By Courtney Cooperman, NLIHC
Each year, the LGBTQ+ community and allies recognize Pride Month in June. Pride Month is a time for joyful celebration and offers an opportunity to build community power so that all LGBTQ+ individuals can gain the rights and resources they need to thrive.
The Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition (CCDC), Colorado’s premier statewide disability advocacy organization, brought the spirit of civic engagement to Denver’s Pride Fest in June 2022. The event took place just days before Colorado’s primary election. CCDC is an affiliate of NLIHC’s nonpartisan Our Homes, Our Votes campaign, which aims to boost voter turnout among low-income renters and educate candidates about housing solutions. The parade was put together by Center on Colfax, the local LGBTQ+ resource center. The local ABC 7 news channel reported that 100,000 people attended the parade.
CCDC’s float encouraged voter participation and celebrated the essential role of people with disabilities in the LGBTQ+ community. Staff and volunteers at CCDC collaborated to create a float that would represent the important crossover between Pride and voting. CCDC’s float was accessible for its members, volunteers, and clients with disabilities, and for those who used both manual and automatic wheelchairs. Members of the LGBTQ+ community, allies, and people from all socioeconomic backgrounds joined the float.
CCDC initially planned to pass out paper handouts at the parade but ultimately decided to create voting and Pride merchandise instead, which was all distributed before the end of the parade. To celebrate the diversity of the LGBTQ+ community, the float flew both the Disability Pride flag and the traditional LGBTQ+ Pride flag. Colorado Governor Jared Polis even stopped by to take pictures with CCDC’s float and crew! As CCDC’s float demonstrates, Pride is an exciting opportunity to build the political power of LGBTQ+ advocates and allies, while bringing together community members in a joyful and accessible way.