Harlem Pride 2025: A Photo Celebration of Black Queer Joy, Community, and Legacy

There’s something electric about Harlem Pride—the energy, the community, the joy. This year’s celebration was no exception. With camera in hand, I moved through the crowd, capturing everything from spontaneous dance breaks and heartwarming reunions to the quiet, tender moments of lovers. These images tell a story of pride that is both personal and collective.

For many in the Black LGBTQ+ community, embracing both Blackness and queerness can come with tension and vulnerability. Cultural expectations, religious roots, and generational trauma often make full expression feel risky. But at Harlem Pride, those weighty layers seem to lift. It becomes a space of true freedom, where people can exhale, take up space, and be fully seen. 

What makes Harlem such a powerful backdrop for this event is its vibrant, and deep-rooted connection to Black queer history. This neighborhood has long been home to some of the most influential Black queer artists, writers, poets, and activists—from Langston Hughes and Richard Bruce Nugent to Audre Lorde and Bessie Smith. Harlem is not just a setting—it’s a symbol of creativity, resistance, and cultural power. To capture Pride here is to be in conversation with that legacy.

This blog post is both a reflection and a gallery—a way to share some of my favorite photos from the event and invite you to experience Harlem Pride through my lens. Whether you were there or not, I hope these images make you feel the pride and the freedom of the day.

Pride may last one day, but its impact ripples all year. If you’re looking for a photographer who can capture your event with intention, artistry, and care, let’s connect. Whether it’s a celebration, a portrait session, or something in between, I’m now booking and would love to help you tell your story.

These photos were shot with the Fuji X100V, a compact camera prized for its crisp image quality and stylized film simulations.