Colfax Avenue turned into a mass of rainbow stripes and bold costumes on Sunday as Denver’s Pride weekend festivities continued with the festival’s hallmark parade from Cheesman Park to the Civic Center.

Thousands of people lined Colfax Avenue in bright attire to watch the parade, featuring scores of floats and people on foot. Some spectators wore rainbow accessories, some decked out in full drag or wore flags draped around their shoulders.

Parade participants waved multicolored flags representing different LGBTQ+ identities, high-fived spectators and called out “Happy Pride!”

Notable parade grand marshals this year included survivors of last fall’s Club Q massacre in Colorado Springs and Denver City Councilmember Robin Kniech, whose banner said she is the first woman on the council to come out as openly gay.

The Club Q massacre last November left five people dead in the LGBTQ+ venue in Colorado Springs right before the club planned to recognize Transgender Day of Remembrance.

Michael Anderson, vice president of operations for Club Q, said he believes the Pride celebration this year has also taken on a more serious note in light of the tragedy at Club Q and pushes for legislation in some states the LGBTQ+ community sees as an attack on their rights, such as laws targeting drag performances and limiting access to health care for transitioning youth.

“I think pride this year is returning to its original spirit of protest, of pushback against social norms and social conformity,” Anderson said. “I’ve even seen a lot of allies out here, not even necessarily LGBTQ members themselves, but a lot of allies coming out to these events just to say, ‘I see what’s going on in this country, and we support you.'”

Anderson helped raise money on Sunday to build a permanent memorial outside the club to the people killed and injured. He estimated the group’s efforts raised more than $7,000 during Denver’s PrideFest.

Michaela and Sam Gallegos brought their two young children to the parade, and the family of four wore matching rainbow tie-dyed T-shirts. Michaela and Sam’s shirts said “Mom 1” and “Mom 2” across the backs.

They said they moved to Colorado from Chicago less than a year ago, so this is their first Pride in Denver.

“This is just their life. This is all they’ve known. We are their parents,” said Michaela Gallegos of the couple’s children. “Showing them that there are other families like us is important.”

The weekend also featured a 5K race on Saturday and a two-day festival in Civic Center Park. Produced by The Center on Colfax, Denver Pride is the largest LGBTQ+ Pride event in the Rocky Mountain region, according to DenverPride.org.

It draws hundreds of thousands of people. More than 535,000 people attended the parade and festival in 2022, and the parade had 12,000 marchers and 2,400 participants in the 5K race, according to the website.

“Pony” came to Sunday’s festival in her drag persona.

She works full-time for the Arapahoe Library District reading stories to children, and did a pop-up drag story time at the festival on Sunday morning.

Though many books she reads don’t feature LGBTQ+ characters, she said the story times also provide an opportunity for “non-traditional” or LGBTQ+ families to hear their stories told.

Drag story times have been a way for Pony to take action after the Club Q massacre.

“After the tragedy, I thought, ‘I have these two skill sets.’ It feels actionable. Drag story time is just pure love. And kids are so flexible and smart, and they just get it.”

A group of friends braved the summer heat Sunday morning in their furry character costumes.

“Furries” make up a subculture of people interested in anthropomorphic animal characters, and the friends said they make their characters based on animals and colors they like, and personas they create can represent their personalities or what they wish to be like.

“Echo,” who like the rest of the group shared her character’s name, said the blue-and-yellow golden retriever character represents her own love for the ocean as well as her “kinder” side.

“Everything good about me, she represents,” Echo said.

“Rainy,” who added illustrations of scars representing top surgery after transitioning, explained people’s character personas sometimes change as they evolve themselves.

“This character I’ve had since I was in middle school. Now I’m an adult; I’ve transitioned, so I’ve added surgery scars as I’ve gotten older,. So, it reflects who I am, as just a fun little fluffy animal.”