HAPPY IN ORANGE COUNTY
Beach and Los Angeles, but Orange County Pride has grown into its own unique and significant event.
It may seem small in scale when compared with the annual LGBT Pride celebrations in San Diego, Long
by chris carpenter Only one day in length this year—Saturday, August 11—attendance at O.C. Pride
has jumped from 500 people in 2009 to more than 3,000 last year. Organizers have snagged big-name, New York-based DJ/performer Cazwell as well as the musically and physically stunning Hayla (see our interviews with them in this layout). Perhaps best of all, admission to O.C. Pride is absolutely free. “Takin’ It to the Streets” is this year’s event theme. It evokes several things: The
festival’s location in the heart of downtown Santa Ana (the intersection of Fourth Street and Broadway, to be exact); the growing visibility of Orange County’s LGBT community and our community’s increased activism in the ongoing fight for full social inclusion and marriage equality. Other Main Stage entertainment will be provided by emcees Mozie Pornwood
and Kristie Champagne, in addition to the O.C.’s own Vixen Burlesque, which is comprised of sultry, sexy male and female singer-dancers. Don’t believe me? Check them out at
vixenburlesque.com. Like San Diego Pride, O.C. Pride provides a rare children’s area. Dubbed The Kid’s
Club, it will feature a “Pirate Carnival” this year and offer fun and exciting activities for the younger members of our families. These are to include face painting, arts & crafts, games of skill, balloon animals, a bounce house and a special treasure hunt. The Kid’s Club is a smoke- and alcohol-free environment just for children and their older companions. O.C. Pride sponsors include The Rage Monthly; Velvet Lounge; Orange County
Equality Coalition; Planned Parenthood; Gay Neighbors, Families and Friends Santa Ana; Downtown Santa Ana; Temple Beth Shalom; and Saints Aelred & Hildegard LGBT Ministry. It is thanks to these and other community supporters that the event can be presented free of charge. It may not yet draw tens of thousands of people, but O.C. Pride deserves equal
respect and participation. Complete festival information may be found at
prideoc.com.
40 RAGE monthly | AUGUST 2012
“My hope is that more people in the entertainment industry will put being true to themselves before playing the role of the heterosexual superstar.”
GAY & FREE
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