Seven grand marshals announced for NYC Pride 2024

Seven grand marshals will stand in the spotlight on Pride Sunday in New York City this year.

The grand marshals slated to lead NYC Pride’s June 30 march include Miss Major, a trans activist who participated in the Stonewall Uprising; Raquel Willis, a trans activist and author who released a book last year called “The Risk It Takes to Bloom: On Life and Liberation”; and DaShawn Usher, a Bronx native who serves as senior director of communities of color and media at GLAAD.

There are also three grand marshals in the Youth Activist category: Baddie Brooks, a multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter; Eshe Ukwell, a reporting fellow at The 19th*; and Robin Drake, a 24-year-old Afro-Latino trans man from Brooklyn and member of the Hetrick Martin Institute.

“Now more than ever, it is imperative for members across our community to unite behind the mission of the LGBTQIA+ cause: simply the opportunity to love, and to be able to live as you desire,” co-chair Kazz Alexander said in a written statement. “This year we’re calling all individuals across all identities to action. Advocates and allies, come and show pride with us; support the Queer community, support one another, and connect to this mission so that we each have equal access to civil liberties and the right to exist. When we are all unified in the spirit of liberation for the most marginalized, we all benefit.”

Last year’s grand marshals were Billy Porter, Yasmin Benoit, AC Dumlao, Hope Giselle, and Randy Wicker.

The city’s annual Pride March is slated to begin at 11 a.m. at 25th St. and Fifth Ave. The march is produced by NYC Pride, which is also known as Heritage of Pride — not to be confused with the Reclaim Pride Coalition’s Queer Liberation March, which is an annual alternative march that bans corporations and police. Reclaim Pride’s March takes place on the same day, and this year will be the sixth annual edition of the Queer Liberation March.