Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to crowd Amsterdam’s canals on Saturday for the centrepiece of WorldPride celebrations, with organisers saying this year’s event carries added significance following last week’s deadly attack on Berlin’s Pride festival.
Dozens of boats decorated with rainbow flags and balloons will sail through the city’s canals as vibrant crowds gather along the banks in celebration.
The canal parade is the signature event of Amsterdam Pride, which was selected by international Pride organisers to host this year’s WorldPride. The two-week celebration across the Netherlands is being held under the theme “UNITY”.
Enhanced security measures
Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema said the city would introduce additional, though unspecified, security measures following the Berlin attack, in which one person was killed and more than 30 others were injured after a van ploughed into a crowd before the suspect was shot dead by German police. Dutch authorities said both visible and undercover security personnel would be deployed.
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An Amsterdam Pride spokesperson said preparations remained on track, stressing that the increased security would not distract from the event’s message of inclusion.
“The aim of terrorism is to spread fear, and we must not give in to that,” spokesperson Martijn Albers said.
The community remains defiant.
Julianne van der Heide, 25, who will participate in Saturday’s parade aboard a boat, said the Berlin tragedy only underscored “how important and necessary pride still is to this day”.
Earlier this week, thousands gathered at Amsterdam’s Homomonument, a canalside memorial dedicated to victims of anti-gay persecution, where they laid flowers in honour of those affected by the Berlin attack.
Caspar Pisters of the Dutch HIV Association said the attack would weigh on many participants but insisted the community would not be intimidated.
“As long as there are people, there will be LGBTQ+ people, and no amount of violence, not even a million bombs, can change that.”
Mick Groeneveld of Queer Museum, an organisation campaigning for a permanent LGBT museum in the Netherlands, said the attack exposed the community’s vulnerability.
“At the same time, making ourselves invisible is not the answer.”
Reuters
