Utah Pride Parade 2026: Life Elevated

A group of people standing aside of a truck.

To show off SLC's true queerness, the Utah Pride Parade marched on, shouting and cheering the community. And SLUG Magazine was along for the celebration! Photo courtesy

Image: John Barkiple, Oskar Finch

Community

It’s the first weekend of June, and the streets of downtown Salt Lake City are painted in a rainbow of pedestrians and the most colorful personalities. Utah Pride has electrified Utah’s diverse LGBTQ+ community with safe, accessible and inclusive services and events. To show off SLC’s true queerness, the Utah Pride Parade marched on, shouting and cheering the community. And SLUG Magazine was along for the celebration!

The parade began on West Temple, walking all the way through 100 South and ending at the corner of 300 South and 400 East. Contributors and employees of both SLUG and Craft Lake City donned the matching cream-colored tees designed by local illustrator Tali Southam (@doggies_crust). On them is the depiction of a trans cowboy couple walking through a desert landscape. Some of us were carrying signs sporting the same illustration, while others were making mad dashes to the crowd, passing out the new LGBTQ+ Pride issue of the magazine. The temperature was heating up, but so were the thousands of parade-goers! It seemed like everyone was here to join in on the fun: drag queens, classic hot-rodders, Wiseguys comedy, news outlets, a handful of furries and even The New Republic with Darth Vader and an army of gay Stormtroopers.

Although the parade came to an end, the celebration was just getting started! Just down the street, the Utah Pride Festival was becoming the hub of love and self-appreciation. Inside, patrons would be picking up beverages, dancing to live music and making safety pin charms at the SLUG booth. Here’s to another month of Pride — stay true to yourself!