World’s largest free-flying rainbow flag coming to Venice to kick off Pride.
By Staff Writer
Venice Beach, which is currently home to the world’s biggest pair of binoculars, will soon be home to the world’s largest pride flag.
Venice Pride founder Grant Turck recently announced that Los Angeles will host the world’s largest free-flying pride flag. As part of a global initiative to unite pride celebrations across the world the enormous flag will be raised by the city in Venice on the first weekend in June to mark the start of Pride Month. The flag raising ceremony will take place June 1 at 8:30 a.m. in Windward Plaza. Although the exact dimensions of the flag are under wraps we are told it will dwarf the 1,033 square foot flag that took flight in Port Elizabeth, South Africa as part of Nelson Mandela Bay Pride in late 2014.
“As individual Pride festivals we exist separately, this initiative will give us the opportunity to link with global Pride activities over the next couple of years,” Turck said of the flag’s legacy. “Baker’s rainbow flag has stood as the symbol for inclusivity within the LGBT community worldwide, and I’m thrilled that the ‘United We Pride’ flag will begin in Venice Beach as part of Venice Pride 2018.”
Just last year, Venice won the right to keep its rainbow-painted lifeguard tower – initially begun as a Pride-only installation – on permanent display, becoming the first LGBT monument approved by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.
Venice Pride was founded initially as a non-profit to produce the Venice Pride Sign Lighting & Block Party, and has since become an organization that supports diversity and inclusivity within Venice.
“The mission of the organization is to celebrate the unity of West L.A.’s LGBT community, its friends and supporters through annual events and ongoing outreach that inspires, commemorates and supports diversity with the unique and eclectic spirit that embodies Venice Beach, California,” the organization said in a statement.
The June 1 ceremony, sponsored by the Aids Healthcare Foundation, will officially kick off the “United We Pride” flag’s world tour.
The flag will then make its way to San Francisco and across the sea to Paris, going on an around-the-world journey that ends on June 23, 2019 in New York City as the city commemorates the 50th Anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising.
More information about Venice Pride and the flag-hoisting can be found online at https://venicepride.org.
