Thousands pack Albuquerque streets for 50th Pride Parade celebration

Thousands filled Central Avenue and Route 66 on Saturday for Albuquerque’s 50th Pride Parade, turning Nob Hill into a dense corridor of color, music and community memory. Nearly 200 entries stretched more than a mile as temperatures climbed toward triple digits, but spectators still lined the route to watch dancers, marchers, bikers and cheering groups move through downtown.

The parade began at 10 a.m. in Nob Hill and rolled toward Pridefest at Civic Plaza, where Byron Morton and Peyton Spellacy served as emcees. This year’s theme, “None of Us Are Safe Until All of Us Are Safe,” framed the day as more than a street party. Pridefest admission was set at $20 for adults, $15 for ages 6 to 18, and free for children 6 and under. Organizers also promoted discounted Uber rides with the voucher code PRIDE 26 through midnight Saturday.

The milestone carried unusual weight in a city that has spent decades building Pride into a public institution. Albuquerque Pride says the annual festivities date back to 1969, and another account places the modern parade’s start in 1976, when 25 people marched from Morningside Park to the University of New Mexico. That history gives Saturday’s scale added meaning: what began as a small march has become one of the longest-running Pride celebrations in the country, and one of the clearest ways Albuquerque shows how far visibility has come.

Civic Plaza also served as a civic marker beyond the parade itself. City officials described the raising of the Progress Pride Flag there as a symbol of unity, resilience and love, tying the weekend to both celebration and political visibility. The event’s reach extended beyond Bernalillo County, too, with local residents joined by visitors from out of state, reflecting Pride’s draw as a regional gathering as well as a local tradition.

The weekend fit into a broader arc of remembrance and protest that has long defined Albuquerque Pride. More than 50 people gathered in 2024 for the 18th annual Pride Memorial Candlelight Vigil at Morningside Park, and the 2025 parade also ended at Civic Plaza after running in the 90s. Saturday’s turnout showed that, five decades in, Pride still functions as a celebration, a memorial and a public measure of who feels seen in downtown Albuquerque.