Thousands attend Salisbury Pride Festival
Published 12:10 am Tuesday, June 27, 2023
Pride Festival attendees line up to join the first annual Rainbow Walk.
All members of the Salisbury City Council prepare to join in on the first Rainbow Walk. The Rainbow Walk circled Bell Tower Green.
PFLAG of Salisbury-Rowan president Donna Odrosky hands out four scholarships for LGBTQ+ and straight ally students.
Drag performer Delighted Tobehere introduces Ultra Violet Mental Health owner Natalie Errante. Ultra Violet was one of the main sponsors of the event.
SALISBURY — When Salisbury Pride began its annual festival in 2011, organizers only planned for a few hundred people to show up. Accordingly, they set up the event on only one block of Fisher Street.
They ended up with a crowd of around 2,500 people. On Saturday, about 5,000 people turned up at the annual Salisbury Pride Festival, filling the Bell Tower Green in what Mayor Pro Tem Tamara Sheffield called the largest event that the park will hold all year.
The Pride Festival is held every year to bring together members and supporters of the LGBTQ+ community in public celebration of the social- and self-acceptance and achievements of the community. The theme this year was “United with Pride.”
“This is our 11th festival and it’s just gotten bigger and better every year. A lot of people live in fear in today’s climate. This is a day for them to come out, hold hands and be themselves,” said Salisbury Pride Vice-President Becky Lane.
During the festival, over a hundred vendors from local stores, food trucks, and breweries set up shop along S. Church and W. Fisher streets. That number has more than tripled from the 34 vendors the festival started with 11 years ago, according to President Tim Coffey. Some churches also had booths, such as St. Luke’s Episcopal and John Calvin Presbyterian, who also sponsored the event. Law enforcement agencies, including Salisbury Police, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police and the State Bureau of Investigations, also set up booths for recruitment.
On the main stage in the park and the side stage in the Fisher Street parking lot, drag performers and musicians provided entertainment for most of the 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. festival. Cliff Warner kicked off the shows with a performance of the national anthem at 11:15 a.m.
All of the members of the city council provided a welcome address, along with a proclamation of June 24 as Salisbury Pride Day by Mayor Karen Alexander. Sheffield said that being able to show that united front as a city and a council spoke volumes.
“It’s when you’re absent or when you’re silent you send the message that you’re not supportive, and everybody in this city needs to know that we support everybody, and this is just another great day to show that. Just like Juneteenth was another great day when we can show that united front,” said Sheffield.
Members of the city council joined the dozens that participated in the first Rainbow Walk, held before the official start of the event, in which festival attendees marched around the park while decked out in rainbow-colored clothing or costumes to kick off the festivities.
“Cities like Salisbury are the bulwarks of democracy, in particular multi-racial, pluralistic democracy,” said city councilman Anthony Smith. “So we need cities like Salisbury across the country that are not afraid, that are courageous, to ensure that we recognize the rights and freedoms of all people. And so today we’re celebrating our LGBT brothers, sisters and family members as a community and as a city.”
A small number of protestors did attend the event, some carrying signs and others calling out for change. The event, as in years past, had peacekeepers who accompanied the protestors to allow them to have their say without interference.
The presenting sponsor of the event was Food Lion. The main stage sponsors were Ultra Violet Mental Health and Novant Health while the side stage sponsors were New Sarum Brewing and Shug’s.
