According to Seattle Out and Proud's (SOaP) most recent announcement, "Due to overwhelming support in light of a recent press release, we will move forward with our plans to produce the parade down Fourth Avenue on Sunday, June 24, 2007."
Such news was an about face from an earlier SOaP press release last week that said the group would declare bankruptcy because it still owes Seattle Center $100,000, and that it would not take part in any plans for celebrating Gay Pride in Seattle this year.
The decision to go ahead with a parade downtown was made at a board meeting Tuesday, April 24. But whatever happens, there will be a festival in Volunteer Park during the annual Gay Pride weekend this year, organized and produced by the Seattle Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual and Transgender (LGBT) Community Center.
"We had a Queerfest team in place already, so we have a lot of work done," said Shannon Thomas, the center's executive director. She said that effort is morphing into a full-blown Gay Pride festival, "so we're not starting from scratch. We're focused on putting on a really great Gay Pride festival."
Thomas said she does not know of any planning efforts toward having a parade on Broadway this year, but things have a way of changing quickly. If there is a need to organize a parade, then the LGBT Center will look at that if it happens. In the meantime, as far as she is concerned, the LGBT Center is organizing the Gay Pride festival in Volunteer Park and SOaP is organizing the parade.
"The permits are coming out in May," Thomas said. "We'll all know then."
The meeting in which SOaP directors decided to organize the parade again this year was held in a conference room at one of the board members' place of business. Ordinarily board meetings are held in the Lifelong Aids Alliance building. No signs were posted announcing either that the meeting had been moved or that there was new location.
April 24 was highlighted on the events calendar at the SoaP Web site, but there was no mention of the meeting or its location. The site gave no information on why the date was highlighted.
Troy Campbell, SOaP spokesman and the group's marketing and promotions director, said it was not intended as a public meeting. He said public meetings are always on Sunday. The last public meeting was March 18 and the next one will be May 20. There was no public meeting in April.
"This was a special meeting to discuss how we move forward," Campbell said. He said there was an outpouring of support for the group to do the parade and the board agreed to do it.
Campbell was vague about the source of the overwhelming support, alluding to "the public" and "the community." He also said that once the board decided not to do the festival their sponsors were also supportive of a parade.
Thomas is overwhelmed with support for the Gay Pride festival. The telephone never stops ringing and there just aren't enough hours in the day. She loves it.
"That's been really exciting to me, people looking up and saying, 'what is going on?'" Thomas said. "I knew this would spark the community, and it did."
At least one person who is not supportive of SoaP's efforts is Michael Wells.
"At this time we need some responsible, organized leadership," said Wells. Wells owns Broadway's Bailey-Coy Books and leads the Broadway Business Improvement Association (BIA). "That's the most important thing, even more important than where the parade is."
Wells said that as a member of both the BIA and the LGBT community, he is looking for a way to bring both those communities together.
"We have to find a better way to do this," Wells said. "What happened this year is just a tragedy."
Wells said that he had been receiving contradictory e-mails concerning the group's plans since the announcement that they would handle the parade again this year. He said the situation was changing "hourly."
"We feel the parade is doable because the parade has always been profitable to us," Campbell said. He explained that the parade overhead is less than the amount taken in through sponsorships and entry fees.
Campbell said that a draft budget for the parade is circulating among SOaP directors and it will be posted on the SOaP Web site (www.seattlepride.org) by the end of the week.
"The permit is in the works," Campbell said. He said that the requested parade route is almost exactly the same as last year: Fourth Avenue from Pike Street to Denny Way.
"Our 2007 theme is to 'Come Together' and it is our hope that everyone will do just that, support the parade, and all the other community events on Gay Pride weekend," the SOaP release said.
While things are indeed coming together for the LGBT Community Center, there are still hard feelings in the community toward SOaP and its insistence on taking the annual Pride parade downtown over the loud objections of the Capitol Hill community.
"There are other models that we can look to," Wells said. "Other cities make money for the community with these events."
The city's hearing on SOaP's parade permit is on Wednesday, May 9. It is open to the public.
"Right now, we are working on a festival, not on a parade," Thomas said. "We will see what happens with the parade in May."
She said that the current situation is not a conflict between SOaP and the LGBT community center. She looks forward to working with SOaP to produce a memorable event.
"Whatever happens in the future, SOaP needs to go away," Wells said. "It's just mystifying to me. There are many other things that need this energy."
Parade registration will be taken online, and will be available via www.seattlepride.org. To volunteer for the Pride Festival send a message to volunteerpride@seattlelgbt. For information write to info@seattlelgbt.
Freelancer writer Korte Brueckmann lives on the Hill and can be reached at editor@capitol hilltimes.com or 461-1308.[[In-content Ad]]
