In celebration of Pride Month in June, the city of Irvine has invited the community to celebrate its inaugural Pride event at the Irvine Civic Center on Saturday, May 22. The gathering will feature local LGBTQ+ groups, refreshments along with the raising of the Progress Flag.

The event will also honor Harvey Milk Day, which celebrates the life of Harvey Milk, California’s first openly gay politician to be elected to public office in 1977. Milk helped establish the foundation of civil rights for LGBTQ+ while working on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.

Milk was assassinated in 1978, while still in office, by a former colleague. In 2009, Milk’s life was honored by then-Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger with the establishment of an annual Harvey Milk Day on May 22, which is Milk’s birthday.

In 2022, the Irvine City Council voted 4-1 in favor of raising the LGBTQ+ flag at City Hall in honor of Harvey Milk Day. The item was proposed by then-Councilmembers Farrah Khan and Melissa Fox. While all members of the council supported the annual flag resolution, then-Mayor Christina Shea voted against it.

Irvine’s Pride Month celebration will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting Irvine Weekly and our advertisers.