Even if you missed last week’s kick-off event at the Honey Pot, you can still support the historic return of Tampa Pride.
The Sept. 26 fundraiser and launch party — cheekily called “Out of the Storm,” a nod to Ronda Storms, who led the Hillsborough County Commission’s 2005 ban on gay pride recognition in the county — was a great success. But there’s a lot more work that needs to be done, said Carrie West, the group’s president and co-founder.
The organization needs to raise $70,000 prior to the planned March 28, 2015 celebration. This is the fee amount required by the city of Tampa before any festivities can take place, West said. The group has launched a GoFundMe campaign and is seeking donations.
West says Tampa Pride is mirroring its event after the Rough Riders’ St. Patrick’s Day event, which draws around 15,000 each year. Not only does he hope Pride will eventually grow to roughly the same size as the Rough Riders’ parade, but it will also follow the same route proceeding east on Seventh Avenue and north on 20th Street, ending at Palm Avenue. The parade will be capped at 100 units to keep it from growing too large and unmanageable. And a street festival with music, food and vendors will take place on Eighth Avenue between 14th and 17th Streets, near MC FilmFest, the shop West co-owns with his partner, Mark Bias.
The couple has long fought for LGBT equality in Florida and was part of the group that launched the St. Pete Pride parade and street festival in 2002.
Tampa Pride’s roots goes back to the University of South Florida in the early 1980s. Those early events, which began in 1982, featured softball games, a picnic, and booths for local LGBT bars and organizations, said West. Though he didn’t organize these first Pride gatherings, he was a USF student at the time and appreciated their message.
“You were really able to come out, show appreciation for these businesses, and just be who you were,” he said.
He added, “This was right on the cusp of hearing about AIDS — the gay cancer,” so an event that celebrated the region’s LGBT community, before equality was the norm, was important and uplifting.
As the event grew, it moved around Tampa to larger venues, including the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, Tampa Aquarium, Tampa Port Authority Terminals 2 and 5, and the Tampa Convention Center. Due to the festival’s exorbitant costs, the last Tampa Pride event was held in 2002 at Raymond James Stadium.
“That was the nail in the coffin,” West said. “It cost them so much.”
Then, in 2005 Storms led her crusade to ban Pride events in the county and convinced other commissioners to side with her. Her initiative passed 6-1. This ban wasn’t repealed until eight years later, in June 2013, with a 7-0 vote to overturn it.
Jorge Alvarado, now host and producer of The Jorge Show, tried to revive LGBT Pride in Tampa, despite the countywide ban, with a street festival and dance party four years ago. He only held this event, Pride on 7th, once, in August 2010.
Now, it’s time for Tampa to reclaim its Pride, said West. “This is a historical event.”
He added, “This is a great opportunity for us … We’re a very, very open community. We want to show people we are equal and diverse.”
For more information about Tampa Pride, go here. The next Tampa Pride meeting is Oct. 14, 6 p.m., at Hampton Inn & Suites in Ybor City. Find more information on how to donate here.
