Cyprus Pride Parade 2015

Last year's the Cyprus Pride Festival proved to be a landmark in Human Rights advocacy for Cyprus. More than 4,500 people participated in a peaceful march, amongst them the former President of the Republic Mr. George Vassiliou, representatives from all parliamentary parties, the European Parliament and the European Commission, 15 foreign embassies, the plenary of the Council of ILGA- Europe, as well as the Youth Board of Cyprus. Lesbians, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex (LGBTI) people from all over Cyprus, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, friends and allies, families with children and people who simply wanted to show their support, walked together with Accept, turning the 1st Cyprus Pride into a celebration of dignity and respect for all, proving that the Cypriot society has already surpassed the state, which despite all its promises has not shown any substantial progress.

This year the day of the Cyprus Pride Parade (June 6th, 2015) will start in the early afternoon at the Municipal Gardens of Nicosia with events for the whole family, and will culminate in the Cyprus Pride Parade. The event will end with a party back in the Municipal Gardens, with various participating artists, amongst them he Israeli DJs "Deep'a & Biri", direct from the famous clubbing scene of Tel Aviv. The Fork Food Market will also be setting up there.

Aims:
- Acceptance for all, with a particular focus on people of different sexual orientation or gender identity
- Freedom of expressing oneself without society, or even, self-enforced censorship
- Elimination of discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity
- Enhance the visibility of the LGBTI persons
- Cultivate a sentiment in favor of equality and diversity, challenging prejudice.
- Raise of awareness about the struggles of the local LGBTI community in the general public
- Promotion of legislative changes to help LGBTI life in Cyprus, (Civil Partnership Draft Bill, Criminalization of public homophobic speech, Legal Gender Recognition)