapridevillage.com/do/la-pride-2023.
Sponsors of LA Pride Village include Princess Cruises and Royal-bud.com.
TRANSPORTATION
Public transit and ride share services to LA Pride Parade and Village are strongly encouraged. For the Parade, connect to the L.A. Metro B (Red) Line and exit Hollywood/Highland or Hollywood/Vine Station. Metro has many Park & Ride lots servicing the county – parking is just $3.00 per day, payable onsite. If self-driving to LA Pride Parade and Village, vehicles can access parking and the event site via Vine Street or Gower Street. For additional information about parking and transportation, please visit https://lapridevillage.com/about/parking-and-transit.
