Walk of Pride: Amsterdam to create walking route celebrating LGBTQ+ heroes
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By Simone Jacobs
The city of Amsterdam has announced plans to create a walking route through the Dutch capital to honour international LGBTQ+ heroes. The first name tiles of the Walk of Pride will be unveiled in the summer during WorldPride, which will be held in Amsterdam this year.
Amsterdam honours 52 LGBTQ+ heroes in Walk of Pride
Starting in Dam Square, the Walk of Pride will lead visitors through the Dutch capital to the Homomonument, which is the first memorial in the world for people persecuted because of their sexual orientation, opened in 1987. On the way, people on the route will see more than 50 name tiles, each honouring a different hero from the international LGBTQ+ community.
The names were carefully chosen by a committee of 17 Dutch LGBTQ+ organisations, from Brazilian Xica Manicongo in the 16th century, who is the earliest known transgender person, to Dutch Mikel Haman, who was one of the initiators of Pink Sunday (Roze Zondag) in the Netherlands. Another notable name is Jillis Bruggeman, the last person persecuted in the Netherlands for sodomy back in 1803.
Crowdfunding campaign launched for Amsterdam Walk of Pride
According to the municipality, the first 52 name tiles will be unveiled in August during WorldPride 2026. “[The Walk of Pride] honours people who have made a significant contribution to equality, emancipation, art, activism, healthcare, culture, and the right to be themselves freely and without fear,” wrote the municipality in a news release.
WorldPride is taking place in Amsterdam for the first time in history this year. Pride month is already a huge celebration in the Netherlands, with events and parades taking place throughout the country from June, sometimes spilling all the way into August.
While the municipality will give the Gay Amsterdam Association Foundation (GALA) 50.000 euros to build the Walk of Pride, it is not enough to cover the full costs of maintenance. A crowdfunding campaign has been launched to raise a target of 25.000 euros to cover the additional costs.
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Editor for the Netherlands at IamExpat Media. Simone studied Genetics and Zoology at the University of Pretoria in South Africa before moving to the Netherlands, where she has been working as a writer and editor since 2022. One thing she loves more than creating content is consuming it, mainly by reading books by the dozen. Other than being a book dragon, she is also a nature lover and enjoys hiking and animal training.Read more