Amsterdam Pride Draws Hundreds of Thousands and 80 Boats a Week After Berlin Attack
Updated
Updated · The Associated Press · Aug 2
Amsterdam Pride Draws Hundreds of Thousands and 80 Boats a Week After Berlin Attack
3 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · Aug 2
Summary
Hundreds of thousands packed Amsterdam’s canals on Saturday for the city’s Pride boat parade, the centerpiece of WorldPride celebrations held a week after Berlin’s deadly attack on a Pride event.
80 vessels moved through the canal route as police boats patrolled and a helicopter circled overhead after Mayor Femke Halsema said extra security measures would be taken where needed.
Rob Jetten, the first Dutch prime minister to join the parade, said the event mattered more than ever as LGBTQ+ freedom and safety face pressure from discrimination and last week’s violence in Berlin.
Berlin’s attack killed 1 person and injured 29, and its fallout also tightened security at Hamburg Pride, where about 300,000 attended and police deployed roughly twice as many officers as last year.
The celebration unfolded as reports of anti-LGBTQ+ abuse rise in the Netherlands, with a court on Friday ordering 40 hours of community service for discriminatory language at an Amsterdam Pride event.