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2018 Parade and Festival Registration

Thank you for your interest in participating in this year's parade, festival, or both! Both take place on Saturday, June 16, 2018. The parade will begin at noon at Monument Square and proceed to Deering Oaks Park, where the festival will take place from 1:00 to 5:00pm. Please submit registration by May 31st at the latest.

For festival- or parade-specific questions or guidance, you can contact us at festival@prideportland.org or parade@prideportland.org. For general questions, concerns, or feedback, you can contact us at info@prideportland.org.

Pride Portland! brings people in the Greater Portland area together for an annual parade, festival, and numerous other events to celebrate and honor the accomplishments of the LGBTQ+ movement, raise awareness of the community’s ongoing struggles, and foster an environment of inclusivity, accessibility, and solidarity. Pride Portland! is entirely volunteer-run and relies on the generous contributions made by organizations, businesses, and individuals for the benefit of the LGBTQ+ community. Please consider becoming a donor. More information about donor opportunities and recognition benefits can be found here.

Our Philosophy

Pride Portland! aims to honor the accomplishments of the LGBTQ+ movement while also addressing the struggles our community is facing today. The Stonewall Riots of 1969 marked a critical point in the history of queer resistance, giving rise to gay liberation marches which became the Pride parades of today. In visible celebration, we come together out of the shared experience of refusing to be told that the bodies we are born with dictate who we are allowed to be and who we are allowed to love.

That said, we are not a monolith. The LGBTQ+ community has always included a spectrum of people with many overlapping identities: black, brown, and indigenous peoples, those of European and Asian descent, including Pacific Islanders; immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers; those with diverse abilities, neurodivergent and neurotypical people; folks who are poor, low-income, working class, middle-income, and upper-income; youth, elders, middle-aged people, and more.

Due to our wide array of identities and backgrounds, it is crucial that we engage with each other in a way that honors and uplifts as many members of our community as possible, especially those who have not yet fully benefited from the progress that others have enjoyed.

In light of this, Pride Portland! has chosen to prioritize those who have as their primary focus:

Accessibility, Activism, and/or Advocacy

Parade Participation

If you would like to align with Pride Portland! in highlighting accessibility, activism, and advocacy work in our community, we would encourage you to: 

  • Consider your brand presence. Pride is a primary source of visibility for many grassroots efforts, small organizations, and non-profits. If your business has a sizable advertising budget, significantly reducing or removing your brand presence during the parade has the potential to better uplift those organizations and individuals providing direct services, healthcare, legal aid, etc, who might not otherwise reach the people who need those resources the most.

  • Consider environmental impact. If you choose to distribute anything during the parade, we ask that you prioritize practical items made of recycled or recyclable materials. Most importantly, we ask that all items be distributed in grab buckets or placed into the hands of consenting individuals rather than thrown. By taking these steps, we can reduce litter, overall waste, and our negative environmental impact.

  • Consider accessibility. In addition to contributing to environmental impact, throwing items into the crowd has struck people at parades in past years, particularly those with limited mobility. In light of this, we ask again that you please place items distributed during the parade directly into the hands of consenting recipients rather than throw them.

All are welcome to participate as they wish. We especially thank those who keep the above considerations in mind during this year’s Pride Portland! parade. We believe that highlighting accessibility, activism, and advocacy work in our celebration will further contribute toward our collective liberation. If you have any questions or concerns, we invite you reach out to us at info@prideportland.org.

Festival Participation

The Pride Portland! festival is the biggest celebration of the week, bringing thousands of people together at the tail end of the parade. We seek to highlight accessibility, activism, and advocacy. This includes making the festival as accessible to as many members of our Greater Portland LGBTQ+ community as possible. The wide array of participating organizations and business makes for a veritable resource fair, accompanied by inspiration and entertainment on stage. There will be an area specially catering to families with young children, and the whole park is an alcohol- and tobacco-free environment. Food will be available for purchase, with some seating nearby, along with lawn seating. Bathrooms, including 3 fully accessible ones, will be onsite. Shuttles to off-site parking may also be available.

Definitions of Participant Categories

Business: any for-profit entity with annual revenue over $500,000

Non-Profit Organization: any entity holding a 501(c) status according to the IRS (including but not limited to 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), religious group, government agency or municipality, or educational institution) with an annual budget over $250,000

Political Organization: any entity including but not limited to a political party, candidate for public office, ballot question committee, or political action committee (PAC)

Small Business: any for-profit business entity with an annual revenue of $500,000 or less

Small Organization (either of the following):

  • any entity holding a 501(c) status according to the IRS (including but not limited to 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), religious group, government agency or municipality, or educational institution) with an annual budget of $250,000 or less

  • any unincorporated organization (including clubs and volunteer groups) with an annual budget of $250,000 or less

Festival Sub-categories

Food Merchant: any business or organization selling food or drinks, which requires an $89 license from the City for the day if you are not already licensed

Merchant: any business or organization selling any goods or services (including but not limited to artwork, clothes, crafts, jewelry, personal care products, bumper stickers, and pins or buttons) which requires $36 street vendor license from the City for the day

Non-merchant: any business or organization not selling anything at the festival

We especially encourage organizations and businesses to register that are locally-based and/or owned by or focused on LGBTQ+ people, people of color, indigenous people, immigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, people with diverse abilities, neurodivergent people, people who are poor, low-income, or working class, youth, elders, and people with other marginalized identities.

Registration Options

Please select your organization or business category as defined above to view the different participation options to choose from.
Floats include trucks or pulled trailers. Other vehicles include any truck/trailer/bus for accessibility purposes (e.g. members who need to sit) or smaller motorized vehicles (vans, cars, motorcycles, etc). All groups can include walkers, personal mobility equipment, and non-motorized bicycles. Please select none for festival participation only.
Floats include trucks or pulled trailers. Other vehicles include any truck/trailer/bus for accessibility purposes (e.g. members who need to sit) or smaller motorized vehicles (vans, cars, motorcycles, etc). All groups can include walkers and non-motorized bicycles. Please select none for festival participation only.
Floats include trucks or pulled trailers. Other vehicles include any truck/trailer/bus for accessibility purposes (e.g. members who need to sit) or smaller motorized vehicles (vans, cars, motorcycles, etc). All groups can include walkers, personal mobility equipment, and non-motorized bicycles. Please select none for festival participation only.
Floats include trucks or pulled trailers. Other vehicles include any truck/trailer/bus for accessibility purposes (e.g. members who need to sit) or smaller motorized vehicles (vans, cars, motorcycles, etc). All groups can include walkers, personal mobility equipment, and non-motorized bicycles. Please select none for festival participation only.
Please describe what level of opting into the above requested parade considerations your group is planning on by checking all that apply. Thank you for considering!

Please describe group size, any vehicle(s), design concept, any items to hand out, etc.

Please describe group size, any vehicle(s), design concept, any items to hand out, etc.
Please see note in sub-category definitions above. Paperwork and fees for food and street vendor licenses for the day need to submitted by June 6th. We can assist with this process, but you will be ultimately responsible for making sure that your city licensing is in good order.
Please see note in sub-category definitions above. Paperwork and fees for food and street vendor licenses for the day need to submitted by June 6th. We can assist with this process, but you will be ultimately responsible for making sure that your city licensing is in good order.
Please see note in sub-category definitions above. Paperwork and fees for food and street vendor licenses for the day need to submitted by June 6th. We can assist with this process, but you will be ultimately responsible for making sure that your city licensing is in good order.
Please see note in sub-category definitions above. Paperwork and fees for food and street vendor licenses for the day need to submitted by June 6th. We can assist with this process, but you will be ultimately responsible for making sure that your city licensing is in good order.
The festival takes places in the section of Deering Oaks Park along Park Ave between Mellen St and Deering Ave. Most participating groups are located on the slightly sloping lawn between the sidewalk along Park Ave and the paved pathway parallel to it. Assigned spaces on the lawn are approximately 10' by 10'. Only one space is provided per group unless requested with a compelling reason and approved. Assigned spaces in the parking lane along the curb on Park Ave are also available for food trucks and stands. Power generation is not provided.
One table and two folding chairs can be provided for each approximately 10' by 10' lawn space. Two additional chairs per space can be added for a fee of $10. Pop-up tents are recommended but not provided. Please choose your equipment requests below.

Please describe your planned set up, any additional equipment you're bringing, any items to hand out or sell, etc.

If so, please describe, so we can do our best to accommodate them.

Please total all selected costs above, including parade, festival, and additional equipment if applicable. A calculator is available here.

$

Basic Contact Information



Please tell us about your group and your interest in participating in Pride.

If not, welcome! If so, please include which years between 2014 and 2017.





Billing Information





Invoices will be processed within 7 calendar day. Selecting "yes" will give you the option to select method of sending below.
All receipts will be provided in early June except in approved special circumstances by request. Registration fees for the parade and/or festival are not considered a donation and are NOT tax-deductible.

Clicking submit below makes your registration official. Participation details will be sent by email in early June. Payment options include:

1. Using a credit/debit card to pay on the next page.

2. Writing a check or money order made out to Equality Maine (our fiscal sponsor) with Pride Portland! in the note field, and mailing it to us at Pride Portland!, Equality Community Center, 511 Congress St, Suite 107, Portland, ME 04101.

3. Paying by either of the above means after having received an invoice if required or desired by your organization's financial policies or procedures.