Prior to 1988, Pride celebrations in Milwaukee were hit and miss. Some pride-type events were being organized as early as 1973, but there was no consistency or organized planning from year to year.

It wasn’t until the March on Washington in 1987 that a full-blown and formal Pride Movement took hold in Milwaukee. Having attended the march in the nation’s capital, several people thought it was time to organize a major, gay/lesbian self-affirmation event. The first official Pride event, hosted by the new Milwaukee Lesbian/Gay Pride Committee (MLGPC), was held in 1988, with a Picnic and Rally (in Mitchell Park Area #3 Pavilion) on Saturday September 10, followed by many other events sponsored by other organizations over the next two weeks: a softball tournament at Mitchell Park, a formal ball, a town hall meeting with elected officials, and a film festival. Several hundred people participated in the various events.

There was no parade in 1988 however; that would wait until 1989.

The MGLPC Ad-Hoc committee was listed as including: Scott Andrews; Miriam Ben-Shalom; Derek Christiansen; Don Clabots; Jim English; Alan Eslinger; Scott Gunkel; John Hogen; Jerry Johnson; George Keen; Scooter Kennedy; Mike Lisowski; Bob Robison; Dennis Thomas; Bob Wegner; and Cheryl Williams.