The New York Pride March is a strong display of identity, diversity and community and while such marches are now part of the fabric of some cities, there is still a desire to participate by marching and actively viewing and supporting the parade. The New York Pride March is an icon of the global LGTBQ community having arisen from the Stonewall riots of 1969 and while a celebratory event, is also a symbol of the ongoing fight to end discrimination and gain equality for the LGTBQ community –particularly relevant considering the recent police violence inflicted on gay and lesbian participants attempting to rally and march in Moscow, 2009.

The New York march stretches from the wide expanse of 5th Avenue to the intimate streets of Greenwich village, where you are enveloped by the loud, proud, rainbow flag waving mecca of the local community. These images were photographed in 2008, a few months before the US election and reflect an aura of excitement and optimism as a change of government was being anticipated as a real possibility.

These photos are a ongoing personal documentation of the gay and lesbian community that include photographing the early days of QLD gay law reform and Pride Festival, the heady days of Mardi Gras and Melbourne’s Midsumma Festival.

Angela Bailey

Angela Bailey is a Melbourne based photographer who works predominantly on photographic based art projects. She is currently working in collaboration on a number of diverse projects including with the City of Melbourne as a project artist at the Carlton Public Housing Estate. Most recently she was involved, in partnership with TCFUA, in photographing workers at the Blundstone Factory in Tasmania and Brintons Carpet Factory in Geelong. She has travelled overseas, receiving funding to further expand her work in arts and community cultural development and has recently returned from New York as part of her current study in art curatorship. Angela has also exhibited both solo and group based work throughout Australia and overseas and is represented in a number of publications and collections including the Queensland Art Gallery, National Gallery of Australia and State Library of Victoria.