A Big Gay Parade

Since Bill Clinton decreed it so in 2000, June has been Gay and Lesbian Pride Month. And there are few places better to celebrate than Wilton Manors — with an LGBT population more than 1000 percent higher than the national average. Sunday, the town is holding its annual Stonewall Street...

By Penn Bullock

June 16, 2011

[
        {
          "name": "GPT - Billboard - Slot Inline - Content - Labeled - No Desktop",
          "component": "16971022",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "15769925",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "16575154",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "GPT - Rectangle 2x - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
          "component": "15782206",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "16575154",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "GPT - Leaderboard to Tower - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
          "component": "15782207",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

Since Bill Clinton decreed it so in 2000, June has been Gay and Lesbian Pride Month. And there are few places better to celebrate than Wilton Manors — with an LGBT population more than 1000 percent higher than the national average.

Sunday, the town is holding its annual Stonewall Street Festival & Parade to commemorate the scrappy queers who revolted against police oppression on New York’s Christopher Street during the same month in 1969. It starts at 4 p.m. on Wilton Drive, the main drag. And we do mean drag. The community’s most fabulous cross-dressers and trans-performers will be gracing stages set up along the street and emceed by celebrities: ex-MTV writer Doria Briddle, former Daily Show film critic Frank De Caro, and comic Keith Price, who are all now radio personalities on Sirius OutQ. The parade kicks off at 6:30 p.m. with MSNBC anchor Thomas Roberts serving as grand marshal. As usual, there will be drinks and grub galore from local vendors, food and wine tastings, exhibits, booming dance music, and tipsy, scantily clad masses milling about excitedly. Turnout could top 30,000.

The 12th Annual Stonewall Street Festival & Parade is from 4 to 9 p.m. Sunday along Wilton Drive in Wilton Manors. Admission is free. Visit stonewallwiltonmanors.com.
Sun., June 19, 4 p.m., 2011

KEEP NEW TIMES FREE... Since we started New Times, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of South Florida, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.