Sioux Falls celebrates Pride today with a parade and special events — and there are serious issues to go along the festivities
Sioux Falls will show its Pride today (Saturday, June 8) with a celebration of diversity and inclusion as the annual Sioux Falls Pride celebration.
Sioux Falls Pride President Rachel Polan tells The South Dakota Standard that the organization has been expanding since its inception in 2000. Every June, it gets bigger.
“The first Pride Parade in Sioux Falls was in 2019, and since then we have seen around 15,000 attendees at the festival each year,” Polan said. “We’re honored that so many businesses and individuals want to support our mission to provide a safe space for LGBTQIA+ and Two Spirit people to gather and share joy together. At this year’s festival we will have over 80 vendors, up from 60-70 vendors at Eighth and Railroad Center.”
Events started earlier this week but today is packed with events that draw thousands of people. It kicks off at 10 a.m. with a parade through downtown, followed by the Pride Festival, which this year will be held at Sioux Falls Stadium, aka The Birdcage for the Sioux Falls Canaries, at 1001 N. West Ave.
Events there run from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., with entertainment from noon to 5 p.m.
Polan said Pride is “very excited” to be at the Sioux Falls Stadium for the first time.
It has outgrown Terrace Park and needed a new location. The Birdcage is a wonderful spot. The event has been growing for two decades.
“Sioux Falls Pride first took place in mid-2000 and was then hosted by the Center for Equality in Sioux Falls. The Center for Equality, now known as Sioux Falls Pride, was the leading LGBTQ focused non-profit organization that provided services, support and advocated for the LGBTQ community of Sioux Falls and surrounding areas,” according to an online history of the event. “In addition to community services, the Center for Equality also worked alongside organizations like the ACLU of South Dakota to defeat anti-LGBT legislation like HB 1008 which targeted transgender youth in South Dakota.
“A passion for kindness, inclusion and dedication. Sioux Falls Pride had humble beginnings with the first festival welcoming around 1,000 patrons. Over the last several years, the festival has grown to welcome nearly 10,000 visitors from all over the region. In addition to growth in attendance, Sioux Falls Pride has expanded festival offerings by growing family-friendly events, adding in Pride Week and diversifying marketing and community engagement efforts. In the last few years, multiple local businesses have even started their own Pride events. Most recently, Sioux Falls Pride has grown to include a Pride Parade through Downtown Sioux Falls. The inaugural parade was held in June 2019.”
The Official Sioux Falls Pride Afterparty for people 21 and over will be held at two locations, Club David, 214 W. 10th St., and DaDa Gastropub in the Gourley Building, 402 N. Main Ave.
Doors open at 8 p.m. and the shows start at 9 p.m. There is a $20 cover that is good for admission at both locations.
Candi Stratton, Miss Trans USA 2019, All American Goddess 2009 and Miss Gay Universe 2006, will perform, as will Tokio Night, described as “an Asian-American, Queer Neo-Boylesque Performer, Former Drag Royalty, and Co-Founder & Co-Producer of Shinjuku Strays Cabaret!”
Martina Shakers, named the South Dakota Pride Ultimate Entertainer 2024, also is on the bill. Shakers is a 23-year veteran of the stage, a former Miss Jones Street Station, Miss Sioux City Diva, Miss Iowa USofA at Large, Miss Nebraska International, Miss South Dakota US Proud, Miss Iowa USofA Classic. Shakers is the executive director and co-founder of SUX Pride.
After a day and night like that, there will be a need for some recovery on Sunday. A Pride Drag Brunch, featuring the same three entertainers, for people 21 and older will be held from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Dada Gastropub. Tickets are $40.
While the spirit of fun pervades the events, there is a serious side to it as well.
In recent years, Republican Govs. Dennis Daugaard and Kristi Noem have signed legislation hostile to LGBTQ people passed by the Legislature, dominated by conservative Republicans.
The Human Rights Campaign’s 2023 State Equality Index is an annual comprehensive state-by-state report that provides a review of statewide laws and policies that affect LGBTQ+ people and their families.
South Dakota is among states listed where there is a high priority to achieve basic equality for gay people.
“In these states, advocates focus on raising support for basic LGBTQ+ equality, such as non-discrimination protections in employment, housing and public accommodations,” its website states. “These states are most likely to have religious refusal or other anti-LGBTQ+ laws. Advocates often further LGBTQ equality by focusing on municipal protections for LGBTQ+ people or opposing negative legislation that targets the LGBTQ+ community.”
“In a place like South Dakota, where many still believe that LGBTQIA+ identity is a choice or wrong because of their religious beliefs, it’s important for Sioux Falls Pride to exist and educate people about our community,” Polan said. “You only have to look back a few days at the comments section under news articles posted on social media covering our event to find the folks that think this way. We’re not sexual predators, or making a choice just to be different. We represent a diverse community just looking to celebrate the strides we’ve made for equity in all areas of life over the years.”
Mobile billboards advocating for abortion rights in South Dakota will be on display today.
A coalition of abortion rights advocates is behind these mobile billboards, including Justice Empowerment Network (JEN), Help4Huhas, South Dakotans for Healthy Families, and South Dakota Faith in Public Life (FiPL).
They said the electronic signs are intended to send a clear message: “Every South Dakotan loves someone who has had an abortion. We should all be free to decide for ourselves.”
They told The South Dakota Standard that the Pride event is a perfect place to make their case.
“Pride Month is about strength, empowerment, freedom and love. At this week’s Pride celebration in Sioux Falls, mobile billboards will be emphasizing these same values in the fight against abortion bans and stigma.
“Abortion access is a critical LGBTQ+ issue. Not only are LGBTQ+ individuals disproportionately impacted by abortion bans, but these bans are part of a larger strategy to undermine the autonomy of women, LGBTQ+ people, people of color, disabled people, and people living at the intersection of these identities.
“Despite the fact that their earlier billboards were rejected for linking to a landing page sharing information on funding for abortions, the South Dakota Coalition refuses to let fear and stigma win.”
That is a good message for today. We must take Pride in all our people. Click here to support Sioux Falls Pride.
Tom Lawrence has written for several newspapers and websites in South Dakota and other states and contributed to The New York Times, NPR, The Telegraph, The Daily Beast and other media outlets. Reprint with permission.
