Cape Town Celebrates Diversity and Support for the LGBTQIA+ Community

The Cape Town Pride Festival has returned for a week of physical events after going virtual for the last two years due to the pandemic.

The City of Cape Town has been a sponsor and an ally of the festival for the last seven years.

The 2022 Cape Town Pride Festival returns with a bold line up of events leading up to the pride parade and Mardi Gras on Saturday, 26 February 2022.

The weeklong festival kicked off last week with the crowning of the new Mr and Miss Cape Town Pride and was followed by a Pride Hike up Pipe Track on Sunday, 20 February 2022.

This week, the Cape Town Pride Festival hosted the Hero’s Awards and Charity Auction for the benefit of the Nkoli House Project – an initiative to raise funds for a care centre for the LGBTQIA+ community. This was followed by film screenings at the Labia Theatre.

“The City is proud of its long-standing partnership with OUTReach Africa. Through the Cape Town Pride Festival, we believe we have made progress in ensuring that we make Cape Town a LGBTQIA+ friendly city where members of the community can enjoy the rights and freedoms envisioned by the Constitution,”  said the City’s Mayoral Community Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith.

“There is still some work to be done and we believe that through this partnership, we can ensure we provide a platform where individuals can express themselves, raise awareness and celebrate who they are.”

This year’s theme, ‘Together Again’, plays a significant role in highlighting the physical celebration of the Pride festival in contrast to the virtual event during the pandemic.

The curtain call for the pride festival – the Parade – will start at 12:00 on Saturday, 26 February 2022.

The parade will kick off at Prestwich Street in De Waterkant and proceed to the Green Point A-Track, where members of the public can enjoy performances from Zoë Zana, Manila Von Teez, J Mitzi, Maxine Wilde and 3 Tons of Fun on stage.