On Saturday, the March for Equality in Vilnius crowned the Lithuanian Pride festival, with Vladimiras Simonko, the founder of the Lithuanian Gay League (LGL), estimating a crowd of 20,000 people.
The crowd began the march at 16:00, walking from the Bernardine Garden all the way to Vingis Park with chants “Freedom is love”, “Trans rights – human rights”, “We are everywhere”. and many others.
The march was led by members of the LGL, who were joined by writer Kristina Sabaliauskaitė, members of the Freedom Party, including its chair Finance Minister Aušrinė Armonaitė, Dainius Žalimas, who is leading the party’s list in the European Parliament election, and others.
The event was also joined by the Lithuanian Green Party, while Vilnius Mayor Valdas Benkunskas greeted the marchers at Cathedral Square.
The march brought people of different nationalities and sexualities together, as they displayed their pride through flags, body paint, banners, and colourful clothing.
After the march, the attendees were invited to enjoy the concert and a drag performance at Vingis Park, welcoming artists from around the world.
“This is the best example that times are changing, and this is not just the LGBT community but their friends, colleagues, businesses, and politicians [supporting it],” said Simonko, the organiser of the event.
The pride parade faced opposition from five small groups, mostly Christian organisations. Near the Martynas Mažvydas National Library, an unidentified man also burnt rainbow flags before he was detained by the police.
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