As the Trump administration aggressively targets diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across the country, thousands gathered in downtown Detroit for the city's annual Pride festival over the weekend with many saying it was a form of protest as much as it was a celebration.

The two-day event in Hart Plaza, the largest Pride celebration in Michigan to support the LGBTQ community and its allies, drew attendees from all over the state. Some at Sunday's parade said the stakes for this year's festivities felt uniquely high.

"Whether you like us or not, we're still here, and we're gonna be here," said Ricky McCormick, who came from Pontiac for Sunday's parade.

Motor City Pride — one of several Pride events held in June across Michigan; Ferndale Pride has events planned throughout the month but had a festival on May 31 — comes as larger Pride festivals across the country have seen an uptick in companies pulling their sponsorships, though organizers in Detroit said Motor City Pride has seen its corporate support largely hold steady.

The Trump administration has actively sought to purge programs, policies, books, and social media mentions of any references to diversity, equity and inclusion. Earlier this month, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the Navy to rename the USNS Harvey Milk, stripping the ship of the moniker of a slain gay rights activist who served as a sailor during the Korean War.

Still, Sunday's parade in Detroit was festive, albeit defiant for some. Walkers passed out beaded necklaces, printed rainbow flags and multi-colored flags, blew bubbles, and shouted, "Happy Pride!" They left their mark on Detroit's streets with multi-colored confetti.

Lacy Soria of Detroit, 38, came to the parade to support her friends and family. She wore a lime green skirt, black boots, rainbow-colored eyeshadow and large eyelashes.

"Normally, I wouldn't be as obnoxious with the makeup and stuff, but now is the time to be even more supportive," Soria said. "I'm an ally. My sister's gay, some of my best friends are gay, so I want to show up and show support especially with everything going on in the world right now."

Glynis Tabor, 41, and Polina Brovssilovskaia, 35, of Detroit, were relaxing near Larned and Brush streets Sunday. Brovssilovskaia held two rainbow-colored flags while sitting next to her spouse of seven years.

"It was nice to see everyone come out and be so supportive, especially right now, in this atmosphere," Brovssilovskaia said. "It was nice to see all the government people ... anyone who represented the city, it was nice to see."

Tabor, who identifies as nonbinary, autistic and transgender, and Brovssilovskaia said they moved to Detroit within the last three years after living in places like Toronto and New York.

"Toronto is huge. We were on a float once and it was so overwhelming, it was too much. 6 million people," Brovssilovskaia said.

Tabor said she was afraid the Detroit parade would draw too many people but it was the "perfect amount. ... I feel safe in Detroit already."

Automakers support Motor City Pride

All of the Big Three Detroit automakers were prominently represented in Sunday's parade.

Their participation comes as they adjust to rapidly changing tariff and trade policies by President Trump, who has criticized the companies for not manufacturing and producing enough of their vehicles domestically.

It contrasts with the tact of several large U.S. companies that have retreated from their diversity, equity and inclusion policies in order to avoid running afoul of the Trump administration, which has suggested it will investigate companies that use them.

"We're back at Motor City Pride this weekend, and throughout the month, all employees have the option to participate in a variety of Ford-sponsored Pride events and internal programs around the globe," said Ford DEI Communications Manager Monique Brentley. "All our efforts are designed to promote mutual respect and inclusion for every person at Ford."

Pride festivals in other cities like Washington, D.C., New York, and San Francisco have seen corporations that previously sponsored the events withdraw their sponsorships this year, according to media reports.

New York Pride festivities in particular face a significant budget shortfall this year, with 25% percent of typical sponsors either canceling or scaling back contributions, The New York Times reported.

That retreat, said Matt Skallerud, the president of the LGBTQ+ marketing firm Pink Matter, has confirmed what many in the gay community long thought to be true of the corporate sector: It's revealed "pinkwashing" — a term used to describe what's seen as companies' superficial support for the gay community merely for PR points — to be "very much alive and real."

But Dave Waits, the chairperson of Motor City Pride, said companies he's typically tapped for sponsorships have given their support again this year, and even upped contributions in some cases.

Waits attributes that to the fact that Motor City Pride is a smaller operation relative to festivals in cities like Washington and New York, meaning companies can more easily afford to make the requested contributions, even when balanced with the potential for blowback from the Trump administration.

They they have to ask for larger contributions than we do, and that probably gets a little bit more scrutinized," Waits said.

'Trans People Belong'

Organizers expected about 60,000 people to attend Motor City Pride. Parade attendees said it was particularly important this year to center Pride celebrations around supporting transgender people, who they said have been unfairly targeted by the Trump administration.

The Michigan ACLU made that a prominent element of its parade showing, with drag performers strutting down the street holding signs and flags reading "Trans People Belong," among other messages.

Local unions and organizations like Rising Voices, American Civil Liberties Union, Icon Detroit, Michigan Band of Brothers and Sisters, a musical band from Rennaissance High School, officers and city officials also joined in the parade. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a frequent Motor City Pride attendee, was back again this year.

Another organization, dubbed "Defeat Trump" yelled "Donald Trump has to go!" as they walked through downtown Detroit.

The Trump administration issued several executive orders related to the trans community, including one to moving transgender women into men's prisons; barring transgender people from serving in the military; and pulling federal funding for gender-affirming care for transgender youths.

Tatum Loik, who is transgender, said he feels that the Trump administration has "to pick on one part of (the gay community)," and that they've become an "easy target" in politics of late.

Jai Rodriguez, a member of the original cast of the NBC show "Queer Eye" and the parade's celebrity grand marshal, echoed that sentiment: "It's expanded to literally trying to single out the trans community, the most marginalized, smallest population, that are just trying to live lives that are full of integrity, with dignity and grace, and have the same protections under the law as everyone else."

"Suddenly, as they got more visible, as they started inching toward equal rights, that's when (conservative politicians) literally decided to make (transgender people) the enemy, but you know what? They are not the enemy. They don't impact the cost of eggs," Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez said this year's pride festivities feel reminiscent of its origins as a form of protest.

"We got a little complacent and comfortable when we saw the White House administration was lit up with rainbow colors during the Obama administration, marriage equality was the law of the land ... ," he said. "The truth is we are returning to our roots. Pride was a protest and the glitter and the rainbows will never erase that."

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