Pride Cincinnati 2011

Another Pride Sunday come and gone. It was so hot! So much so that, initially I had to push myself out the door.  Surprising, since usually, in the past, I had to be at death's door before even thinking about missing a Pride Celebration.

Must be a product of age, I guess.

Pride celebrations are often pretty quiet. There is only one marching band in Cincinnati and this year, they were at the end of the parade. Go figure.

A couple of floats had music, but otherwise it was a pretty quiet affair as parades go.  Never the usual messy, noisy, naked fun that I've seen in other cities.  Cincinnati, quiet and dignified as always. Never really lets her hair down.  Must be all the marching church brigades.

Also missing on the grand scale were politicians who understand the power of the LGBT voting block.

Mayor Mark Mallory led off the parade for the second straight year and we thank him for that, riding in a convertible sporting  a dapper summer chapeau to protect his balding head from sunburn.

Council wannabes Yvette Simpson, Chris Seelbach, and Nick Hollan marched surrounded by supporters passing out campaign literature telling us about them. Thank you for coming.

I was extremely happy to see Councilmember Wendell Young. He was the only sitting councilmember in the parade. The others, I would guess, figure they have the gay vote locked up or something...Maybe they don't think they need it. I don't know.

What I do know is that the only people who will ever get my vote are those who respect me and mine. Pretending the Pride Parade doesn't exist or not worth marching in while knocking down people in order  to march in every neighborhood  block parade that comes down the pike on the west side is no way to govern or get my vote.

So thank you Wendell Young, Yvette Simpson, Chris Seelbach, Nick Hollan and Denise Driehaus for recognizing our equality.

Cecil, Roxanne, Charlie, Amy, Neil and whomever....c ya!  I'm done...yes Roxanne, I'm talking to you, too. It is time for Cincinnati to grow up and come into the 21st century. An hour downtown shaking hands during Pride Sunday, never hurt any political campaign.

Glad handing also never hurt the Fire Department or the Police Department or the Cincinnati Bengals or any number of major Cincinnati Corporations. Parades are a cheap and easy way to widen your sphere of influence and good feeling...hint...hint...

One thing to note....Why was Walgreens not open? On Pride Sunday?...on Fourth Street...It was closed...big ass white burglar bars in place for all to see....So what...they afraid of queer money? Better ask Jeff Ruby how closing establishments or taking inventory when minorities are downtown, worked for him... Think I just changed drug stores...CVS, here I come....

Thank you Macy's, Procter and Gamble, Delta, and US Bank for showing up. Time to move my money where my mouth is.

One absence of note...The CCV, or Citizens for Community Values...didn't see em. They sent out a letter on Friday warning "perversion" erupting on Fountain Square this past weekend.

I figure CCV didn't show because there wasn't any porn being passed out. Or maybe they finally have begun to realize that nobody buys into their bigotry anymore.

Cincinnati Roller girls in the house!

Equinox Cincinnati Pride Aftermath

Mayor Mark Mallory led off the parade. Earlier he'd walked down the sidewalk toward Sentinel where the session was forming through a totally oblivious crowd.

He was just another Black man in a suit, walking with a guy dressed in yellow. No body guards, nothing to indicate that the Mayor of the Queen City was among us.

It would have been nice to see a placard on the side of his car, telling those who didn't know...and seemingly most didn't, who the man in the convertible was......

Jim Tarbell, who is now running for Hamilton
County Commissioner and Congressman Steve
Driehaus also took part in the parade, while
every other local politician managed to be
somewhere else on this festive day..

There were no protesters in evidence which was a marked change from past celebrations. Did see one tall thin Black man dressed head to toe in hot black wool, it looked like. He was turbaned with a black scarf to cover his face, standing in front of the Fountain with a massive and very worn copy of what appeared to be a Bible of some kind. He was just standing there, doing a slow motion twirl, seemingly trying to decide whether or not to approach anyone. He never did while I watched him.


"Queers!" erupted from the mouth of one homeless guy talking to another as I crowd watched. It wasn't bigotry, it was more like a guy trying to make his deaf companion hear above the noise and the word Queer was the shorthand to understanding. Once understanding was reached the pair decided to take their naps this day in Lytle Park.

The overwhelming feeling of this pride was how normal and non controversial it turned out to be. The parade was fun, and the people were there for a good time. The crowd was mixed, singles, couples, couples with dogs and families with kids....looked like any other holiday in America...and that was cool...

Entertainment kicked off the Cincinnati Mens Chorus, followed by a Janis Joplin sound alike, local great Tracey Walker, another singer, obviously a crowd favorite whose name I don't know and finally the lady everyone was waiting for....Deborah Cox...who did not disappoint...Lady can sang....no lip sync...all voice...all real....Beyonce...Janet...Gaga...take note...real pipes cannot be replaced with studio magic...

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Cincinnati Pride

(Friday Rap will return next week)

Cincinnati is coming out of the closet this weekend like a drunken GOP congressman caught driving his boyfriend home after a night at the bar.

It's Pride Weekend in Cincinnati! Happy Pride!

Of course it wouldn't be Pride without some cat fighting and controversy.

The activities being moved downtown has some upset...Well girlfriends....it's supposed to be downtown...that is where it began in 1973.....Downtown...on Fountain Square.....where everyone...the entire city was invited to join in....Cumminsville....OOPs!....Northside....was the backup plan...

If the bar owners of “Northside” wanted it to stay in “Northside”....they should have jumped in and taken over the Pride organization when the Community Center said it could no longer do the parade and festivities..

As it were....The rich white guys of the Gay of Chamber of Commerce stepped in, and you know, the only stage they want to showcase their fabulous-ness on is on the main stage.....and in Cincinnati...that is Fountain Square....

Others are pissed off that the rich guys have not included enough diversity...In fact I read an interview with the HWGIC who admitted as much...not enough diversity and we will do better next year he said...

Well, it's always next year for diversity....after hearing that lame bullshit for 40 years now...I turn a deaf ear and just get my own party on anyway....I've said it before....the LGBT community is no more inclusive than the still nearly all white patriarchal society that continues to rule America...even with a Black guy in the White House....

It is changing....but not yet....

Now that Cincinnati is truly growing up...maybe the Black LGBT community can stop hiding and get together like Chicago, Detroit, Atlanta, and Los Angeles to name a few....and put on their own Pride Celebration...Black Pride in these cities usually happens simultaneously with it's paler and more official version...

Everyone goes to the same parade...but then it's we party ova heah with family and friends, ribs, kool aid and potato salad, ya'll ...while the white folks go to the bars and pub crawl and get drunk...

Black Pride celebrations...especially the one in Chicago reminds me of the Black Family Reunion...just a little more festive...so to speak...

Frankly....I'm a little confused about the slam of not enough activities for poor gay people to take part in....HUH!...what's the fukin parade and festival? Nobody is charging admission to stand on the street...There is a whole weekend of stuff happening on the Square...free....

I don't see anything wrong with having a Ball or big dance...Fabulous Fun...something to look forward to...save your pennies...buy new shoes....dance the night away! Fun!....

The world does not revolve around poor people.... It doesn't give a damn about middle class people even.....hasn't this current economic recession taught ya'll anything?

The point is to have fun this weekend and to remember the drag queens at Stonewall who stood up and put their asses on the line so that rest of us would no longer have to worry about getting our heads busted in just because...

So...Quityerbitchin and Dance!

Now Stand up for the National Anthem!

Happy Pride!