Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte on Monday, June 19, invited members and supporters of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgenders, Queer, Intersex, Asexual (LGBTQIA+) community to participate in the Pride Festival which will be hosted by the city government on Saturday, June 24. The event, themed6 “Love, Laban:  A Celebration of the Fight for Love in All Forms and Ways,” will be held at the Quezon Memorial Circle (QMC) in line with the government's goal to make Quezon City the city of inclusivity, diversity, and equality. It will be led by Pride PH, a network of LGBTQIA+ organizations in the country pushing for equal rights, love for and to end discrimination. It will serve as the city’s culminating activity for the month-long celebration of Pride Month. (Photo by Aaron Dioquino/ MANILA BULLETIN) “Ang atin pong laban ay puno ng pagmamahal. Kasi ginagawa natin ito dahil minamahal natin ang  bawat kapwa Pilipino. Naniniwala tayo na lahat ng Pilipino, ano man ang ating mga paninindigan, paniniwala, ano ang ating pagkatao, pantay-pantay 'yan. At gusto natin bigyang diin ang kahalagahan ng pagmamahal bilang ating instrumento para ating matamo ang pagpapantay-pantay na ito (Our fight is full of love. We do this because we love each of our fellow Filipinos. We believe that all Filipinos, whatever our stances, beliefs, and personalities, are equal. And we want to emphasize the importance of love as our instrument to achieve this equality),” Belmonte said during a press conference held at the QMC on Monday. She also called on the QCitizens to also invite other residents and non-residents of the city to attend the event. Miss Trans Global 2020 and Pride PH lead convener Mela Habijan explained that the festival will be celebrated with the same format last year which include a Pride Expo, wherein different activities and solidarity speeches from different organization will be held; a “Pride March;” and a “Pride Night,” wherein celebrities and guests who are members of the LGBTQIA+ community will share speeches and performances. The event will start at 10 a.m. on Saturday until 12 midnight on June 25. Habijan said that the Pride March will be held from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. and will take the route starting from North Avenue. It will pass through V. Luna and  Kalayaan Avenues and will end at the QMC Commonwealth Entrance. “We want to retain the same format as last year but of course, it will be bigger and better. We also have solidarity speeches throughout the day to amplify the community’s call for equality and the recognition of our rights. After all, pride is still a protest,” QC Pride Festival’s program lead and show director Rod Singh said. “At three in the afternoon, we are hoping to march within the assigned routes smoothly and end the day with the Pride show that will start at 6:00 pm. Expect a lot of dancing and good music from our talented queer performers and artists,” Singh added. The Quezon City government and Pride PH are expecting around 50,000 participants in the celebration, which is double from last year’s record of 25,000 attendees. “Quezon City is an inclusive city and we are an ally to the LGBTQIA+ Community. We assure the participants that this year’s Pride event will be fun, memorable, and meaningful for all,” Mayor Joy Belmonte said. The city government said that aside from the QC Pride Festival on June 24, several celebrations of Pride will happen simultaneously on the same day in Makati, Baguio, Quirino, Cagayan De Oro, and Cebu. Regional Pride marches will also happen in various cities like Zamboanga, Romblon, and General Santos City until the end of the month, it added.