The ever-growing Lansing Pride aims to offer “joy, happiness and love”

By NICOLE NOECHEL and TYLER SCHNEIDER

Since the first Lansing Pride Festival in 2022, which attracted about 3,000 attendees and 90 vendors, the event has grown in size each year. This year, organizers expect about 10,000 attendees and 190 vendors, including food trucks, nonprofits, government agencies, businesses and shops.

“Last fall, people reached out to us to sign up for vendor spots. We actually had to change the layout of the festival to accommodate as many people as possible. Almost all of our vendors have come back year after year because of the large turnout,” said board president Ben Dowd. “We usually open our vendor registration in late January or early February and were full by the end of March. Then we changed the layout to accommodate more vendors, so now we have vendors all along Turner Street, we created a separate food court in a parking lot so the food vendors have their own space, and we also opened up another side street of vendors.”

Dowd said the festival’s growth has been largely natural, although the increasing number of sponsors has also played a role.

“I think people were excited when they saw the community response after the first year,” he said. “What we thought was going to be a normal Pride has now become something big.”

A sign of continued success is the large number of volunteers at the events.

“I’ve done festivals in Old Town for many years and I’ve never seen such a large turnout of volunteers as I did at Pride,” said Dowd. “Last year we had so many people come – people who had signed up, but also people who just wanted to come and help, so of course we allowed them to be there. This year we’re expecting around 250 volunteers.”

The festival will take place in Old Town on Saturday (June 22) from 1 to 10 p.m. In addition to booths, there will be a beer tent with a variety of beverages; activities for children from 1 to 5 p.m., including sidewalk chalk art, a bubble area, face painting, a bouncy castle, demonstrations from the Waverly Community Schools robotics program and cold treats from the Lansing Police Department; and special presentations including drag queen story times at 1:30 and 3:30 p.m., a chance to interact with animals from Preuss Pets at 2 p.m. and a performance by Okemos dance group Happendance at 3 p.m.

The main stage will also offer entertainment throughout the day. DJ Fudgie will kick off at 1 p.m., followed by an hour-long Lansing Pride programming block at 2 p.m. that includes speeches from elected officials and LGBTQ+ leaders, as well as performances by gay men’s choir LanSINGout and Happendance; a drag show at 3 p.m., with Loosey LaDuca headlining season 15 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race”; a performance by punk band Pet Me at 4 p.m.; the launch of the Lansing Pride Court and Trans Michigan Court at 4:30 p.m.; a performance by experimental electronic music group Nonbinary at 5 p.m.; another drag show, also headlining LaDuca, at 5:45 p.m.; and music by DJ Splendah at 7 p.m. Starfarm, an ’80s cover band, will cap the evening with a set at 8 p.m.

Attendees can register for a meet-and-greet with LaDuca at lansingpride.ticketspice.com/loosey-meet-greet. Tickets are $10 or free with code PRIDE4EVERYONE.

Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, will speak during the 2 p.m. Lansing Pride programming block. As a native Midwesterner, she said she is proud that Michigan has become a leader in promoting and defending LGBTQ+ rights.

“Thanks to the leadership of Gretchen Whitmer and your pro-equality state legislature, Michigan is a beacon of hope for so many people who desperately need it,” she said. “If we’re going to make sure we have a pro-equality majority in the United States Senate, that’s going to go through Michigan. So I’m really looking forward to spending some time with people who are doing so much not just for the state, but for our entire country.”

Dowd agreed, adding that he believes Lansing is a positive outlier among other Michigan cities when it comes to LGBTQ+ acceptance. The Saginaw-area native has lived in Lansing for a decade, but has also spent time in Grand Rapids.

“When I first got here, I was blown away by the fact that I could walk down the streets holding hands and there were never any problems. I shouldn’t say never, but there are very rarely any problems or comments,” he said. “A lot of it comes down to the acceptance and the kind of love in the community and I think that just comes from the fact that we have a very diverse population but also a generally welcoming city.”

He added, “That wasn’t the case when I grew up in rural Michigan and lived in Grand Rapids. I didn’t feel comfortable there.”

Dowd also praised the city for flying the Pride flag outside City Hall earlier this month, the first time the city has made the gesture.

“It is important that city leaders are willing to stand by your side, that they help make it clear to people from marginalized groups that they are welcome in the city, and that city government actively advocates for them,” he said.

Dowd noted that events like Lansing Pride are still necessary because “we’re not there yet when it comes to equality.”

“You have to keep making a difference because once you get complacent, things start to get taken for granted. It’s about continuing to have these conversations, continuing to be visible, showing up and doing events that give people a sense of freedom,” he said.

Robinson compared Pride Month as a catalyst for further action.

“Come to Pride, but don’t stop there. Tell your story about how powerful the experience was for you, what it means to be part of our community or an ally. Donate money to the causes and people who support your values ​​and views, think about investing in candidates and organizations, and of course, vote,” she said.