Urban Canvas: United by Pride

Season 1, Episode 6: Grassroots Energy, Parallel Marches, and a Clear Message

Pavlos Christou

26 Sep 2025

Theo Ieronymides (co-founder and Director of Queer Collective Cyprus, organiser of United by Pride) and Ivy Payiatsou Villalvazo (committee member) unpack how an intercommunal, self-funded Pride is reshaping the conversation on LGBTQIA+ rights in Cyprus.

What Makes United by Pride Different

Cyprus hosts multiple Pride events, but United by Pride was designed from the start to be intersectional and intercommunal. By meeting in the UN buffer zone, it creates an accessible space for people from both the occupied north and south Nicosia to gather without barriers. There are no sponsor logos and no corporate branding, by choice. The event is self-organised and self-funded, keeping the focus on community needs rather than optics.

The Idea: Parallel Marches, One Meeting Point

United by Pride brings two marches: one from the northern, one from the southern Nicosia, into a shared moment at Ledra Palace. The visual symbolism is powerful: past editions have featured two halves of a rainbow flag that are stitched together when the marches meet, a ritual that captures both vulnerability and resolve.

Why Grassroots Matters Now

The organisers were candid about pinkwashing and the retreat of corporate DEI commitments globally. United by Pride’s structure is a deliberate counterweight: a platform led by the community, for the community, adaptable to shifting political and economic climates. Artists on the United by Pride stage are LGBTQIA+ creators from Cyprus and the diaspora.

Challenges of Building Across the Divide

Intercommunal work requires constant communication, clarity of purpose, and shared ownership. United by Pride is intentionally “logo-less” and open to any LGBTQIA+ group that wants to collaborate. Queer Collective Cyprus is one organiser among many (Queer Cyprus, Carabiner, African LGBTQ Cyprus), not an owner. That openness is strategic: it prevents gatekeeping and strengthens the event’s legitimacy across communities.