Vilnius pride march for equality expects 20,000 participants

The annual LGBTQI equality march “For Equality!” will take place in Vilnius on Saturday, with organisers expecting around 20,000 participants, BNS reports.

Demonstrators will gather at midday near the Martynas Mažvydas National Library before marching to Kalnų Park, where a concert will be held. This year’s theme, “All Families in Lithuania Matter,” highlights calls for legal recognition of same-sex partnerships.

The event follows a 2025 Constitutional Court ruling that Lithuania’s Civil Code—currently defining partnerships only as unions between a man and a woman—violates the constitution by excluding same-sex couples. The decision allowed courts to register gender-neutral partnerships until parliament adopts detailed regulations. However, the Ministry of Justice has since appealed several lower-court rulings that approved same-sex partnerships, arguing that judges overstepped their authority in the absence of specific legislation.

In protest, the Tolerant Youth Association will place pink triangle symbols outside the ministry during the march. The group’s chair, Artūras Rudomanskis, noted the triangle was originally used by Nazi Germany to mark and persecute homosexual and bisexual men, later reclaimed by the LGBTQI community as a symbol of resistance and solidarity.

The march is part of the week-long Lithuanian Pride festival, which includes cultural and advocacy events.