Oklahoma City, OK \u2014 June marks Pride Month, and across the Oklahoma City metro, residents gathered to celebrate with music, food, and community spirit.<\/p>\n
On Sunday, 39th Street was filled with families, children, and pets all coming together to kick off Pride Month. The event was marked by a palpable sense of joy and freedom, as participants expressed the importance of Pride as a celebration of identity, resilience, and support.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a family outside of blood. It\u2019s a family that\u2019s there for people who don\u2019t have a blood family,\u201d said Dusty Engel, a participant in the parade.<\/p>\n
Sonja Martinez echoed these sentiments, emphasizing the inclusive nature of the event. \u201cIt\u2019s about everybody and we all need each other, especially in today\u2019s time. We all need each other and this is our party.\u201d<\/p>\n
David Gleeson, the eldest of ten siblings, spoke about the significance of Pride in teaching younger generations about acceptance and history. \u201cIt\u2019s like kind of triumph through adversity and like, that\u2019s something to be proud of\u2014being true to yourself and who you are,\u201d he said. Gleeson has dedicated himself to being openly visible to his siblings, hoping to foster understanding and reduce hate.<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s celebration comes amidst recent legislative developments. Governor Kevin Stitt signed a bill banning obscene adult performances in public, a law that many parade attendees were aware of. Engel stressed the importance of understanding the role of drag performers in the community. \u201cPeople like to judge before seeing something. Come out to Pride, see what a drag queen really does with the community. They\u2019re the backbone and they\u2019re here to push our rights. They\u2019re here to just help us, they\u2019re here to educate kids. They\u2019re not here to show obscenities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gleeson added, \u201cIf they would just come out here and have an open mind, I would hope they change their minds.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mayor David Holt also acknowledged Pride Month with a social media post, stating, \u201cAs the eyes of the world turn to our city this coming week, they will know that all people are welcome in Oklahoma City, a place of inclusion, freedom, and love. Happy Pride, OKC!\u201d<\/p>\n
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Oklahoma City, OK \u2014 June marks Pride Month, and across the Oklahoma City metro, residents gathered to celebrate with music, food, and community spirit. On Sunday, 39th Street was filled with families, children, and pets all coming together to kick off Pride Month. The event was marked by a palpable sense of joy and freedom, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":5352,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[138],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-5348","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-community"},"yoast_head":"\n