Montréal, August 19, 2025. Attracting more than 900,000 participants, the 19th edition of Fierté Montréal Festival, presented by TD Bank Group in collaboration with Loto-Québec, took place from July 31 to August 10, 2025. In collaboration with more than 300 organizations committed to advancing 2SLGBTQIA+ rights, the largest annual celebration of the creativity and resilience of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities in the French-speaking world shone a light on more than 250 queer artists and their allies, as well as their advocacy and demands for human rights.
In the face of rising bigotry and discrimination against 2SLGBTQIA+ people, and despite heated debates surrounding this edition, our communities and allies sent a clear message: Never without our pride!
In sweltering heat, more than 150,000 spectators gathered on René-Levesque Boulevard on August 10 to attend the Pride Parade, the Festival's flagship event, which commemorates the struggles and victories of the past, honours our activist forebears, and amplifies the advocacy demands of 2SLGBTQIA+ organizations. Under the theme “Blossom here, now!” 12,000 participants marched the 2.2 km route, connecting the city's historic 2SLGBTQIA+ district with the present-day Village, a display that was respectful of the safety and dignity of everyone involved.
At the heart of the festivities, the Village glowed like a rainbow with a bigger, bolder program—and the crowds were there to confirm it! The Dovato Stage, a mobile artistic venue, hosted local 2SLGBTQIA+ artists throughout the Festival with drag shows, rock acts, burlesque performances, DJ sets, Bollywood, pop, a children's show, and even a high-heeled race, attracting nearly 30,000 festivalgoers. 115,000 people visited the first edition of the Rainbow Market from August 1 to 3, which showcased 2SLGBTQIA+ entrepreneurs, artists, artisans, and designers, in collaboration with the M.A.D. Festival and the SDC du Village. From its headquarters on rue Sainte-Catherine East, Fierté Montréal Festival hosted visitors in a welcoming space that included an information booth, a community photo exhibition, and the Festival gift shop. The comedy show Des gags et des paillettes, presented by La Presse on August 5 and 6, as well as the programming at the Jardins Gamelin on July 31, August 1, 2, and 3 in collaboration with Quartier des Spectacles Partnership, the beloved Fierté Littéraire events, and L’After T-Dance on August 10 at Sainte-Catherine Hall, presented by romeo’s gin, added to Community Days, presented by Cogeco, on August 8 and 9 on Rue Sainte-Catherine East—which attracted more than 400,000 people—to make the Village Hub the beating heart of the Festival.
“The unprecedented collaboration between Fierté Montréal and the SDC du Village has helped showcase the full potential of our neighbourhood. Together, we have generated significant economic benefits, highlighted queer artists, and promoted the vitality of our businesses. The members of the SDC du Village are at the heart of this spree: their commitment, creativity, and openness make the Village a unique destination that contributes to the cultural, social, tourist, and nightlife dynamism of Montréal”
— Gabrielle Rondy
Executive Director of the Société de développement commercial (SDC du Village)
For the second year in a row, Festival Fierté Montréal provided prestige visibility for 2SLGBTQIA+ communities in the heart of downtown with its Urban Hub. The epicentre of Montréal's cultural life, the Quartier des Spectacles, hosted free shows on the Loto-Québec Stage at the Esplanade Tranquille from July 31 to August 3 with a series of evenings featuring Indigenous artists, trans artists, women of sexual and gender diversity, paying tribute to disco culture, social revolutions, and celebrating established and emerging queer artists and their many allies.
At Place des Arts, audiences laughed along on August 1st with Katherine Levac's L'été de ma Fierté! and discovered CinéQueer, a co-presentation with the National Film Board of Canada (NFB), which offered three days of free screenings at the Alanis Obomsawin Theatre, in collaboration with the Festival du Nouveau Cinéma and the Festival image+nation, from August 4 to 6. The SAT and Club Soda hosted unforgettable club nights, and the MEM – Centre des mémoires Montréalaises hosted a series of community panels highlighting issues facing 2SLGBTQIA+ communities. In total, nearly 25,000 people enjoyed the multidisciplinary fair throughout the Urban Hub.
The Olympic Hub's big free shows took place on the TD Stage on the Olympic Park’s Esplanade from August 7 to 10, showcasing local and international artists of sexual and gender diversity and their allies, dance, and the biggest drag show of the year, attracting nearly 60,000 festivalgoers.
With its Community Awards, Fierté Montréal recognizes individuals and collectives who have contributed to awareness, advocacy and advancement of 2SLGBTQIA+ struggles. This year, the Claude-Tourangeau Award, granted to an organization for its outstanding contribution to the fight against serophobia, was given to GAP-VIES. The Bâtisseur Award, which recognizes contributions to 2SLGBTQIA+ rights advocacy, went to the Conseil québécois LGBT. Meanwhile, the John Banks Award, awarded to people and groups for their special contribution to Pride per se, went to the Soeurs de la perpétuelle indulgence de Montréal (local mission of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence). The inaugural Mado Award was fittingly accorded to Montréal drag icon Mado Lamotte.
In 2025, nearly 30 organizations received Fierté Montréal Community Project Grants that help bring special projects to life not only in Montréal, but also by supporting 2SLGBTQIA+ associations and projects in other cities, such as Trois Rivières, Trois Pistoles, Saguenay, and Mont-Laurier.
“At a time when 2SLGBTQIA+ people's rights are under threat around the world, Fierté Montréal invites the public to come together based on what unites us: solidarity and compassion. We are committed to fostering a Fierté that will continue to celebrate the creativity and resilience of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities by remaining attentive, proudly adaptable, and engaged in dialogue.”
— Marlot Marleau
President of the Fierté Montréal Board of Directors.
Never Without our Partners
Fierté Montréal would like to thank its loyal partners, as well as those who have recently joined us, without whom it would be impossible to continue the fight for full recognition of the rights of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities: le Groupe Banque TD, supporter since 2008, Loto-Québec, the Ville de Montréal, the Gouvernement du Québec, the gouvernement du Canada, Tourisme Montréal, the Conseil des arts de Montréal, Cabenuva, Rogers, Trojan, the SAQ, Air Canada, Bubly, Radio-Canada, STM, Hydro-Québec, Merck, Loblaws, no name, Bud Light, Dovato, Apretude, Fugues, MTL Dans la poche, Cogeco, La Presse, IN Magazine, CTV, Publicité Sauvage, Virgin Radio, Énergie, Rouge, Cult, Le Devoir, GoMag, Petit Futé, Québec Le Mag, Gay City News, Culture Cible, Neo, the SDC du Village, the Société de développement et de mise en valeur du Parc olympique, the Partenariat du Quartier des Spectacles, the European Union through its delegation in Canada, PME MTL Centre-Ville, the Regroupement des évènements majeurs internationaux and Fierté Canada Pride.
About Fierté Montréal
Since 2007, Fierté Montréal has been amplifying the voices of the 2SLGBTQIA+ communities to ensure their social representation and inclusion, and to defend their rights. As vectors of social change, our festival, community initiatives and artistic/cultural projects celebrate the creativity and resilience of our communities. By listening to and collaborating with 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, we call attention to their struggles and realities on the level of both the general public and institutions.
Fierté Montréal is based in Tio’tia:ke, on the unceded territory of the Kanien’kehá:ka Nation. We recognize them as the custodians of the lands and waters on which we gather. Tio’tia:ke is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations, and today, a diverse Indigenous population, as well as other peoples, reside here. It is with respect for connections to the past, present, and future that we recognize the ongoing relationships between Indigenous Peoples and the Montréal community at large.
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