Helsinki Pride week, a celebration of gender and sexual minorities, kicked off on Monday around the theme "Joy and Riot".
Starting with a celebration on Monday, the week's events will reach a peak with the Helsinki Pride Parade, a march from Senate Square to Kaivopuisto park, on Saturday 1 July. It is Finland's largest LGBTQ+ event, and attracted more than 70,000 people last year.
Earlier this month Yle reported about increased anti-LGBTQ+ tensions ahead of Pride events. The situation could be linked to Finland's much-debated trans law amendments, according to Helsinki Pride's Executive Director Annu Kemppainen.
Helsinki's Pride committee left the National Coalition Party and Centre Party out of this year's festivities citing splits between the parties over the legislation in the February vote. However the two youth wings of the parties were invited as partners to the event.
Ahead of this year's events, Seta Ry — an association dedicated to LGBTQ+ rights in Finland — has released a statement demanding stricter action from authorities to improve participants' safety. The association said that last year's Pride events were subject to widespread harassment and violence.
Helsinki Pride Week events are part of the internationally-observed Pride Month, which takes place every June. Other events are also being organised in many communities across Finland.
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