The weather was temperamental. Sunshine, clouds, rain: we got it all from one moment to the next. Just as the sun finished drying up the damp that the passing rain cloud had caused on our clothes, a large fire truck would spray water on the onlookers as part of the celebrations, getting us all wet again! This was not my favorite part of the parade, but the sun did come out again to dry us out.

The occasion was the Stockholm Pride 2024. A celebration of love and inclusiveness. About 170 different groups danced through the streets in festive attire (or lack thereof), holding banners that communicated their message. The rainbow flag could be spied wherever the eyes rested. The groups represented everything from private companies to the police. I counted four different groups associated to the Swedish airport being the airport itself, flight attendant staff, airport security and the airport bus. At one point a fighter jet flew over the crowd showcasing its deft manoeuvring prowess.

Famed to be the largest pride parade in the Nordics, this year did not disappoint, with the turnout of spectators estimated at half a million. The streets were lined with men, women and children of all orientation, and from different walks of life. I took a metro to the venue, and on my way, somehow got involved in conversation with three deaf men who were from Iraq. They lived and worked in Sweden and two of them had travelled from Gothenburg in the West coast of Sweden to take part in the Pride parade and festivities. I especially remember looking across the street once the parade had started and seeing a woman who must have been over 80 years old. She sat happily in her wheelchair, dressed in a winter coat, watching the procession go by – this brought a smile to my heart.

The high point for me would definitely be the ability to dance in the streets of Stockholm. The crowd around me pulled away to give me the space to get my bogey on. My full body movements were a little too much for the sensible Swedes! The low point was a spat that broke out when an older white lady in the crowd berated my black friend and I for being too loud. Given the fact that the festivities were marked by loud music blaring from more speakers than any sensible club would carry, and lots of shouting, the comment made no sense. This otherwise invisible racially motivated commentary was unfortunate. The irony, that a day set aside to specifically celebrate inclusion did not touch on such deep-seated prejudices, was not lost on me. Pride and prejudice, eh?