Milwaukee City Wire

Droves of people recently turned out in the Walker for the return of the Milwaukee Pride Parade.

After a two-year absence due to the pandemic, the parade was back this year in all its glory.

"To be in this parade, for me, means to give other black queer kids a chance to authentically be who they need to be, to feel safe, and know that there are humans in the this world that will love, respect and honor them," Justin Roby, who was marching with Diverse and Resilient, told TMJ4.com.

Over the years, Natasha Perkins has attended the parade several times, and was ecstatic to have the chance to be back.

"It feels so good to be back,” she said. “So good! My heart is so happy and full from everything. Pride means everything to me. I had never felt that I was able to be myself anywhere else. But pride helps me feel ok, to be myself and to be in my skin. I found my family at pride."

Patty Cisneros Prevo was there with her young son, and her energy was clear and apparent.

"I'm excited for my little boy here and letting him know that there's so many people that love him," she said.  

Her son Nyah added "I'm excited to celebrate all the people and what they really feel like. Like, if they don't feel like a certain thing, you should not be treated badly and you should be treated like a normal human and feel like who you really want to be feeling like.”

With the city parade now in its 18th year, the theme of this year’s outing was "Pride is..." with attendees being encouraged to fill in the blank with what Pride means to them.