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As such that first Mardi Gras march was a major civil rights milestone beyond the gay community. Up to 3,000 people marched in an incident-free parade in 1979. In 1980 a key new element was introduced – the post-parade party. The face of the modern Mardi Gras we know today was taking shape. It was the first-ever Sydney Mardi Gras. Earlier that year, Ken Davis and Anne Talve, two Sydney-based gay activists, received a letter from San Francisco’s Gay Freedom Day committee asking to support the 9th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots and the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day parade. Poster for the first Mardi Gras in Sydney, 1978, designed by Chris Jones.(Supplied: Ken Davis)The event would mark the ninth anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York, an uprising that led to Mardi Gras took on tremendous significance. AIDS activist Bill Whittaker noted, that ‘many of us know people who just wanted to live until one more Mardi Gras, it was so important in their lives. And they did, and still do’. 2. Sydney Mardi Gras today. Mardi Gras has grown to be one of the major events of the Sydney calendar. Public support and positive media reports saw the first charges dropped by October 1978 and the remaining by the end of 1979. Laws around granting permits for street marches and parades were made less strict. Legacy. The first Mardi Gras was a breakthrough in Australian civil rights history. The first Mardi Gras held on June 24, 1978 was planned as an addition to the morning demonstration to mark the anniversary of the Stonewall riots in New York in 1969. At the time, the lesbian and gay community in San Francisco were fighting the Briggs Initiative, which was a push to remove anyone who supported lesbian and gay rights from the Ms Minnis helped organise the first Mardi Gras as a member of the Gay Solidarity Group. The parade, along with other activities planned on June 24, 1978, formed part of a call for international solidarity activities in response to the Briggs initiative in California, which was going to ban LGBTQIA+ people from working in schools. Sydney Mardi Gras timeline. 1969 - Police raided popular gay bar Stonewall Inn in New York; 1978 - First Australian Mardi Gras – 53 people arrested. Most charges eventually dropped, The Sydney Morning Herald published the names, occupations and addresses of those arrested in full, outing many and causing some to lose their jobs. A total of 53 people were arrested during Sydney's first-ever Mardi Gras. (Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives) The following morning, one of the city's most widely read newspapers, Five thousand people took part in the second Gay Mardi Gras on a bitterly cold Saturday night of 30th June 1979 – and there were no arrests. Without the police attack on the first Mardi Gras, there may not have been a second one. The second Mardi Gras in 1979 was accompanied by a fair, film festival and street march. Watch free on iView (Australia restricted) Unlock iView and watch anywhere with NordVPN Sydney Mardi Gras Parade 2025 on Saturday, March 1 Starts 7.30pm AEDT / 8.30am GMT / 3.30am ET Watch the The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras or Sydney Mardi Gras is an event in Sydney, New South Wales attended by hundreds of thousands of people from around Australia and overseas. One of the largest LGBT festivals in the world , Mardi Gras is the largest Pride event in Oceania . Set for the first week of the Sydney Mardi Gras festival, Sydney’s signature queer film festival returns with just under 150 of the world’s finest LGBTQI+ films spread across Event Cinemas George Street and Hurstville, Dendy Cinemas Newtown and Ritz Cinemas Randwick. In the first episode of If These Walls Could Talk, Red Bull’s new five part podcast, we explore the origins of Sydney's Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. The 2025 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Festival promises to be a vibrant celebration of pride, inclusivity, and resilience, scheduled from 14 February to 2 March. This year, the festival returns with a focus on the heart of Mardi Gras—joyful self-expression, unity, and unapologetic celebration of LGBTQIA+ identities. The roar of dozens of motorbikes carrying women and rainbow flags, or "Dykes on Bikes", kicked off the parade, followed by the First Nations Community Float and the 78ers -- a group of activists who marched in Sydney's first Mardi Gras event in 1978. For PEDESTRIAN.TV's first ever digital cover, we celebrate the LGBTQ+ Culture Makers and Game Changers behind Mardi Gras. Check out the incredible artists making Sydney Mardi Gras 2025 a festival for the ages! MARDI GRAS PARTY. The Mardi Gras Party 2025 is here to light up Sydney with a night of unparalleled energy and music. Across six incredible spaces, experience over 8 hours of world-class DJs, jaw-dropping performances, and the electric spirit of the longest How To Have A Fabulous Mardi Gras in Sydney: A First-Timer’s Guide The Background to Mardi Gras in Sydney. The origins of Mardi Gras lie in a spontaneous protest ‘festival’ that took place one night in June 1978 on Sydney’s Oxford Street. With the rallying cry of “out of the bars and into the streets” 500 people grew to 2000. It’s almost time for one of the most important days in the LGBTQIA+ calendar: Sydney’s Mardi Gras, otherwise known as queer Christmas. Take a deep breath in and exhale, allow yourself to feel
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