2008 PRIDE Festivities

The 2008 PRIDE festivities, happening Tuesday June 3 through Sunday June 8, are aimed at bringing GLBTQ folks and their allies together to enjoy and support each other in a safe environment. What started out seven years ago as a small picnic has blossomed into a nearly week-long series of events celebrating GLBTQ individuals within the Fargo Moorhead community.

This year’s theme “PRIDE on the Prairie” was chosen not only for its obvious geographic reference and easy alliteration, but to bring about a local and personal focus. “We are focusing on what people are proud of about each of ourselves. Why do we have pride about our GLBT identity?” says F-M Pride Collective & Community Center Board President, Stacie Loegering.

The theme acknowledges that, while prejudice occurs everywhere and Fargo- Moorhead is certainly making gains, being out in this area can sometimes be a unsettling experience: walking down the street holding your partner’s hand only to have someone yell out something derogatory at you, being demeaned (often unintentionally) by the current slang phrase “that’s so gay,” or the fear of vandalism when hanging Pride flags along Broadway.

While there has been an upwelling of support from the community, Stacie Loegering met hurdles as she helped plan this year’s PRIDE. “Even though in general the Fargo Moorhead community embraces us, there is a small pocket of people who will never understand how natural being GLBT is. We still did run into some difficulty finding venues, and it was a little bit startling this year. Some people were just not willing and did not return phone calls which I don’t think we’ve dealt with so much years before. You do question whether or not there is still discrimination.”

In the face of such bias, there is urgency in uniting the community in celebration and bringing together GLBTQ people and those who are GLBTQ-respectful, and raising awareness and visibility of the GLBTQ community within the larger community.

“About 3 or 4 years ago,” Stacie remembers, “between the PRIDE planners and Fargo-Moorhead climate, we decided we needed to make this bigger, we needed to make this brighter. We needed to say this is a celebration for everybody.” The result: 2008 “PRIDE on the Prairie” is a celebration for everyone, and there continues to be a conscious effort to be more inclusive of families and the larger community.

In reaching out to the general public, the variety of events has expanded greatly this year. The range of venues and activities available is unique to the Fargo-Moorhead community in that PRIDE reaches beyond events happening only for the 21+ crowd, particularly for evening events. Katy Kjelvik of the FM PRIDE Planning Committee says, “It’s a privilege that we are able to do this, not many cities can.”

People can expect events like Pride in the Park, roller skating with an appearance by the F-M Roller Derby Girls, bowling, socials, and live music will be happening throughout the week at a variety of venues.

At the Pride Parade on Saturday, following Grand Marshall Larry Peterson’s float, parade-goers should be on the lookout for a special guest appearance scheduled by a well-loved community icon on the F-M PRIDE Planning Committee float.

There are many events occurring for the first time at the 2008 PRIDE. New to this year’s schedule are the Friday Golf Scramble, the Sunday service at the Unitarian-Universalist Church and the display of Pride Flags on Broadway. UU graciously extended its service programming by 3 weeks in order to include the PRIDE service and accommodate the GLBTQ community, and the flags lining Broadway are present because of agreement with FM Downtown Community Partnership.

The Thursday night Unity Dance at the Aquarium, which happened for the first time this May, will be part of PRIDE, and planners hope it will continue on a regular basis throughout the year. Friday night will feature free, live local music from The Upskirts, Blue Fairy Godmothers, and Lava-Proof Boots at Usher’s House in Moorhead.

Also new in 2008 is Saturday’s FM PRIDE Main Event from 6pm-12am at the Plains Art Museum made possible in large part by the support of Peter Kelly of Café Muse. The free, all-ages extravaganza will feature a social hour and an array of performers including an amateur drag competition, a drag show hosted by Janessa Jay Champagne, acoustical singer Tricia Schweitzer, DJ Guy Jean, and GLBT spoken word performers Echolocation from Minneapolis.

When the Main Event wraps up, it will be followed by the showing of “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” (complete with a cash bar) as a Fargo Theatre Midnight Movie.

Joshua Boschee, F-M Pride Collective board member says, “It is exciting to see the increased collaboration within the greater Fargo-Moorhead community to making F-M Pride a successful community event.” That collaboration and generosity is what makes PRIDE sustainable. Loegering agrees. “Businesses, individuals, people who have given personal contributions, especially of their time and their talents: they make PRIDE happen.”

As the community comes together for PRIDE throughout the week in order to affirm and celebrate the presence of GLBTQ people within the Fargo-Moorhead area, visibility and awareness will be increased. Stacie Loegering says “We are in the community, in every profession. Probably every neighborhood and family has somebody who identifies or is questioning their GLBT status. We are very active. We’re making the community grow and prosper.”

And, certainly, movement toward a more active, inclusive, cooperative, and prosperous community is cause for celebration and something we can all be proud of.