The 2025 Pride Wave kicks off today in Sanremo: 46 marches across Italy for LGBTQIA+ rights.
Bologna, April 5, 2025 Today in Sanremo, the long season of Onda Pride begins, the major national mobilization in support of the rights of LGBTQIA+ people organized by Arcigay, through its numerous local branches, and other local and national associations. The Sanremo parade will officially open a calendar that currently includes 46 Pride parades scheduled throughout Italy, making it likely that this year will surpass last year's record of 50 parades.
Today is Sanremo Pride
Meet today at 2:30 pm in Piazza Colombo in Sanremo for the parade's main gathering, which will begin at 3:00 pm and wind through the city streets. The choice of Sanremo, as in previous years, is no coincidence: in 1972, FUORI! (Italian Revolutionary Homosexual United Front) organized the first public protest against the International Congress of Sexology there. Today, as then, Sanremo is a symbol of courage and visibility, values that Onda Pride revitalizes at a time when human rights are under attack.
The 46 stages of the 2025 Pride Wave
The 2025 Onda Pride season kicks off today in Sanremo and will continue throughout the summer with dozens of events across Italy. In May, the squares will come alive with Pride events in Crema, Piacenza, Alessandria, Caserta, Enna, Padua, and Savona, all scheduled for May 24th and 31st. In June, the rainbow wave expands: on June 7th, Messina, Pavia, Taranto, and Turin will parade, while on June 14th, Genoa, Lecco, and Rome will take the stage, followed the next day by the Avellino Irpinia Pride. June 21st will be a day packed with events, with Pride events in Avezzano, Bari, Bergamo, Pesaro, Prato, and Palermo. The month will close on June 28th, with parades in Bolzano, Milan, Ragusa, Salerno, and Sassari. In July, the LGBTQIA+ movement will continue to fill the streets: on July 5th, the cities of Alba, Favignana, Lodi, Catania, Naples, Taranto (again in the streets), Terni, and Tortona will be the protagonists. On July 12th, it will be the turn of Caltagirone, La Spezia, and Lecce, while on July 19th it will be Varese's turn. Termoli and Trapani will close out the month on July 26th. August will also have its Pride, with the event on August 9th in Cammarata – San Giovanni Gemini, in the province of Agrigento. Finally, in September, the Onda Pride will return with marches in Omegna (September 6th), Sondrio and Castellammare di Stabia (September 20th), concluding on September 27th in Arcore, Brianza. The list is still being updated on the website. www.ondapride.it.
Gabriele Piazzoni, Arcigay general secretary: "Meloni's government is dismantling rights like Trump's."“
“"We're leaving Sanremo with the strength of those who aren't asking for privileges, but for equality," said Gabriele Piazzoni, general secretary of Arcigay. She continues: ”The Meloni government, like Trump's, is dismantling rights with homo-lesbian-transphobic policies and measures that deny the self-determination of LGBTQIA+ people. While in some US states trans identities are being erased, here some parliamentarians dream of importing the same violence. The way the government interrupted the highly sensitive parliamentary debate on the Security Bill yesterday is a frightening harbinger of the authoritarianism of this political season. Meanwhile, the spiral of attacks against women and queer people continues: almost one incident a day, while the government remains silent. In a world gripped by the fear of war, taking to the streets today is an act of resistance: we want a future of peace and dignity, where no one is forced to hide. The Pride Wave is our revolution: colorful, peaceful, determined. To all, we say: join us. Freedom never stops.“.
