Rain, Politics and Men in Showers Mark PrideFest 2008
The entrance to the Saturday pride festival and parade on Wilton Drive was flanked by two blown over, drenched, ginormous "Presidente Light" beer blow up balloons.
A lone older man with a huge rainbow umbrella walked past me on his cell phone, saying, "A little rain scares the gays? Give me a break."
But it was still early.
As the weather started to clear, just in time for the parade, gay Fort Lauderdale came out in full force to take in the sights, sounds, and the first-ever night parade for the city of Wilton Manors.
Cris McCoy, a professor at Northeastern up in Boston, came to his co-op apartment to enjoy the weekend. "I've been to the parades in New York City and Boston and this one falls somewhere in between. It was shorter than New York City's and less commercial. It's nice at night, definitely."
The parade itself, actually, did seem to be less commercial, focusing as much on politics as on the usual gay bars and strip joints, although the Boardwalk did have quite an impressive float, with gyrating boys and tiki torches.
Perhaps even more interesting was Sidelines' locker room inspired float, with two girls in uniforms at the lockers, and towel wearing beefcakes at the "showers."
Beads, condoms, and lube were all thrown to the spectators. Two fairly young boys in roller skates and boxer briefs gave out flyers for Tuesday night's Intoxicate, now celebrating forty years of gay roller skating (impressive, indeed) at the Gold Coast Skating Rink.
The parade started quite noiselessly, with a barrage of politicians from all types of political forums. Girls gave out "Lori-pops" - in honor or Lori Parrish, running for property appraiser of Broward County.
Controversial new mayoral candidate Dean Trantalis was on hand as well. Recently, Trantalis entered the mayoral race, after having previously backed Cindi Hutchinson.
As more and more slow moving political cars came around, a young girl beside me shouted, "I wanna see dykes on bikes," and just then we heard the rev of an engine or two, and the girls AND boys on bikes came on by.
Rain started falling, unfortunately, as the parade dwindled, but not so much to deter some participants. The last float, for George's Alibi, invited spectators to help carry their mile long rainbow flag, a mimic of sorts of Key West's famous pride parade in which they covered all of Duval Street in a rainbow flag.
Drenched and cold, though they were, people still held that flag up in a show of unity and pride.
But the parade was just the beginning of the night. There was a casino booth, a bunch of vendors, a stage for some artists to sing, and a multitude of bars open. Even Rosie's had their "Lava Lounge," in what used to be a parking lot, turned into a gigantic dance floor.
Bill's Filling Station was packed to the brim, with most people trying their best to avoid the rain outside. The $3 Long Island Iced Teas in mason jars probably helped a bit as well.
Barack Obama supporters were out in full force not just promoting their candidate, but also registering as many people as possible for the next election. The street was littered with people until the wee hours of the night.
Sunday's forecast was better in the morning, with many vendors setting up their booths, along with Italian sausage, arepa, and frozen lemonade stands. People sat in dentist's chairs as they got their teeth whitened, and many different new clubs promoted their spaces, including Living Room and Eden.
Then the rains came, and the places all flooded. People filed into the local bars. Tracy Young was spinning at the Lava Lounge at Rosie's, and barely dressed men dance and sung under the tent, amidst all the wind and rain showers.
Despite the inclement weather conditions, it was a Pride Fest to remember, in a very different way. Jesse Malloy saw the pride festivities as an opportunity, "to get drunk," and thus he did with his third Long Island Iced Tea, while his friend Patrick Gunn saw the experience as something else entirely and more to the point of the weekend's festivities.
"I'm from Jamaica, an incredibly homophobic country, and it's just so amazing to be able to have the freedom to hold your hands in public, without any fear of being shot or murdered. I adore this, and am proud to be here."