Australia

In pictures: All the colour, culture, and community at Sydney's Mardi Gras parade

Thousands descended on Sydney's streets on Saturday to take part in the annual Mardi Gras parade.

The confetti and glitter are settling on another Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras after tens of thousands partied through the LGBTIQ+ community's night of nights.

More than 11,000 people marched, danced and rolled their way through Sydney streets for the 47th Mardi Gras Parade, displaying Australia's rich and diverse queer culture.

Groups representing rainbow families, transgender people,
LGBTIQ+ people with disability
, and those with a deep love for deafening motorcycles were among more than 180 distinct communities and corporations adding to the colour of Saturday night.
A woman poses for a photo while taking part in Mardi Gras. She is a wheelchair user, is wearing a rainbow sequin top and hotpants, and holding a People With Disbaility Australia sign
People of all abiltiies took part in the 47th Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras parade. Source: Getty / Brook Mitchell
By tradition, Dykes on Bikes delivered a deafening first blast to the night's soundtrack.
A woman in a police uniform riding a motorbike followed by several others waving rainbow pride and trans flags.
Dykes on Bikes are usually the first part of the annual Sydney Mardi Gras parade that spectators see or hear. Source: AAP / Steven Saphore
They were followed by several floats representing First Nations communities and the 78ers — the trailblazing gay and lesbian activists whose bold protest in 1978 sowed the seeds for Australia's largest
LGBTIQ+
celebration.
A crowd of people walk or roll in wheelchairs/mobility scooters holding a black and pink banner that reads "78ers - the first Mardi Gras in Australia". There is much confetti being thrown in the air.
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
A vast array of performers marched to the beat of their own drum, personifying this year's theme of 'Free to Be'.
A person in a frilly pink tutu / flamingo costume.
Parade particpants wore all manner of costumes. Source: AAP / Steven Saphore
Historians from South Australia, queer Queensland doctors and migrant communities representing Turkey, Japan, and other nations highlighted just some of the participants' diversity, covering
the entire LGBTIQ+ spectrum
.
A woman taking part in a parade, waving a Chilean flag. She is wearing a red and white spotted scarf in her hair, top, and skirt
The parade featured people from a wide variety of cultural groups. Source: AAP / Paul Braven
"Everyone has come together to appreciate the community and show love and respect," onlooker Christina Saroukos told AAP from parade centre point Taylor Square.

"All the detailed costumes, the dancers and their choreography — they've really put the effort in and it shows," her sister Olivia said.
A shirtless person in a black, orange and yellow kinky dog mask holds a selfie stick.
The parade showcased the diversity of the LGBTIQ+ community. Source: AAP / Paul Braven
Underscoring the parade's political undercurrent, hundreds in the parade adopted a second unofficial theme, holding signs demanding transgender kids be protected.
A young person wearing a t-shirt with a butterfly in the colours of the trans flag on it. They are holding a sign that says "free to be me".
Hundreds of parade participants held signs and wore t-shirts in support of the transgender community. Source: AAP / Paul Braven
Political leaders including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore, and federal independents Allegra Spender, Zali Steggall and Senator Lidia Thorpe, were among those to march along the 1.3km route through Darlinghurst.
Allegra Spender taking part in the Mardi Gras parade
Wenntworth MP Allegra Spender was among the politicians to take part. Source: AAP / Steven Saphore
Equality Australia said Mardi Gras was a celebration of how far the community had come while sadly marking an uptick in verbal abuse, threats of violence and assaults.

"It's a reminder that for many people in our communities, particularly trans people, such targeted acts of hate are a year-round occurrence and that despite our gains we are still fighting for equal rights and protections in the law," chief executive Anna Brown said.
A group of people hold a black banner reading "Queers say treaty now. Cops out of Mardi Gras"
The inclusion of police officers in the Mardi Gras parade has been controversial. Source: AAP / Paul Braven
The police marched again in this year's parade after a bid to ban their presence was narrowly voted down
in December last year.


More than 10,000 people were expected to party until dawn at the marquee eight-hour Mardi Gras Party rave at Moore Park.

An official closing party, dubbed Laneway, will close out the wider 16-day Mardi Gras festival on Sunday.
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3 min read
Published 2 March 2025 8:26am
Source: AAP, SBS

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