Hollywood as the original historical location for the first Los Angeles protest 50 years age was a natural choice to honor what pride really means and where pride will go in the future,” Garth stated. “We considered many options for the parade, both traditional and progressive.
This year, Pride Month is a commitment to equity that will live beyond the month of June focusing on generational, experiential and geographic diversity. Considering feedback gathered since the pandemic began, we are committed to creating experiences and access to our entire community, including many of those who have been most underserved and underrepresented,” Garth stated.ĬSW organized the world’s first permitted parade advocating for gay rights on June 28, 1970, to commemorate the Stonewall Rebellion on Christopher Street in New York City the year prior.Įvery year since - except 20 due to the COVID-19 pandemic - CSW organizes Pride Month activations and events thematically. “As a mission-driven and community-centered nonprofit organization, CSW recognizes that LGBTQ+ experiences of Los Angeles are broader than just one neighborhood. This year, LA Pride is shifting away from its West Hollywood location and back to its roots in Hollywood at its “first and original location,” stated Gerald Garth, vice president of programs and initiatives at CSW. I think it means more to everyone this year.After a two year hiatus, the second largest pride parade in the nation will make a return on June 12, according to a press release from Christopher Street West, the nonprofit that produces LA Pride.
It’s like re-bonding with our gay family as well as celebrating Pride. Says Eason, “June’s going to be both things for so many of us. “I’m hoping that the other venues that people went to before all of this aren’t forgotten, and people start returning to them as well.”Īnd after the traumatic events of the past year, the significance of a restriction-free Pride is not lost. “There are a lot of us that have held on as tight as we can, and I believe we’ll all be coming back, and these places need everyone’s support,” says McIntire. Downtown has also witnessed an explosion of underground parties, which now pose competition as bars return. I just wish that we’d been seen as a valuable asset.” Eason says the bar has received little aid in clsoing off streets and sidewalks for outdoor tables, as has happened in other areas of the city. “There’s been a lot of quiet down here during the shutdown,” says co-owner Brian McIntire, as general manager James Eason adds, “I look at similar people in WeHo, and they’ve been working really closely with the city, which has been great for them, but it’s been hard to watch. Precinct, one of the most popular DTLA clubs, will reopen for the first time since the start of the pandemic June 17, after months of surviving on community fundraisers. “Especially when you’re in a category of citizens who are slightly marginalized and, especially in some other states, being really horribly treated.”Īnd while many bars have been able to reopen to some degree in recent weeks, taking over parking lots and sidewalks, downtown L.A.’s nightlife scene has struggled to pivot because of limited outdoor options. “One can Zoom and have a cocktail for the rest of their lives now that we all know how it works, but nothing can replace face-to-face,” says Akbar co-owner Scott Craig. Since then, the bar has begun outdoor service with Akbar Al Fresco and has events set throughout June, including a Pride celebration June 13. Silver Lake’s Akbar is a nightlife favorite that was brought back from the edge during the pandemic, after a GoFundMe launched in December raised more than $200,000 to help it stay afloat. “There are some new exciting bars that will be opening.” But, as COVID-19’s threat lessens, several of those shuttered bars have announced plans to reopen in new spaces, and where “before it used to be ‘For Lease’ sign, ‘For Lease’ sign, ‘For Lease’ sign, now you can’t find anything, they’re all taken up,” says Cooley. has been without a lesbian bar in the entire county since Van Nuys’ Oxwood Inn closed in 2017. Flaming Saddles, Gold Coast, Rage and Gym Bar were all victims of the pandemic (plus Studio City’s Oil Can Harry’s), leaving WeHo’s Santa Monica Boulevard strip without some of its signature clubs. When patrons do return to West Hollywood this Pride month, though, it will look quite different from years past. “People want to burn their mask and hear our DJs and start dancing and looking at our go-go girls and go-go guys. “It’s almost like burn your bra,” he adds of the lifted mask mandates on the horizon. 'The Late Show' Pauses Taping New Episodes as Stephen Colbert Experiences Possible COVID-19 "Recurrence"