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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. 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 The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras or Sydney Mardi Gras is a celebration of LGBTQIA+ history and culture. [22]The term Mardi Gras derives from the celebration on Mardi (French for "Tuesday") when Gras (French for "fat") is eaten prior to the Christian abstinence period of Lent preceding Easter. The new footage of the first Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade in 1978 shows crowds of revellers clad in capes and flags, contrasted with violent arrests by police. 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. 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. 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 Tonight, more than 12,000 participants and thousands more spectators will gather in Sydney for the 2025 Mardi Gras Parade. The newly-discovered footage , shot by Ten Eyewitness News on the night of June 24, 1978, and recently digitised and restored by the NFSA shows the origin story of the long-running event almost 50 years ago. 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, The NFSA marks the 2025 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras with recently discovered news file footage from the first Mardi Gras and subsequent lesbian and gay rights protests in Sydney in June 1978. Guest contributor Ken Davis , one of the organisers of the first Mardi Gras, recalls how the event came about and the 'Drop the Charges' campaign Thousands of scantily clad revellers danced through Sydney on Saturday for the 47th annual Mardi Gras parade, transforming the Australian city into a vibrant sea of colour and costumes. More than 10,000 people -- many of them painted in glitter makeup -- and 180 floats rolled down a packed Oxford Street, lighting up the vibrant heart of Sydney 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. Thousands of scantily clad revellers danced through Sydney on Saturday for the 47th annual Mardi Gras parade, transforming the Australian city into a vibrant sea of colour and costumes. More than 10,000 people -- many of them painted in glitter makeup -- and 180 floats rolled down a packed Oxford Street, lighting up the vibrant heart of Sydney To commemorate the start of Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras 2025, join us by the shores of Bondi Beach on Gadigal, Bidjigal and Birrabirragal Lands. Free to join, First Nations First Light marks the official commencement of the annual LGBTQIA+SB celebrations welcoming festival-goers onto the unceded and sacred Lands and honours the longest The 47th Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade saw over 11,000 participants from the LGBTQI spectrum broadcasting a message of pride, with a big crowd joining them lined up on Oxford Street or Footage of first Sydney Mardi Gras parade unearthed after almost 50 years. Topic: LGBT. Photo shows A crowd in 70s fashion dance through a street at nighttime. Related topics. The 78ers are people who took part in the first Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade on 24 June 1978. They have led each year's parade since 1998. Source: AAP / Steven Saphore. The Festival will wrap with the world famous Sydney Mardi Gras Parade on Saturday 1 March 2025. Festival theme: Free to be The 2025 Festival theme Free to be is a celebration of the strides toward true LGBTQIA+ equality while also acting as a global reminder that our fight is far from over, and that we are not truly free until we are all free • The first Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade on June 24th, 1978 • Protest at Darlinghurst and Central Police Stations, 25th June 1978 • Protest at Central Court Sydney, 26th June 1978 • March from Martin Place to Darlinghurst Police Station, 15th July 1978 • March to Taylor Square and Hyde Park, 27th August 1978. Are you a 78er? 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.
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Photos from events, contest for the best costume, videos from master classes.
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