In the year in which it is celebrating 30 years of existence, the LGBT+ Pride Parade brought to the streets lots of colors, lots of vibrancy, lots of costumes and lots of fan flapping. While the electric trios attractions had not yet started, the public had fun taking photos with the various drag queens who passed through Avenida Paulista. One that responded to several photo requests was DragZonna. “The Parade is an important representation,” she said. "We want to show our resistance and our creative strength to this world because we just want joy and color. Our movement and our existence are always threatened and we can be taken by surprise at any moment and lose our rights. They are always lurking and we need to come together to choose good people who represent us well in this Congress and in this government." Related news: The 30th LGBT+ Pride Parade warns about the importance of voting. LGBT+ Pride Parade takes debate about aging to the streets of SP. Another popular character for photos during the party was the dog Mel Radical, who wore glasses, a colorful outfit and a pair of wings. Its owner, receptionist Rafaela Fernandes, 33 years old, says she always brings it to the São Paulo LGBT+ Pride Parade. The dog Mel Radical has been attending the parade since 2019, accompanied by her owner. Photo: Elaine Cruz/Agência Brasil "She's been coming to the Parade since 2019 because she represents love and this whole vibe of respect, regardless of sex or religion. I'm coming to the Parade because I want to show my respect for the entire LGBTQIA+ community. I love drag queens, I love gays. And these are the people who respect me the most even though I'm not from this community. That's why we have to vote very consciously and safely and think about it very carefully because these people can be very harmed depending on who we vote for," she said. This year, the São Paulo LGBT+ Pride Parade takes place with 14 electric trios, with the presence of artists such as Pabllo Vittar, Urias, Gloria Groove, Pepita, Diego Martins, Jup do Bairro, Melody, MC Soffia, Isma, Katy da Voz e As Abusadas, MC Trans, Zumbicore and Thiago Pantaleão, as well as the Minister of Human Rights and Citizenship, Janine Mello. The Parade starts on Avenida Paulista, but will continue on a walk to Praça da República. Giant urn Called Votinho, the ballot box was placed in a prominent spot on Avenida Paulista, drawing attention to the importance of voting. Photo: Elaine Cruz/Agência Brasil The parade also took to the streets of São Paulo a huge ballot box to warn about the importance of voting. Called Votinho, the ballot box was placed in a prominent spot on Avenida Paulista, drawing attention to the theme of the event this year - 30 Years Parada SP: The street calls, the ballot box confirms. And to mark this debate, the Parade participants took to the streets not only the colors of the rainbow, symbol of the movement, but also the colors of the Brazilian flag. There were even those who dressed up as president of the Republic to reinforce voting as fundamental for LGBT+ struggles. This was the case of legal assistant Wesley Araújo, 29 years old. Wearing a suit and a presidential sash, he told Agência Brasil that he dressed like this and with the colors of the country's flag to “represent that we too can get there, to the presidency”. "We have to think not only about the president, but about who we are electing as deputy or councilors because the president alone doesn't do anything. We need to think about all this", said Araújo. "We are on the streets to show that we exist and also resist. Visibility is important to show that we are not hidden." Elderly caregiver Maurício José de Santana, 61, went to Avenida Paulista holding a country flag and wearing the uniform of the Brazilian football team. "I'm here today to give visibility and for people to see the importance of LGBTQIA+ activism. I came to show that LGBT+ people like football, that we love Neymar and we love the Brazilian team", he stated. Despite his joy for the selection and the event, Santana reinforced that he worries about the results of the next elections. "This Parade could be the last of our lives, depending on what we find in the upcoming election. We need to give people resistance and awareness to show that we cannot lose this fight and this battle. It's been 30 years of just parading and this is an immense achievement", he reinforced. “Vote consciously because the LGBTQIA+ vote is very important because we may no longer have the Parade or we may no longer be respected and have our rights guaranteed.”