Pretty, Witty & Gay: Reykjavík Pride Is A Week Full Of Wonders

It still comes as a surprise to so many fine visitors to our fair isle that the public party that draws the biggest crowd is the annual Reykjavík Pride parade. “Not the Independence Day parade?” they ask. All tea no shade, but absolutely not, for she is basic. The Pride Parade though? A true queen representing the full spectrum of Iceland’s beautiful multitudes of queer life.

Reykjavík Pride is soon upon us once again, happening August 6 to 11. The week of celebrations leading up to the grand parade primarily take place at the Pride Centre, this year held in historic downtown theatre Iðnó. There, a diverse array of events represents and welcomes every hue, tint and shade cast by the queer prism. What’s more, all the official events at the Pride Centre are free of charge.

“This has been our main mission regarding the pride events, to make it free and keep it accessible for everyone,” says Helga Haraldsdóttir, President/Chief Volunteer of Reykjavík Pride. We reached out to Helga to give us the down-low on some of the hottest events happening during Pride week before the parade.

The week at the Pride Centre kicks off on Monday August 5 with the youth orientated Queer Crafts and Clothes Swap & Upcycle Workshop events. As self-expression through fashion can be such a huge aspect of queer identity, this super creative space will allow LGBTQ+ youth a space to trade their duds and share style tips. Honestly, werk.

On Tuesday August 6, Reykjavík Pride has its official opening ceremony in their traditional painting of a rainbow flag on a new street. This year, the new rainbow street will adorn the road outside the Queer Youth Centre on Barónsstígur next to Austurbæjarskóli. The painting happens at 12:00 and will be a joyous act of political public art that we all need.

On the same afternoon back at Pride Centre, author and translator Þorvaldur Kristinsson will celebrate the release of his adaptation of James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room, published for the first time in Icelandic. Released in confluence with the 100th anniversary of author and civil rights activist James Baldwin’s birth, the translator of this groundbreaking novel is himself a pioneer activist for queer rights in Iceland. Although the event is in Icelandic, any lover of transliterated text is encouraged to come at 16:00 and remember that the pen is a mighty tool of liberation.

On Wednesday August 7, the whole family gets a humpday treat over at Pride Centre with One, Two, DRAG! The daytime drag extravaganza for the whole family kicks off at 14:00 with a book reading by local drag icon Starína, hula hooping with Bobbie Michelle, and face painting. At 15:00, the House of Heart drag family will explode onstage and deliver an unforgettable performance.

The annual Rainbow Conference then takes over on Thursday August 8, where discussions both light and heavy will be taken up. Although Iceland holds a high reputation as one of the nations with the highest quality of life and civil liberties for queer people, the Rainbow Conference is a space where the issues that still face queer folks both locally and globally are brought forward.

Within the cadre of the conference this year are several talks in English. A particularly notable one is author and trans activist Ugla Stefanía Kristjönudóttir Jónsdóttir hosting a discussion on political pinkwashing. This is the act of states or countries using the language of queer rights to garner a reputation of being liberal LGBTQ+ friendly nations, while their actual policies and political track record say otherwise. The term originated in 2010 in reference to tactics used by Israel in its public relations, which is still in practice during Israel’s ongoing massacres in Gaza. This lecture will not be gay as in happy, but queer as in Free Palestine.

There’s so much more going on we just can’t fit — art markets, game nights, karaoke parties, concerts, a queer cruise, and drag drag drag, honey! Happy Pride to one and all!

The full programme for Reykjavík Pride can be found online at hinsegindagar.is, where more events will be added in the coming days.

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