Pride Week at the U  is an annual event honoring LGBTQIA+ histories, cultures and lives. Our queer and trans community at the University of Utah is—unstoppable. The history of the queer and trans community at the university is a proud piece of larger histories of LGBTQIA+ movements and resilience in the face of obstacles and opposition.

Join us to celebrate our unstoppable community during Pride Week 2023 from March 27-April 1, for an exciting calendar of events  prepared for our campus, including drag shows, markets, talent competitions, queer prom and more. Among the many events planned will be Pride Plaza.

“It’s a market-style event that will include performers and potentially art for sale,” explained Olivia Haddadin, Pride Week 2023 co-chair. “The way that we’re tying this into Pride Week is by inviting those vendors, performers and other artists who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community or have family or are allies. That way, we can introduce our campus to those people, and give them a platform, bring them in and build this community.”

This year will also include the first-ever faculty and staff event  for Pride Week to highlight and give space for university employees who identify as queer and trans to gather in the community and recognize their talents as well as their contributions to the LGBTQIA+ community.

“We have a full week of events that, in many ways, capture or are part of the same purpose of the Pride Plaza in its community-building principle that is connecting people to the local LGBT community, which is thriving not just here on campus, but in Salt Lake and Utah as a state,” said Shelby Hearn, coordinator of education leadership development in the U’s LGBT Resource Center.

A full Pride Week interview with Shelby Hearn can be found on YouTube. To learn more about Pride Week 2023, visit diversity.utah.edu/pride.