Pride festivals are a wonderful time to celebrate the accomplishments and culture of the queer community while letting loose and enjoying one another’s company. Unfortunately, we still have a long way to go in terms of queer liberation. While you’re making the most of pride, here are a few ways you can keep yourself and the other lovely event attendees safe and sound.   

Stay in a group: The safest place to be at pride is with other people. As much as possible, make sure you’re with at least one other person and ensure that you have means of staying in contact with your group. If you want to go the extra mile, establish an emergency meeting spot if one or more members of the group get lost.

Do NOT Engage with protestors: There are unfortunately people in this world who get their kicks from harassing and demeaning people they don’t understand. If there are any protestors in attendance at your pride festival of choice, ignore them. Don’t yell back, don’t egg them on, don’t give them the satisfaction of a reaction. For the safety of everyone in attendance, don’t do anything that could aggravate the protestors to disruptive or violent behavior.

Be smart about photos and recordings: Not everyone is fortunate enough to be able to live openly as queer. Bearing this in mind, be respectful and don’t take photographs or videos of people without their consent; you could seriously jeopardize their safety. Only take and post photos and videos of yourself and other explicitly consenting parties.

Stay Hydrated: Hydration is a good rule of thumb for every moment in your life, including pride! Drink water, seriously.

Let someone know where you are: Make sure at least one person you trust knows where you are as you head to pride. Keep them updated on when you arrive, how you’re doing, when you plan to leave, and when you arrive safely home.

Have fun and be respectful: Pride is meant to be a celebration, which means that you should be having fun! That said, it’s also a time to recognize how much more there is to be done. Be respectful of other event goers and their experiences, remember the efforts of our queer predecessors, and party responsibly.