The Southern Oregon University’s Queer Resource Center will be participating in the 4th Annual Southern Oregon Pride Festival with a line up of all-inclusive, community-wide events this upcoming weekend.
The QRC’s main event for the festival will be a 5K“Fun Run”before the SOPride Parade this Saturday, Oct. 12, with check-in beginning at 8:30 a.m. in Lithia Park.
Afterward, the QRC will be marching in the Pride Parade with the theme“Garden of Diversity.”Brod McLaughlin, an artistic team member of the QRC float, says“the QRC embraces the self-esteem of everybody. This theme shows how every identity is integral to the community as a whole. ”
Everyone is invited to march with the QRC. Participants are encouraged to meet at the Safeway parking lot at 10:15 a.m., dressed as a garden creature (fairies, gnomes, insects, etc.)
The parade, beginning at 11 a.m. this Saturday, will cover Main St. and make its way to Lithia Park, where various events and live entertainment will continue throughout the day. “There will be many booths that offer advice and information on the different niches and communities that someone might not understand,”stated Moses Maldonado, a QRC volunteer coordinator from the local community.
The celebration will continue into the evening with drag shows and SOPride events at participating restaurants, clubs, and businesses.“Pride takes over the bars downtown, devouring the nightlife,” stated Anastasia Risley, a senior who frequents the QRC’s safe space.
The SOPride Festival celebrates the diversity of all identities, while spreading awareness of an accepting and supportive community. Risley continued,“the QRC is a place where I know I will not be discriminated against…..the annual SoPride and the QRC’s role in these events is a way to celebrate that, while making our presence known with positivity in the community.”