POUGHKEEPSIE – The Dutchess County Pride Center is hosting a series of events to celebrate “Pride Month” through June. The biggest event is the PKGO Pride Parade, taking place on June 11.
The celebrations start with a Youth Pride Family Picnic on June 4th at Bowdoin Park. Lunch is being provided by Hannaford Stores and Stewart’s Shops.
The PKGO Pride Parade and Festival is on June 11. The parade begins on Market Street in Poughkeepsie at 12:00 p.m. and marches down Main Street to Waryas Park where a family-friendly festival will be held until 5:00 p.m. featuring food vendors, a bouncy house, and information from community organizations. The theme of this year’s celebration is “Stronger Together, Stronger Than Ever”. As a show of the strength and resiliency of the LGBTQ+ community, rather than having an individual Grand Marshal, the parade will be led by a group of local LGBTQ+ leaders and innovators. Individuals who want to march or volunteer, or companies/organizations interested in a table or booth at the festival, should visit www.dutchesspridecenter.org/pride-2022.html or send an email to pkpridefest@gmail.com.
Dutchess County Pride Center Executive Director Karen Marder intimated that acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community is slowly growing. “I feel like most young people are very accepting of all genders and sexualities. I think this is primarily because they have more exposure, which is why visibility is so important, and why Pride month is so important. Showing people that they aren’t alone and there are people who support and accept them is vital.”
Marder noted that tensions still exist, adding “Historically, when a marginalized community starts to become more accepted, you find the people who are opposed to it fighting even harder to block that acceptance. This is why we are seeing such an increase in anti-LGBTQ+ legislation across the country and, right here in the Hudson Valley, we have seen attempts to ban books that mention someone understanding their sexuality and gender.”
Other events planned for June include an “Out and Proud” event at Sloop Brewing Company on June 24th and the “Pride” game at Dutchess Stadium on June 30th. The Dutchess County Pride Center is the community partner for the game. Tickets are available at www.gadesgroups.com with password pride.
