Thousands of people descended upon downtown Portland for the annual Pride parade on Sunday, filling the streets with an ocean of color and songs.
Nordstrom representatives cheer and march during the Portland Pride Parade in downtown Portland, Ore., July 20, 2025. Portland’s 2025 Pride Parade spanned over 14 blocks of downtown Portland, hosting over 10,000 attendees from all over the Pacific Northwest.
Morgan Barnaby / OPB
While LGBTQ+ Pride month is typically celebrated in June, Portland’s parade is held in July to avoid conflicting with other celebrations like the Rose Festival.
This year’s parade had many of the hallmarks found each year: colorful floats, loud music and dogs in rainbow costumes. Attendees could be seen putting face paint on each other as the parade marched along Naito Parkway.
But many of the attendees said that Pride celebrations took on additional meaning with President Donald Trump in office. More than 70% of LGBTQ+ adults believe that the Trump administration will have a negative impact on their lives, according to a survey by the Pew Research Center.
A US Bank representative marches with a huge pride flag during the Portland Pride Parade in downtown Portland, Ore., July 20, 2025. Portland’s 2025 Pride Parade spanned over 14 blocks of downtown Portland, hosting over ten thousand attendees from all over the Pacific Northwest.
Morgan Barnaby / OPB
Becky Porter of Portland said she’s attended every parade since she moved to Portland in 2002. But this year felt different for her, given the Trump administration’s position on LGBTQ+ issues.
“It doesn’t feel quite as festive,” Porter said. “There’s a heaviness this year, just knowing that the wins that we have fought so hard for are at risk.”
A pride flag hangs of the side of a rear-view mirror in a gaggle of motorcycles with the Dykes on Bikes lesbian motorcycle contingent in the Portland Pride Parade in downtown Portland, Ore., July 20, 2025. Portland’s 2025 Pride Parade spanned over 14 blocks of downtown Portland, hosting over ten thousand attendees from all over the Pacific Northwest.
Morgan Barnaby / OPB
Oregon is seen as having some of the strongest legal protections for queer people in the U.S. Portland, in particular, has one of the highest percentages of LGBTQ+ residents of any metropolitan area in the country, and advocates report more people are moving to the state seeking friendlier laws.
Porter said that, despite the heavy feelings, she’s hopeful that those in the LGBTQ+ community will still rally together.
“We’ve been through hard times before, and we’ve come out the other side, and we will again,” she said.
Portland Pride attendee Hailey Smith discusses what pride means to them in downtown Portland, Ore., July 20, 2025. For many, pride is about finding a sense of community and acceptance in oneself during particularly difficult times.
Morgan Barnaby / OPB
Portland’s parade is also the largest Pride celebration in Oregon, attracting people from across the region. Hailey Smith made the nearly four-hour drive from their home in Coos Bay for the parade — part of the draw is seeing greater queer representation.
“I kind of see it almost as an act of resistance, just to kind of be yourself now, because the way everything is now,” Smith said. “It’s kind of nice to come out and see everybody happy, in a good mood and celebrating just being yourself.”
