Rome Pride parade draws 1 million people and a moment of silence for Gaza

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There were more colors than those of the rainbow flag at Rome Pride this year. In addition to the community’s familiar banner, hundreds of Palestinian flags showed up along the route of the march, which organizers said drew around one million people.

The lead float carried a caricature of Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán as a devil, while the next float – belonging to Gender X, the group focusing on transgender rights – featured silhouettes of Elon Musk, writer J. K. Rowling, Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump suspended upside down. Among the roughly 40 vehicles in the parade was one from Keshet Europe, the network of Jewish LGBTQIA+ people and organizations. After skipping last year’s event, Keshet members returned waving rainbow flags emblazoned with the Star of David. 

At 5 p.m., as the crowd moved toward the Colosseum, the music on all floats stopped or dropped to a whisper for five minutes – a request by Arcigay and Gender X, made after both groups had been passing out sheets printed with Palestinian flags to the crowd. The five minutes of silence carried potent symbolism in an event where loud music is normally a core tool of expression.

The war in Gaza had already sparked criticism of the organizers, accused of courting sponsors that are still doing business with Israel, notably US conglomerate P&G and the Starbucks coffee chain. Critics called out the organizers’ hypocrisy, pointing to the Pride manifesto they had issued beforehand, which “strongly condemns the ongoing massacre in Gaza, perpetrated by the Israeli government, causing countless innocent victims among the Palestinian civilian population and appearing to be aimed at the annihilation of a people.”

Many organizations – among them ARCI, Gender X and Arcigay – took part in the march “with a critical stance,” brandishing Palestinian flags and denouncing corporate rainbow-washing. “We are here because we believe Pride belongs not to a closed-off organization but to the people who join it, and we believe there can be no manifestation of queer pride at this point without taking a clear stand for the Palestinian people,” said Pietro Turano, vice-president of Arcigay Roma.

“NO PRIDE IN GENOCIDE” read the slogan on ARCI’s float, alongside signs that proclaimed: “This is a space for struggle, not a space for marketing” and “We will not be your June content.” The same “No Pride in Genocide” slogan appeared on posters that street artist Laika plastered along the route the night before, showing an Israeli soldier waving a rainbow flag soaked in blood. “No civil-rights struggle can be credible if it chooses to ignore, justify, or remain silent in the face of ethnic cleansing,” the artist wrote on social media.

Rose Villain, the singer chosen as patron for this year’s edition, titled “Fuorilegge” (“Outlaw”) after the song she performed at Sanremo, also arrived waving the Palestinian flag. Another flag flew from the rocket atop the float of Muccassassina, the historic Roman LGBTQIA+ party, rebranded “Pride X” in “honor” of Elon Musk. Vivian Jenna Wilson, the tech magnate’s transgender daughter who in 2022 changed her surname to distance herself from her father, was also among the invitees.

“Pride is Revolt. Free Palestine” read the banner at the front of Saturday’s alternative Roman march, Priot – short for “Pride Romano Indecoroso Oltretutto” (“Roman Pride Indecent Above All Else”). In previous years, Priot – set up in 2023 – had organized alternative protests ahead of the official Pride before joining the main parade as a critical contingent. This year, its organizers decided to gather at Piazzale Ostiense, calling the main event “no longer viable”: “We no longer want to be absorbed by the capitalist machine that is Rome Pride, so we are choosing to place ourselves politically and physically outside it.”

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Originally published at https://ilmanifesto.it/il-rumore-dellorgoglio-queer-e-il-minuto-di-silenzio-per-gaza on 2025-06-15