The annual Russian River Pride parade and festival returns this weekend to Guerneville, with parties and other events celebrating the LGBTQ community. The parade starts Saturday, September 21, at noon at the intersection of River Road and Mill Street.
Following the parade, the festival will be held in the parking lot of Lark Drugs, 16251 Main Street, featuring DJs, drag performers, and musicians, a news release stated. This year's theme is "River Proud."
"We are so excited to once again celebrate this wonderful festival in Guerneville," stated Dan Samson, co-chair of the Russian River Pride Board of Directors. "Guerneville has such a rich history of acceptance and inclusion of all people, and it's long been a home to a thriving LGBTQ+ community. This pride festival will be a special opportunity to recognize and celebrate everyone who contributed to that amazing legacy. While this is a moment to celebrate our past, it's also an important opportunity to look forward to the future."
Due to a groundswell of dedication and passion for Pride in the community, a group of volunteers reintroduced this local, small-town parade to Guerneville last year, with a mission to help support the Lower Russian River Area, the release stated. That mission is supported by local leaders, among them Sonoma County District 5 Supervisor Lynda Hopkins, who will be speaking at the Pride festival, according to the release.
Last year's event raised $32,500 for grants to local nonprofit organizations as they strive to make headway after the COVID pandemic.
"Like many communities throughout California, this region is still struggling in many ways to recover from the pandemic," stated Buddy Russell, co-chair of Russian River Pride. "This celebration is about uplifting the LGBTQ+ community, but it's so much more than that. We were so honored to be able to support a number of great local organizations last year and we are looking forward to doing more of the same this year."
Other activities taking place include Prom Redux on Friday, September 20, at 7 p.m. at Surrey Resort, located at 16590 CA Highway 116. DJ Rotten Robbie will be spinning. Tickets start at $39.19.
After the festival on Saturday, people can head over to the R3 resort for a Pride Variety Show from 6:30 to 9 p.m. The R3 Hotel is located at 16390 Fourth Street at Mill Street. Tickets start at $12.51. (The R3 Hotel, one of the last LGBTQ-focused resorts in Guerneville, was put up for sale in June for $4.564 million, as the Bay Area Reporter noted.)
Pride After Dark, a dance party, takes place at 9 p.m. at the River Theater, 16135 Main Street. Tickets start at $28.52.
Finally, an intergenerational brunch will be held Sunday, July 22, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Solar Punk Farms, 15015 Armstrong Woods Road. Tickets start at $17.85.
For more information on Russian River Pride events, go to russianriverpride.org.
SF LeatherWalk coming up
The San Francisco Leather & LGBTQ Cultural District will hold the annual LeatherWalk, Sunday, September 22. The event kicks off Leather Week ahead of the Folsom Street Fair on Sunday, September 29.
This is the fourth year that the cultural district has overseen the event. The walk starts at 11:30 a.m. outside San Francisco City Hall, on the Polk Street steps. Participants then proceed through the South of Market neighborhood, ending at SF Eagle Plaza for the Leather Pride Fest.
The event is free, but people can opt to walk as a fundraiser or join a team. The cultural district is raising funds for its Leather Legacy Landmarks sidewalk plaque initiative, which honors 77 "iconic and sometimes raucous SOMA locations that began serving our community in the 1960s," a news release stated. The district has a goal of raising $22,000 to install the first 17 plaques, all on Folsom Street, the release noted.
For more information, go to leatherwalk.org.
Local LGBTQ+ Media Giving Day October 8
News Is Out, a collaboration of six LGBTQ+ media outlets representing more than 250 collective years of experience covering the community, is launching the first Local LGBTQ+ Media Giving Day Tuesday, October 8, during LGBTQ History Month. Interested people don't have to wait until next month and can donate now, a news release stated.
The first gay publication in the U.S. started 100 years ago this year — 1924's Friendship & Freedom, produced by Chicagoan Henry Gerber and his peers, the release noted. The newsletter was shut down by police after just two issues. Later publications included ONE, Mattachine Review, The Ladder, Gay Community News, and hundreds of other LGBTQ+ media over the past 50-plus years, including the Bay Area Reporter, which started 53 years ago in April 1971. Currently, according to News is Out, there are more than 100 LGBTQ+ media of some kind in the U.S., and they, like many forms of media, are looking to diversify their support to continue to do the important work of covering the community.
With one tax-deductible donation, people can support six of the top LGBTQ+ outlets: B.A.R., Dallas Voice, Philadelphia Gay News, Tagg Magazine, Washington Blade, and Windy City Times. News Is Out plans to expand the campaign in year two, the release stated.
"We are proud to be part of this historic initiative, celebrating a century of resilience and dedication in LGBTQ+ media," stated Michael Yamashita, a gay man who is publisher of the B.A.R. "Local LGBTQ+ Media Giving Day is a testament to the vital role our publications play in the community. Your support will help ensure that we continue to provide essential news and amplify LGBTQ+ voices for years to come."
News Is Out is supported by the Local Media Foundation, a 501 (c)(3) organization. Donations are tax-deductible and will be used to directly fund journalism through the LGBTQ+ Journalism Equity Fund.
To donate, go to https://givebutter.com/LGBTQequityfund.
For more on News is Out, and to subscribe to its free newsletter, go to newsisout.com.
The LGBTQ+ Journalism Equity Fund, a component of the Local Media Foundation, enhances queer-owned local news media by offering essential journalism resources to News is Out, a collective of the abovementioned six LGBTQ+ publishers.
United Against Hate Week
United Against Hate Week is coming up. Organized by several state and local entities, including CA vs Hate, the initiative takes place September 21-27. The observance was moved up from November due to the presidential election, organizers noted.
In San Francisco, like previous years, gay District 8 Supervisor Rafael Mandelman has introduced a resolution at the Board of Supervisors to promote local events and to bring attention to the issue.
San Francisco "reaffirms its dedication to upholding the principles of diversity, inclusion, and respect for all, and condemns all forms of hate and discrimination," the resolution states in part.
The Commonwealth Club World Affairs, with support from CA vs Hate, will hold a summit Monday, September 23, at its headquarters at 110 The Embarcadero in San Francisco. The summit starts with a light lunch at 11 a.m. and continues until 4 p.m. A reception follows. The event is free. For more information, click here.
Since 2017, the annual United Against Hate Week has grown into a core organizing moment across California as government agencies, municipalities, community organizations, and residents come together in solidarity, organizers stated.
Horizons to hold Project 2025 forum
Horizons Foundation will hold a virtual forum on the anti-LGBTQ Project 2025 Wednesday, September 25, from 5 to 6 p.m. The 900-page document was developed by the conservative Heritage Foundation and other groups to provide a blueprint for a second Donald Trump administration.
Horizons noted in an announcement that Project 2025, which has become a flashpoint in the presidential campaign, is a framework for using the power of the federal government to impose "traditional family values" and a Christian nationalist agenda across the country.
Speaking at the forum will be Wendy Via and Heidi Beirich, Ph.D., who are with the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism. The two have been in the forefront warning of the dangers of Project 2025, as the B.A.R. has reported. Moderating the discussion will be Horizons' Francisco Buchting, Ph.D. (For more on GPAHE's Project 2025 resources, click here.)
GPAHE is a current grantee partner of Horizons' Global Faith and Equity Fund.
The event is free. To register, click here.
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