The organizers behind one of South Florida’s largest gay pride events say they’re ready for the big annual bash to draw crowds this weekend. They’re pushing forward while still navigating new rules after conservative legislation was passed in Tallahassee this year.
The Wilton Manors Stonewall Parade & Street Festival will be Saturday, with a festival from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. and the parade kicking off at 7 p.m.
This year, the parade has been getting some additional attention because of Florida’s political climate, with organizers getting extensive media coverage and interviews with The Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, and “people from Belgium,” according to Jeffrey Sterling, the CEO of Stonewall Pride Inc. Crowds this year could exceed previous years’ attendance records, thanks to “lots of free marketing from the governor,” he joked.
Traditionally, Wilton Drive explodes with revelers wearing rainbow-hued clothing, beads, hats and carrying flags to show their pride. At least previously, there also have been displays of skimpy clothing amid the South Florida heat.
The 2023 parade comes exactly one month after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed SB 1438, titled “Protection of Children,” legislation that prohibits anyone from knowingly admitting a child to an adult live performance. Opponents say the law is part of a series of anti-gay attacks on a marginalized community. Proponents, such as state Sen. Clay Yarborough, a Republican from Jacksonville, says the proposal is about protecting children from watching performances only meant for adults. “When we see things, we cannot un-see them,” he has said.
For the parade in its 24th year, organizers have been circulating the event’s rules. Among them: No profanity, nudity or sexualized conduct. No items that mimic or suggest genitals.
‘Fight for equal rights’
Stonewall Pride will still go on, all in homage to the 1969 riot that took place at the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York City, that was raided by police.
It’s the continuation for the “fight for equal rights and to show our pride, to show we are a community and a family almost,” said Alexander Flynn, a manager at the Pride Factory, a men’s clothing store in Wilton Manors. The store focuses on a gay clientele with rainbow flag merchandise, clothing that is “very stylish and trendy” and “clothing more form fitted.”
Flynn said it’s more important now to continue the festivities because “we want to be seen and be there for each other. We don’t want to be silenced at all. We want to be heard.” He said the new legislation feels “like we’re going backwards a little bit. With Stonewall, after that, we saw some progression and now we’re being seen in the media and more visibility, some people want to see us go back into hiding, like we have to start over almost.”
Edward Otto Zielke, spokesman for the Gay Men’s Chorus of South Florida, said the majority of the membership feels safe in participating this weekend, but “there are others who will watch from the sidelines or just stay home, maybe 1 or 2.”
“The majority of us, we’re going to be in the parade, we’re marching in the parade,” he said. “Now more than ever,” it is important to continue the event. He said performers in drag “will be marching and not entertaining. We’re doing everything right. We’re following the rules.”
The Wilton Manors Stonewall Parade & Street Festival has faced some safety-oriented concerns in the past, but has continued the event through the years.
There was additional security at at least one popular gay bar along the parade route in 2016, after the parade was scheduled days after a gunman killed 49 people and wounded 53 more in a mass shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando.
And in 2021, a man accidentally struck members of the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men’s Chorus who were preparing to participate in the parade and festival. One person died.
Readying city rules
Mindful of the new state law, Wilton Manors city leaders have made adjustments. City commissioners approved an amendment to their event permits that now require parade organizers “to comply with all applicable federal, state, county, and municipal regulations.”
The new state law defines “adult live performance” as any presentation that is performed in front of a live audience that depicts “nudity,” “sexual conduct,” “sexual excitement,” “specific sexual activities,” “lewd conduct,” or the “lewd exposure of prosthetic or imitation genitals or breasts.”
The new Florida law allows the Department of Business and Professional Regulation to fine, suspend, or revoke the operating or alcohol licenses of hotels or restaurants if they admit a child into an adult performance such as a drag show.
The first violation carries a $5,000 fine against an establishment, and the fine for a second or subsequent violation is $10,000. A person who knowingly admits a child to an adult live performance faces a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to a $1,000 fine and a year in prison.
Wilton Manors Mayor Scott Newton said parade participants have behaved fine in previous years, so he doesn’t expect much change.
“We expect everything to go very well” again, he said. “I just don’t see a problem at all. Our whole community is respectful of everyone else, and they know there will be children watching the parade, like they have in the past.”
But he does have some new concerns weighing on him: “We’re worried about the bars and not getting in trouble,” he admitted. “They have to make sure they stay within the boundaries of the law, and I think they will.”
‘Our community has changed’
Sterling reminded parade participants, entertainers and vendors — again — during a Zoom meeting last Thursday of the new way Pride parades will be conducted.
“Our community has changed, and families and children are part of our new reality,” according to the code of conduct. “As such, our Prides should be welcoming to them. We can proudly say this is a family friendly event that is open to everyone.”
“Our rules are permanent,” Sterling said. “It’s a true evolution of what the gay community is going through anyway” as couples marry and raise families. He predicts “in a decade (this will be the) new standard in a lot of places. We’re forming our families. Wouldn’t our events reflect that?”
Tickets can be pre-purchased for $8 at https://www.stonewallpride.lgbt/. Tickets are $10 at the door. The two grand marshals for the parade this year are Ederick Johnson, a community activist, and Julia Lemigova, cast member of the Bravo show “Real Housewives of Miami” and wife to tennis star Martina Navratilova.
Lisa J. Huriash can be reached at lhuriash@sunsentinel.com. Follow on Twitter @LisaHuriash