Indy Pride Festival

Indy Pride Festival, formerly Circle City IN Pride, is the annual week of LGBT pride events in Indianapolis. The week is organized by LGBT organization Indy Pride, Inc., and has been held under this name and organization for over a decade. In recent years, more than 95,000 gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and heterosexual people have attended the festival.[1] Indy Pride's Parade and Festival is held the 2nd Saturday in June, with a week of events leading up to it, in honor of the Stonewall Riots and in accordance with other United States pride festivals. Indy Pride Festival is the largest LGBT pride event in Indiana.[2]

Indy Pride Festival
Main Stage, 2007
GenreLGBT, pride parade
Location(s)Indianapolis, Indiana
Attendance95,000
Organised byIndy Pride, Inc.

According to former Indy Pride President, Gary Brackett, "The festival and events are to celebrate gay pride and bring the community together. We're trying to bring visibility to the greater Indianapolis community of how many gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people there are here."[3]

History

The first known Pride week in Indianapolis was celebrated in 1976 with the support of Metropolitan Community Church and Gay Peoples Union.[4] However, the first Indy Pride, Inc., sponsored event began in 1996 as a week-long celebration of events. Jeffrey Cleary and Bill McKinley served as Co-Chairs for the city's first ever pride week.[5] The celebration held 10 events in seven days, culminating with a pride fair on the downtown Indy Canal.[6] In 2011, the festival broke records by attracting a record estimate 70,000 attendees.[1] In 2012, the week of events opened with the new "Rainbow 5k Run/Walk".[7] The festival saw the addition of a 2nd stage, as well as an expansion in family-friendly entertainment.[8] Attendance grew every year in the following decade until 2020 and 2021 when the event was not held in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[9]

Indy Pride Parade

The first Indy Pride Parade stepped off in 2002, founded by Gary Brackett. The first parade was small with only eight participants and lasted 15 minutes. It has since grown into a 2-hour-plus-long event.[3]

Anti-Pride protests and opposition

In a 2016 interview, Gary Brackett acknowledged that a few protestors oppose the event every year. According to Brackett, both the crowd and the anti-Pride protestors have received police protection.[10]

Festival
Main Stage, 2009, Singer Kat DeLuna.

The festival includes several attractions for the LGBT community and allies, to browse and watch. Local LGBT groups and supportive businesses sponsor booths catering to the community as a whole, as well as special interest groups. Surrounding the park, food vendors and other businesses also set up displays to show support and to market to the community. The main stage overlooks the event and serves as a centerpiece for the festival. National and local talents provide performances from the stage. Performances have included the Pride of Indy Band, singers, national recording artists, drag performances, DJs, and speeches.

Performances have ranged from pure entertainment, such as RuPaul who performed at the close of the festival in 2006 and Kat DeLuna who performed in 2009, to informational speeches, such as from Candace Gingrich, who in 2007, gave a speech for the Human Rights Campaign on same-sex marriage issues.[3][11][12] In 2012, the festival added a 2nd stage dedicated to DJs and dance music, as well as an area designated for family friendly entertainment.[8]

2013 marked the 25th year of Indy's public LGBT Pride celebration.

Attendance

Estimated annual attendance, beginning with 2002:

YearLocationAttendance
2002 2,000[11]
2003
2004
200525,000[11]
2006University Park; Garfield Park[11]25,000[3]
2007University Park30,000[13]
2008University Park35,000[13]
2009University Park[14][12]45,000[15]
2010American Legion Mall55,000[16]
2011American Legion Mall & Veterans Memorial Plaza70,000[1]
2012American Legion Mall & Veterans Memorial Plaza80,000[17]
2013American Legion Mall & Veterans Memorial Plaza85,000[18]
2014American Legion Mall & Veterans Memorial Plaza95,000[19]
2015American Legion Mall & Veterans Memorial Plaza106,000[20]
2016American Legion Mall & Veterans Memorial Plaza110,000[21]
2017Military Park
2018Military Park
2019Military Park
2020held virtually due to COVID-19 pandemic40,000[9]
2021held virtually due to COVID-19 pandemic[9]
2022Military Park[22]

Cadillac Barbie Indy Pride Parade
Cadillac Barbie IN Pride Parade on Mass Ave in 2009.

The annual parade began in 2002, and runs from Mass Ave, which is the city's unofficial gayborhood, to the heart of downtown Indianapolis. Parade grand marshals have included celebrities and politicians, including the late congresswoman Julia Carson. The parade grew to more than 100 floats and participants by 2009.[16]

Grand marshals
  • 2006: Julia Carson, congresswoman
  • 2007: Del Shores, writer and producer[3]
  • 2009: Broadway cast of Wicked
  • 2010: Indy Bag Ladies
  • 2011: Cadillac Barbie (Gary K. Brackett), founder
  • 2012: Jordan Windle, youngest diver to ever qualify for the USA Diving Olympic Team Trials, and adopted son of two fathers.[23]
  • 2013: Indiana Youth Group[24]
  • 2014: Coburn "Coby" Palmer (one of the original Indy Bag Ladies), Layshia Clarendon, point guard for the Indiana Fever, Megan Roberson of Freedom Indiana, and Rick Sutton of Indiana Equality Action for their efforts in the law arena.[25]
  • 2015: Greg Ballard, Mayor of Indianapolis[26]
  • 2016: Alice Langford, community advocate; and Betty Wilson, president and CEO of The Health Foundation of Greater Indianapolis, Inc.[27]
  • 2017: Chris Paulsen and Deanna Medsker, LGBTQ rights advocates[28]
  • 2018: Finley C. Norris,[29] Margaret Irish, Mark A. Lee, Terrell Parker, Jenna Scott, Wes Scott
  • 2019: Shelly Fitzgerald, State Senator J. D. Ford, Trinity Haven, and Low Pone[30]
  • 2020: Indy Bag Ladies and Indianapolis City-County Council members Ali Brown, Ethan Evans, Keith Potts, and Zach Adamson (parade canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic)
  • 2021: Parade not held due to the COVID-19 pandemic
  • 2022: Trans Solutions Research & Resource Center, GenderNexus, ACLU of Indiana, Indianapolis City-County Council members Zach Adamson, Ali Brown, Ethan Evans, and Keith Potts[31]

See also

References
  1. Smith, Erika D. (2011-06-12). "Gay pride festival goes mainstream this year". Indianapolis Star. Archived from the original on June 15, 2011. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
  2. "Indy Pride: Don't Miss Indiana's Largest Celebration of Acceptance & Equality". www.visitindiana.com. 2018-05-15. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  3. Jarosz, Francesca (June 9, 2007). "Gay pride events are growing: Organizers expect more than 25,000 people to participate in festivities Downtown today". Indianapolis Star. ProQuest 240902498. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  4. Poletika, Nicole (2021-10-05). "From "Gay Knights" to Celebration on the Circle: A History of Pride in Indianapolis". The Indiana History Blog. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  5. Lee, M. A Visual Journey: From AIDS to Marriage Equality. Indiana Historical Society. https://indianahistory.org/wp-content/uploads/Proof_Edits_4-1.pdf, p. 11 archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220402003427/https://indianahistory.org/wp-content/uploads/Proof_Edits_4-1.pdf archive-date=April 2, 2022
  6. "Indy Pride". indyencyclopedia.org. 2021-07-12. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  7. Harvey, Jay (2012-05-29). "Circle City will show its pride during festival". Indianapolis Star. indystar.com. Archived from the original on July 4, 2012. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
  8. Taflinger, Neal (2012-05-31). "Not all flamboyant: Gay-pride festival expands kids events". Indianapolis Star. indystar.com. Archived from the original on June 2, 2012. Retrieved 2013-12-04.
  9. Nelson, Sarah. "Indy Pride will be virtual for the second year in a row". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  10. "Q&A: Indy Pride Parade Founder Gary Brackett". Indianapolis Monthly. 2016-06-10. Retrieved 2022-06-24.
  11. Tan, Aldrich M. (June 9, 2006). "Gay pride parade and festival to be highlights of 5 pride days: Breast cancer seminar is tonight; floats will start..." Indianapolis Star. ProQuest 240830034. Retrieved 2022-06-30.
  12. Banes, T.J. (May 15, 2009). "Summer of festivals". Indianapolis Star. ProQuest 241012060. Retrieved 2022-06-30.
  13. Hayes, Melanie (June 15, 2008). "A day of fun, sun and . . . pride: Annual festival and parade draw tens of thousands to Downtown sites". Indianapolis Star. ProQuest 240960660.
  14. "Pride and joy". Indianapolis Star. June 14, 2009. ProQuest 241011144. Retrieved June 24, 2022.
  15. Patriarche, Crystal (June 6, 2010). "Circle City IN Pride Parade & Festival". Indianapolis Star. Retrieved June 24, 2022.
  16. "Circle City IN Pride Parade". Archived from the original on 2009-05-21. Retrieved 2013-12-19.
  17. "History of Pride". Indy Pride, Inc. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  18. "Photos: Indy Pride Festival Reaches Record Attendance—85,000". Indianapolis Monthly. 2013-06-13. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  19. "Photos: 2014's Record-Breaking Indy Pride". Indianapolis Monthly. 2014-06-15. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  20. Wang, Stephanie. "Amid 50,000 at Pride parade, a show of corporate support". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  21. Bartner, Amy. "Circle City IN Pride festival moves to bigger location". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  22. Dwyer, Channing King and Kayla. "After 2-year hiatus, Indy Pride parade and festival return to Downtown Indy Saturday". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  23. "Circle City IN Pride - Grand Marshal".
  24. http://www.circlecityinpride.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Pride-Press-Release-IYG.pdf
  25. "Indy Pride, Inc., Announces Your Grand Marshals for the 2014 Cadillac Barbie Pride Parade".
  26. "Circle City IN Pride - Grand Marshal".
  27. "2016 Grand Marshals Announced".
  28. "2017 Grand Marshals".
  29. Bartner, Amy. "4 unexpected things you'll see at 2018 Indy Pride — and one you won't". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  30. "Four Grand Marshalls of 2019 Indy Pride parade announced". WRTV. 2019-04-11. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
  31. "Parade". Indy Pride, Inc. Retrieved 2022-06-21.
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