Triad gears up for first-ever local Pride

In the 1980s, when Alternative Resources of the Triad (ART) was first started to assist local lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in finding much-need resources and support, most local queers would have never dreamed of a locally-focused LGBT pride festival occurring in the area.

The dream has come to life this year. ART, which runs the local LGBT website OutGreensboro.com, started planning the Triad Pride 2007 festival last year and it is gearing up for its four-day series of events next week, with the largest being the day festival on Saturday, August 25th.

The Triad Pride festival will mark the first time that the Triad area plays host to a pride gathering planned entirely by locals, for locals. Only twice before has the Triad seen a pride festival in its borders. In 1996, the North Carolina, state-wide Pride festival was held in Winston-Salem and in 1999 Greensboro played host. In recent years, the state-wide festival has been held in Durham on and around the campus of Duke University.

The Triad Pride day festival on Saturday will not be the largest pride gathering in the state, but for the first-ever event of its kind in the area, it should prove to be a large draw for local LGBT people.

“Since this is the first year for Triad Pride Festival here in Greensboro, we are expecting between 1,200 to 1,500 persons,” said ART President John Johnson.

An issue on many people’s minds is the opposition that LGBT people continue to face in North Carolina. Not only have anti-gay, religious radicals attempted to strip away rights through legislative means in Raleigh, anti-gay protestors have been regular attendees at North Carolina pride festivals, causing disruptions and coming close to arrest.

Protestors aren’t really a concern to Triad Pride organizers says Johnson.

“Honesly, we are not expecting any protestors or disruptions since Greensboro is a pretty open city and area. But, we will have secruity on hand to make sure that problems do not happen and to protect everyone.

“Greensboro is a great city to hold Triad Pride in. Everyone is so friendly and the city makes you feel so welcome. It has been a pleasure in preparing Triad Pride Festival here in Greensboro.”

According to Q-Notes (link), the Reverend Billy Ball of Primrose, GA, won’t give the competing PrideCharlotte Festival in Charlotte, NC (being held on the same day as the Triad Pride festival) as easy a time as Greensboro is getting. Ball has already confirmed he will be in Charlotte and his past antics include arrests and lawsuits.

The schedule of events include everything from region-wide parties from Winston-Salem’s Club Odyssey to Greensboro’s Warehouse29 and Q Bar to a Sunday afternoon picnic co-hosted by Triad Pride, Alternative Resources of the Triad and Triad-area PFLAG chapters.

Some of the highlights of the Festival include Saturday’s Day Festival at Greensboro’s Festival Park in Downtown, “Our Night Out” at The Press in Downtown Greensboro, Saturday night’s Pride Ball at Warehouse 29 and Sunday’s Mr. & Miss Triad Pageant at the Warehouse 29. The winner of the pageant receives a $200 cash prize.

Organizing for the event has definitely been a grand undertaking. Major sponsors include the Biltmore Greensboro Hotel, Kent Woofter and Cris Belton (owners of Warehouse 29), PFLAG Greensboro and Club Odyssey.

The Triad Pride Committee and many volunteers have worked hard to pull off the more than $24,000 series of events.

“There is such a large number of people, groups, organizations and businesses that has helped out,” says Johnson, “We can not thank them enough for doing so.”

Other events the weekend of Triad Pride include Guilford Green Foundation’s “Back to School” Green Queen Bingo on Friday evening, the Triad Pride Men’s Chorus concert “Pretty in Pink” on Saturday at Greensboro’s Cultural Arts Center the North Carolina Democratic Party’s Sanford-Hunt Dinner in Greensboro on Saturday.

Learn More:

• Triad Pride Schedule
• Official Triad Pride Website (with information on events and how to enter the Mr. and Miss Triad Pageant)
• Warehouse 29
• Club Odyssey
• PFLAG Greensboro

Triad Pride Theme 2007: Living Out Loud! Living Out Loud is the the theme for Triad Pride 2007 Festival! Living Out Loud means a little something different for each person, Living Out Loud is the expression of a peson to live life as you want and to be free to be your self with the freedom to express your self fully. With out the freedom to be one self then there is no freedom for anyone.

Be sure to stay tuned to InterstateQ.com PRIDE CENTRAL for Charlotte & the Triad! We’ll bring you interviews with pride festival insiders, event summaries, photos, videos and more!

Technorati Tags: Triad Pride, Greensboro, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, gay pride, John Johnson, Alternative Resources of the Triad

Posted in Community Events, Greensboro, LGBT, North Carolina, Pride Central, Triad, Winston-Salem |