Two hours, a production company, and a crew of 15 to 20 people: that is the scale Keith Edwards describes for his livestream of the 57th annual New York City Pride March. Edwards, a progressive commentator and one of YouTube’s most-watched political voices, is hosting it on his channel in partnership with GLAAD. It starts at noon Eastern on Sunday.
He will broadcast from the official NYC Pride float as the parade moves through Manhattan. The broadcast also raises money for GLAAD and Heritage of Pride.
Guests
Confirmed guests include New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, comedian Kathy Griffin, commentator Adam Mockler, actor Billy Porter, drag performer Peppermint and actor and host Jonathan Bennett. Writer Liz Plank, comedian Rob Anderson and creator Monte Mader are also on the list, which Edwards says is still growing.
Not everyone will be on the route. Entertainer Frankie Grande and singer and actress Jessica Vosk will join in person. Griffin and Hochul are due to appear remotely, Porter is filming a segment ahead of time, and Mockler will call in from Pride in Chicago. Edwards hired a comedy writer to keep the show moving.
“It’s not a typical livestream,” he said. His one worry, he joked, was “whether the cell signal holds.”
Joy as the point
Edwards told The Advocate the aim is to spread joy “at a time when the administration and the country’s temperature is wanting to keep us suppressed.” He added: “One of the most radical things you can do in a moment of extreme fear and a moment of authoritarianism is to experience joy and happiness.”
He is also thinking of viewers who cannot be at the parade, including people watching alone who feel isolated or afraid. “For two hours you won’t be by yourself,” he said.
The show comes during a Pride season marked by federal rollbacks and anti-trans policies. The Advocate reported that a June 12 directive from the Department of Veterans Affairs, signed by Under Secretary for Health John J. Bartrum, told health facilities to drop gender identity initiatives and strip the LGBTQ+ label from a network of care coordinators the VA had kept since 2016. The directive cited President Donald Trump’s executive orders on diversity programs and federal recognition of transgender people.
Edwards called it “the final gasp of a dying ideology.” He said that “all this stuff they’re doing is totally reversible if we get people in office who want to defend our rights and equality.”
From Warren, Michigan
Edwards grew up in Warren, Michigan, and did not go to college. Before YouTube he worked in politics, as a senior digital adviser to Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia and communications director for the Lincoln Project. He came out at 16, in 2001. His mother was understanding, his father needed two or three years, and he took a boyfriend to prom.
He thinks the Democratic Party has spent more than a decade running against Trump instead of for something. “They’ve run on ‘Trump bad’ for 11 years, and Trump is president again and in many ways more powerful than ever,” he said.
Asked about Pride itself, he said: “I think the most infuriating thing you can do to a bigot is smile and be happy.”
Sources
- Keith Edwards wants his star-studded NYC Pride livestream to answer Trump's attacks with queer joy
- When joy was resistance on the dance floor
