This weekend Hawai`i Islanders have a chance to help create that supportive environment and celebrate diversity at Hawai`i Island's First Annual Gay Pride Festival.
On Saturday, June 21, attendees to the daylong event will be greeted by the Kona West Hawai`i Community Band. The event officially kicks-off with a blessing at 2 p.m. and ends at 8:00 p.m. with a fire spinner performance at the aftahs party at Mixx Bistro and a candlelight rally down Ali`i Drive. The theme for what organizers hope will be the first annual celebration is "Strength and Unity through Diversity."
During the six-hours between, there will be special guest appearances by the Hawai`i Civil Rights Commission from O`ahu, Pat Rocco -- who helped start the first gay pride festival in the '70s, and Carlie Hardy -- who will be speaking on behalf of her son. He attempted suicide over his own personal conflict with being gay.
There is also a full roster of live entertainment, including appearances by the Johnny Shot Band, Cover Girlz and Poncho Man, hula halau and various deejays. Adding to the fun is a kissing booth, dancing tent, fashion show, comedy show with Doc Shay, drag queen show, silent auction, interactive booths, as well as a variety of food and merchandise vendors all happening at the King Kamehameha Kona Beach Hotel Luau Grounds.
Those participating can purchase a candle for the closing rally. The profits will go to the Hawai`i Island HIV/AIDS Foundation.
Jeffrey B. Werle is the vendor coordinator for the festival. He is also a member of the core group -- Hawai`i Island Pride -- that consists of approximately eight members who came together to make it happen.
"Basically we are jumping on the band wagon of something that has already been started since Stonewall. Every major city in this country, many small towns and cities throughout the world celebrates Gay Pride week. Honolulu has been doing it for umpteen years, L.A., San Francisco, Seattle, everyone's been doing it," states Werle.
Werle explains what he means by "Stonewall."
"It was a bar in New York and it was basically in a gay district and some drag queens were being harassed. So they ran into the bar for shelter and the cops went in and dragged them out to arrest them. A riot ensued and soon the whole town was on fire. Businesses got smashed, parking meters were ripped out, and the cops were basically beating up queers.
"A lot of us were little when that all happened and we remember it, so we've come a long way baby. With all these prime-time shows, motion pictures and books that are coming out centered on gay themes, it's not scary anymore."
Gerald Lucena, another volunteer with the group, has this to add: "Actually, it had been happening for a while but what was very specific about that night was that it was the night that Judy Garland died and a lot of the gay community was in morning because she was a gay icon. So it was a night where a lot of the gays and lesbians in the community said, 'That's it; that's the final straw that breaks the gay camel's back, and we're not going to be harassed anymore.' And they started really fighting back and that really was the beginning of the Gay Rights Movement. Now that whole area in New York is a gay district."
Werle and Lucena and the rest of the volunteers worked hard to get the support they needed to pull off the festival, knocking on doors since March to round up donations.
BIW sat in on one of Hawai`i Island Pride's final organizational meetings before the festival to learn how things were shaping up.
When asked how they were received by the general public, Melissa Batie, entertainment coordinator, had this to say: "I think we were received really well . . . It was really tough to ask for money from people when our economy is just suffering and it's the slowest part of our season, so we really had a tough time with that, but a lot of people actually made contributions for the auction when they couldn't give a cash donation. The support has been overwhelming."
"We wanted to include a parade this year," said Werle, "and would like to have one next year but just didn't have the time; but we also wanted a thousand shirts. Our dreams were big and we had big hopes. We thought big. We crossed out things and we added things but every decision we made was made together."
Free HIV testing at the event will be conducted by the Hawai`i Island HIV/AIDS Foundation. Everyone is encouraged to attend. This is a drug and alcohol free event; no coolers please.
Special notice from Mixx Bristo, the Miss Hawai`i Island Pride Pageant will be hosted by Ravin Storm (Lee Vinson) on June 20 and everyone is welcome to the party.
To make a donation, to volunteer, or to learn more about the Hawai`i Island Pride Association, visit http://www.hawaiiislandpride.com or call (808)557-4668.
Editor's note -- Big Island Weekly is a proud sponsor of Hawai`i Island's First Annual Gay Pride Festival. As freelancer Lisa Malakaua says, "It doesn't matter who you're loving; what matters is that you are capable of loving."
