Pride Month Berlin – Berlin Pride

In 2023, Berlin celebrates “Pride Month” for the second time.

Pride Month Berlin was launched last year by the Berlin CSD e.V. to give more space to current topics of the queer community. A space for networking and exchange, for support and visibility, which the CSD demonstration on July, 22nd alone cannot provide.
The team of volunteers of Pride Month Berlin – PMB for short – has set itself the task of offering members of the community a platform that amplifies their voices, supports them and, in the best case, sets new impulses.

PMB kicks off with the historic “Stonewall Day” – on June, 28th. For four weeks, we highlight events such as panels, meetings, parties, workshops, and community events in general. The crowning event of the PMB is the demonstration on July, 22nd.

Every year, the board of the Berliner CSD e.V. defines the current main topics. These are topics that have been of great concern to us in the media, personally and socially in recent times and where we see the need for support, visibility and dialogue.

As ever, Pride Month Berlin 2023 will have specific focus topics

For 2023, we are defining five focus topics that will shape the Pride Month program. All focus areas will be consistently present in all weeks.

HIV / Aids

This year, the German Aids Federation celebrates its 40th anniversary. Today, infection with the virus is no longer a death sentence, but the disease is still associated with fear, stigmatization, prejudice and discrimination. HIV and Aids today and then – we seek dialogue.

Rainbow families

Many of us have the desire to start a family. Numerous people in the queer community have already taken this path, which is not easy in many respects. Rainbow family networks, round tables and rainbow family centers will have their say and invite you to get to know each other and exchange ideas.
Furthermore, in the forum of the CSD association, we are developing clear demands to facilitate the official family foundation as a queer person in Germany and to align it with the legislation of the heteronormative way of life.

Kink & Fetish

Pictures of members of the queer fetish community are often shown by the press around the CSD. They are rarely associated with awareness and the true needs behind it, but in the worst case perceived as “perverted” and “threatening” by the heteronormative majority. Queer sex workers and the gay fetish scene were the founders of the CSD movement many decades ago. We demand respect and give the stage to voices of today’s kink & fetish scene.

Safer Space for TIN / Bi+ / Poly

Safer spaces – whether parties, network meetings or cultural events – contribute significantly to developing, consolidating and simply living one’s sexual or personal identity. We want to highlight existing safe spaces of trans, intersex and nonbinary people or rather initiate discussions around their existence. We also focus on bisexual and polyamorous lifestyles to emphasize the right to freedom of all lifestyles.

Eastern Europe

We are concerned about the stories of queer refugees from Ukraine and the persecution of queer people in Eastern Europe. As in the previous year, we let activists and those affected have voice their opinion. We listen and ask questions. How can we as direct neighbors support the resistance against the persecution and punishment of queer lifestyles? The PMB tries to find answers to these questions and treats the conflicts in Eastern Europe as an overriding and recurring theme.

Formats for the above thematic focuses include panels, parties, podcast releases, workshops, networking meetings, film screenings, and other cultural events.

This year’s PMB team is not only open to suggestions, but also grateful for them.

Zoe Rasch and the entire PMB team