New York State Department of Health Celebrates Successful Pride Month and Reaffirms Commitment to LGBTQ+ Communities

Video: Dozens of Department Staff Marched in Capital Pride 2024 Parade

Community Response to Statewide Engagement Reinforces Department's Mission, Vision and Values to Protect and Promote Health and Well-Being for All

Upcoming Events: Rochester Pride Festival in July and NYC Black Pride in August

ALBANY, N.Y. (July 3, 2024) – The New York State Department of Health reaffirms its commitment to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and gender non-conforming (LGBTQ+) communities after capping off a successful Pride month in June. Throughout the month, the Department participated in nearly a half dozen events across New York State—and for the first time, Department staff and their families marched in the Capital Pride Parade in Albany.

"I'm proud to lead a State Health Department that so clearly demonstrates our daily commitment to health equity and the LGBTQ+ community," State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said. "Not only did we participate in highly successful Pride programs and events throughout the month, including dozens of our staff and their families coming together to support the Albany Pride parade, but we provide these public health services and supports all year round, as part of our ongoing commitment to protecting and promoting health and well-being for all."

During the month of June, staff with the AIDS Institute's Office of LGBTQ Services, Office of Sexual Health and Epidemiology and the Bureau of HIV/STD Field Services tabled at Pride events in Buffalo, two events in Albany (Capital Region BIPOC [Black, Indigenous and People of Color] Pride and Capital Pride 2024) and attended Pride Night at the Plaza.

Staff engaged community members to learn about important sexual health topics and provided them with free educational resources and giveaways—reinforcing the Department's commitment to our mission, vision and values to ensure that all communities in New York State can achieve optimal health with access to affirming care and supportive services, without stigma. Additionally, approximately 70 Department staff and their families turned out to march in the Capital Pride Parade.

Although the month of June has come to a close, upcoming Pride events the Department will be participating in include the Rochester Pride Festival on July 20 and NYC Black Pride in New York City, August 14-18.

To learn more about the Department's AIDS Institute programs and priorities, visit AIDS Institute (ny.gov).

For more information about the Office of Sexual Health and Epidemiology, e-mail stdc@health.ny.gov.

Information on the Bureau of HIV/STD Field Services can be found here.

More information about the Department's Office of Health Equity and Human Rights can be found here.