Historic Topeka Pride Festival to Take Place September 24

Pride Kansas, in partnership with Visit Topeka, will spotlight Kansas’s desire to uplift LGBTQ+ voices and to further inclusivity throughout the state during their first-ever statewide Topeka Pride Festival on September 24. The event boasts revered speakers and a day of celebrating LGBTQ victories as well as the communities continued fight to be welcomed in the places they call home.

“I am proud to help kick off this historic event in Topeka,” says Topeka Mayor Mike Padilla. “It’s our mission to become a leading city for inclusivity. Most recently, our Municipal Equality Index score—demonstrating how cities support LGBTQ+ people who live and work there—received the highest total in the state, tying only with Overland Park. But we don’t stop here. We continue to increase our efforts year after year, and this inaugural Pride parade represents that.”

While considering relocating back to Topeka–the Kansas state capital–the director of Pride Kansas, Shawn Zarazua heavily weighed the inclusivity of the location before making his decision. When he moved back three years ago he was welcomed with open arms. Then, when he began growing roots for the Topeka Pride Festival last October, he was again fully supported by his fellow Kansans.

“We’ve been really embraced and accepted since the very beginning of us trying to put together the committee and then throughout the planning process,” says Zarazua. “One of the greatest examples of that was when Visit Topeka came on board as a partner. It speaks volumes to the fact that there are a lot of people in our community who want to see this grow and want to see it become something really special.”

Visit Topeka’s president, Sean Dixon, who also serves on the board of directors for the US Civil Rights Trail, explains that over the past two years the organization has looked at everything through the lens of equity and inclusion. From initiating programs like Inclusive Topeka to partnering with Pride Kansas, the organization aims to always be intentional and support events, create programs, and uplift voices that build an affirming community.

“We are Topekans, we are also the capital city of Kansas and we try our best to be welcoming to all Kansans including the 92,000 LGBTQ people who call Kansas home. You have to be intentionally welcoming for people who may not know if you’re welcoming or not,” Dixon says. “The best way to do that is to come out and tell them you are.”

While visiting the state’s capital, festival attendees are encouraged to peruse Topeka’s rich streets and venues that embody the city’s welcoming feel that Dixon mentiones. Some of the sites include the Equality House–a visual reminder of international equality and one of Topeka’s best-known Pride monuments–and the eclectic, Studio 62 bar which hosts weekly drag shows.

The festival will begin with a Pride rally at the Kansas Statehouse followed by a foot procession through downtown Topeka to Evergy Plaza where the majority of festivities will take place. Included are, live music from regional indie rock band Oceanside Hotels, country music by Lawrence singer Ryan Manuel, and various comedy acts. Food truck vendors and a beer garden will be onsite. Sometime during the five-hour period, Stacy Lentz and Kansas Representative Brandon Woodard will speak.

Lentz is a Kansas native, national LGBTQ+ activist, and co-owner of the Stonewall Inn, the national landmark where the June 1969 riots launched the gay rights movement. She is also the CEO of The Stonewall Inn Gives Back Initiative which was inspired by the 1969 riots and works to eliminate the social intolerance of LGBTQ people nationally and internationally through various campaigns. Lentz’s speech will bridge the significance between where the LGBTQ+ fight began, where it has come, and the barriers it is still actively breaking down.

“As someone who grew up being LGBTQ+ in Kansas, I know how affirming and impactful the first-ever statewide Kansas Pride will be,” Lentz says. “I am thrilled to be a part of this historic event and gathering of community members and allies to show visibility. Even in 2022, the LGBTQ+ community is still under attack, stigmatized and often feels isolated, so we know being seen and celebrated for our authentic selves can save lives.”

As one of Kansas’s first openly gay representatives, Rep. Woodard’s appearance will speak to America’s evolving political atmosphere and the future of growing LGBTQ representation in government.

“From the statehouse to sports and everything in between, LGBTQ+ representation is essential in all aspects of life,” Woodard says. “It’s wonderful to see my home state prioritizing our community by adding to its list LGBTQ+ resources, events, and offerings year after year.”

The evening will conclude with the inaugural Pride Kansas Drag Night at the Topeka Performing Arts Center which will be hosted by Pride Kansas committee member and drag queen Claire St. Claire. Doors open at 8 pm, the show starts at 9 pm, and tickets are $13 per person. A cash bar will also be available.

Zarazua and Dixon predict that following the success of the Kansas Pride Festival and the positive example set by the two organizations’ partnership, other cities, states, and marketing organizations will follow suit. Zarazua says that the event will be a “catalyst for people to recognize that there is a community that wants to be included and that there’s really no reason to hold back from embracing that community, your neighbors, your family that lives down the street, and saying let’s make sure they feel welcome and that this is a good place for them to call home.”

Also, from an economic growth perspective, Dixon highlights the importance of recognizing the value that underrepresented markets such as the LGBTQ community play in substantially influencing the economy. He expressed that the inclusion of such minority groups–who are none other than business owners, professionals, and families–in community discussion and decision-making would be nothing other than impactful and he would hope no one would turn that away.

“Pride Kansas is committed to showing the world the true character of our state and the people who live here,” says Shawn Zarazua. “Kansas is filled with artists, activists, politicians, and entrepreneurs who are dedicated to creating a destination full of acceptance and love. This celebration will further enhance LGBTQ+ pride in our community and hopefully snowball into future events, initiatives and resources for underrepresented groups.”

Photos Courtesy of Pride Kansas