Preparations rolling along at a fast pace for the 2017 Chicago Pride Parade

Chicago, IL - The 150 entry-limit for the 2017 Chicago Pride Parade is expected to fill up within weeks as there were 95 confirmed entrants in the first month after the application forms went out, organizers said.

And yes, the event on June 25 through multiple north-side neighborhoods, primarily Lakeview, is still known as the Chicago Pride Parade; that did not change, as was reported earlier this year by another media outlet. Instead, parade organizers simply changed the name of the event on the city listing from Gay & Lesbian Pride Parade to LGBTQ Pride Parade.

"Everything is shaping up well," for this year's parade, said parade coordinator Richard Pfeiffer. 

Once organizers hit the 150 entry-limit, a wait-list is started.

The Pride Parade is one of about 100 events in June on the Pride Month Calendar, available at, www.chicagopridecalendar.org.

The 2017 Grand Marshal will be announced in May, said Pfeiffer, who often receives community suggestions for potential honorees. And lately, the grand marshal has been someone who had recently come out.

The Chicago Pride Parade is one of 31 parades in the City of Chicago, and all are supposed to be 2 hours, 15 minutes, Pfeiffer said. The time-limit is measured by when the last entry crosses the starting line, which again will be at the corner of Montrose and Broadway in Uptown.

"The parade went very well (last year) with cross representation of a lot of community groups, businesses, elected officials," and others, Pfeiffer said. 

The 2016 parade featured a moving tribute at the start to the 49 killed weeks earlier at Pulse Nightclub in Orlando. "That was a commemoration and tribute, and the right thing to do," Pfeiffer said.

Pfeiffer said there was a "low amount" of arrests last year compared to previous years. "The majority of arrests and problems (happen) after the parade is over," he said.

There are about 90 Pride Parades annually in the U.S., and about 13 are held on the last Sunday in June.

The Los Angeles Pride Parade has already announced that its 2017 event will alter its format, based on the current political climate.

Christopher Street West, the non-profit organization responsible for the annual parade, announced the changes on its website.

"Given the current political climate where divisiveness and discrimination continue to be part of mainstream dialogue, CSW is determined to make the LA Pride brand a unifying force for the LGBTQ+ community and its allies across all of Los Angeles," the website said. "To accomplish this goal, the organization is introducing several community-focused initiatives to continue LA Pride's long-standing history as a voice of and for the entire LGBTQ+ community."

Organizers are expecting up to 500,000 participants for the march, hoping to fall in the steps of the Women's March, which drew 750,000 people in Los Angeles.

"LA is the only city that we're aware of that is changing from a parade to a march," Pfeiffer said. "In a parade, you can still make a political or social statement, and you'll probably see that this year in Chicago and across the nation."

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Chicago Pride Month, June 2016 

Chicago Pride Month, June 2015

Chicago Pride Month, June 2014

Chicago Pride Month, June 2013

Chicago Pride Month, June 2012

Chicago Pride Month, June 2011

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Chicago Pride Month, June 2004

Chicago Pride Month, June 2003