(St. Louis, MO) June 30, 2020 – Pride St. Louis is honored to serve the St. Louis LGBTQIA+ Community and we strive to be a leader in our community when making difficult decisions.

The City of St Louis Health Department with regards to the safety and concern of our community, is not allowing us to hold an in-person festival with a gathering of greater than 200 people during the Covid-19 pandemic. We were hoping that the precautions implemented earlier in the year would have prevented these continued restrictions however, this pandemic is beyond our control and unfortunately PrideSTL is reformatting PrideFest 2020. 

PrideSTL has decided on holding Virtual PrideFest 2020 on Saturday, August 15, 2020, 1pm-6pm. This virtual festival will not only have a local audience but will have a nationwide reach and because of our membership and involvement with InterPride, a global Pride organization - will have a global viewing audience as well! 

The theme of PrideFest 2020 “We Are Family” will still continue. This theme depicts the essence of solidarity and family that runs deep in our STL LGBTQIA+ Community. The decision to move PrideFest 2020 to a virtual PrideFest is for the health and safety of our community “our family” and all those who celebrate with us.

We realize that many of you who attend PrideFest and Pride Parade every year are disappointed. We understand that feeling. However, Virtual PrideFest 2020 will be just as exciting and wonderful to watch. Our STL LGBTQIA+ Community Pride will be on full view and shine brightly!

The mission of Pride St. Louis is “to foster an understanding and tolerance of the LGBTQIA+ Community in the general population by raising awareness through educational programs and events leading up to the annual Pride Fest in St. Louis.” For more information about Pride St. Louis please visit www.pridestl.org, or follow us on social media. Facebook: www.facebook.com/pridestlouis.