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Southern Decadence
Southern Decadence
LGBTQ Pride Parade 2017
LGBTQ Pride Parade 2017
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LGBTQ Festivals & Events

New Orleans has it all – legendary nightlife, fantastic restaurants, a dramatic arts scene, 24-hour-a day bars and the chance to dress up in outrageous costumes any time of year. Altogether, it’s the perfect setting for the liveliest of gay cultures. The LGBTQ community takes the spotlight at festivals all year long, with Southern Decadence over Labor Day weekend attracting more than 125,000 revelers to what’s come to be known as Gay Mardi Gras. Parades, costumes, drag shows and themed parties abound during Decadence, then again they’re a part of the city’s Pride Fest, Mardi Gras, Halloween festivities and even Easter, where the Gay Easter Parade is one of three in the French Quarter. The Saints and Sinners Literary Festival takes a more studied approach, bringing the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex literati together for three days of inspired musings. The preference in New Orleans is always to celebrate diversity; whatever your interest, there is a LGBTQ festival for it. Here is a list:

LGBTQ Festivals Not to Miss

  • What began as a simple going-away party in 1972 has evolved into one of New Orleans’ premier annual events: Southern Decadence. Held annually over Labor Day weekend, this celebration of LGBT...
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  • The witches and the queens and the ghosts and the goblins come out for Halloween New Orleans for a series of fundraising events Halloween weekend, including the Lazarus Ball, a dance night, flamboyant...
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  • Named one of the fastest growing pride celebrations in the nation by gaytravel.com (2013), New Orleans Pride has nearly tripled in size since 2012. The festival is composed of a weekend of events that...
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  • The Saints and Sinners Literary Festival was founded in 2003 as a new initiative designed as an innovative way to reach the community with information about HIV/AIDS, particularly disseminating...
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  • It has been called “the most famous drag-queen contest in America” and it has been going on for more than four decades. What started out as a one-time novelty to help promote a French Quarter...
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