The triad is pushing for equality and taking a stand against discrimination based on sexual preference.
On Monday, Sept. 16 same-sex couples applied for marriage licenses. This movement is a part of the WE DO Campaign that is currently taking place across North Carolina. This campaign helps lesbian and gay couples request marriage certificates in the south.
The couples asked the Guilford County Register of Deeds office to issue a license as an act of conscience and in recognition that Amendment One violates their freedom to marry.
In addition, the 8th annual Triad Pride Festival took place to raise awareness for these same issues.
Over 500 citizens attended the festival waving rainbow flags to make a stand for gay rights. The Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transsexual Questioning Alliance (LGBTQA) community filled Festival Park on Saturday.
The event was free for everyone to attend. The Festival took place from 11a.m. – 6p.m. and featured entertainment and exhibits for both adults and children.
In attendance at both events was State Representative Marcus Brandon who spoke candidly about being gay, “Don’t vote for me because I’m gay. Vote for me because I’ve passed more bills than my opponent.”
“As a descendant of the civil rights movement, I am committed with my friends at the WE DO Campaign to ensuring that we have equal opportunity and equal access for every single citizen in this state,” said Brandon in a press release. “The fundamental rights that are denied to same-sex couples defy the foundation of liberty upon which this country was founded. This fight is more about dignity than anything else, and we will always fight for our dignity.”
Many of the attendees were openly gay or supporters of the LGBTQA community. Saturday’s events offered a safe haven for every person as well as a chance to celebrate the diversity of humankind.
Raleigh resident, Maddi Goss was in attendance with her daughter.
“I came out in Greensboro so this place is special to me,” she said. She has attended the festival every year to celebrate her lesbian lifestyle. “It’s family friendly [and] a safe place where people can come and be around people who are very cool.”
Businesses including Time Warner Cable, Greene Street Club, and Planned Parenthood showed their support. The Greensboro Health Project offered educational material on STDs and HIV testing. In addition, the Greensboro Gay Men’s Choir performed.
Also in attendance was Yolanda Smith, Miss Triad Pride 2012.
“We are people who want to love and be loved, only by the same sex. We have families trying to raise them just like everyone else and yet we can’t have the same rights as everyone,” Smith said.
The festival was an initiative to boost morale and improve visibility of the LGBTQA community across North Carolina. Despite recent advancements for same sex couples by states such as California and Massachusetts, North Carolina still does not legally recognize any civil unions and same-sex marriages. According to the 2010 census data, there were 228,000 North Carolina couples in domestic partnerships and 12 percent of those were same-sex couples.
This festival is a part of many events being held across the state to raise awareness of the struggles afflicting the gay community. Past events include a Black Gay Pride parade in Charlotte and future events include the Winston Salem Pride festival on Saturday, Oct. 19.
Brian Coleman, member of the Pride Royal Court, described the experience working with the festival as exciting and enriching.
“Being a drag queen or female impersonator can sometimes be a ‘drag,’” said Coleman.
“We have the same issues and problems that everyone else has,” he said. “We love and live in the same ways and in the same neighborhoods that everyone else does.”
For more information, visit www.southernequality.org
—Email Tristan at [email protected] and follow The Register on Twitter @TheATRegister
- TRISTAN BAILEY Contributor