Ten years ago, things were different in St. Petersburg. The LGBT community was alive and well, but it lacked somethingâ┚¬â€Âcelebration. Not just any kind of celebration, the right celebration. It was a different time, but thanks to a small spark and a dedicated and driven team that came together in early 2003, things were about to change.
â┚¬Å”I attended Tampa Pride events in previous years, and I had talked to several people in St. Petersburg who felt that it wasn't the type of Pride celebration they wanted to attend,â┚¬Â says founding co-chair Brian Longstreth. â┚¬Å”It had gone the way of big concerts and ticketed events, and the people here were looking for something that was more public, more age-friendly and more family inclusive.â┚¬ÂÂ
After listening to the opinions of the local community, Longstreth set to work organizing a Pride event for the city of St. Petersburg. He was joined by a team of seasoned and enthusiastic players, including founding promenade chair Greg Stemm, and founding co-chair Ellen Levett.
â┚¬Å”I actually happened to stumbled across Brian online at one point early on, and he started to fill me in on what was happening,â┚¬Â Stemm recalls. â┚¬Å”I told him â┚¬ËœI would definitely be interested in being a part of this.' I was originally planning on helping with media and marketing, but he [Brian] said to me â┚¬ËœNo, no, I want you to help with the parade.' I mean, how many people do you know who know how to organize and run a parade?â┚¬ÂÂ
Stemm's resume included his time as a public relations director for the Festival of States in St. Petersburg. The festival was a three-week long event that included parades featuring marching bands from around the country, and required a year-round staff of six peopleâ┚¬â€Âjust the right background to land him in the promenade chair position for the first St. Pete Pride.
Ellen Levett had been involved in Pride events in New York during the 1970s and 80s but hadn't yet had her hand in any of Florida's Pride celebrations. That was about to change, and Levett would soon take the reigns as founding co-chair.
â┚¬Å”The original co-chair had to step down, and I decided to step up,â┚¬Â recalls Levett. â┚¬Å”I initially went to a meeting to find out about all that was going on, and a few meetings later, I was co-chair.â┚¬ÂÂ
Keeping it affordable
From the start, the team had a list of goals that would make the event different than other Pride eventsâ┚¬â€Âincluding the avoidance of ticketed events, and ensuring low booth fees for participating businesses.
â┚¬Å”Part of the original plan was making sure we had enough income from sponsors to cover most of the costs so we could keep the event free, and keep booth prices affordable,â┚¬Â says Longstreth. â┚¬Å”I've seen other Pride events where everything is ticketed, and the booth fees are so high that it prevents a lot of small businesses and non-profits from even participating.â┚¬ÂÂ
While their eyes were fixed on the goal of creating a stand-out event, time was not on their side.
â┚¬Å”We had the first community meeting in February of 2003, and it was such a short time-frame, but I think that actually helped,â┚¬Â Longstreth says. â┚¬Å”We couldn't over-think things, we just had to do it.â┚¬ÂÂ
Not only did they make it happen, they did it in a span of only 16 weeks.
â┚¬Å”We were constantly looking at the clock saying, â┚¬ËœOh my god, oh my god! But by June, it all came together,â┚¬Â recalls Stemm. â┚¬Å”But we were very cautious of every decision we made, because we were very cognitive that we were setting a precedent.â┚¬ÂÂ
â┚¬Å”I remember during that time just looking around and realizing there were all these people in this community who wanted something that was more of a widespread pride event,â┚¬Â says Longstreth. â┚¬Å”And there were so many people here with so much experience in participating in and planning this type of event, and we just ran with it.â┚¬ÂÂ
The affair also prides itself on the fact that it is an all-ages and all-inclusive eventâ┚¬â€Âa detail that not all Pride-related events can boastâ┚¬â€Âand the founders feel the ideals of diversity and acceptance that are being conveyed and put on display are some of the most important aspects of the event.
â┚¬Å”We wanted something that kids could come to, that parents and grandparents could participate in,â┚¬Â says Longstreth.
â┚¬Å”We really wanted to involve everyone,â┚¬Â says Levett. â┚¬Å”People from the gay community and non-gay community, gay churches and non-gay churches, gay businesses and non-gay businesses. We wanted everybody to be a part of it.â┚¬ÂÂ
Early support
Their hopes were realized early on when they saw first-hand that the parade route was peppered with families enjoying the celebration and showing a wealth of support.
â┚¬Å”I remember the first year when we were going through Kenwood, we saw a lot of families with children watching the parade,â┚¬Â says Longstreth. â┚¬Å”When we talked to some of the parents they told us, â┚¬ËœWe wanted to bring our kids down here and show them and talk to them about diversity, and this was a great way to do it.'â┚¬ÂÂ
â┚¬Å”After the event was all over that first year, we got such remarkable feedback from people,â┚¬Â says Stemm.
One story in particular stands out to the founders. It was a single event that seemed all at once to confirm that they had the community's support, and that their efforts were already paying off in a tremendous fashion.
â┚¬Å”We got a letter from a family that lived on the parade route in Kenwood, and they wrote to us to tell us that they had taken their one-year-old boy to the parade,â┚¬Â says Stemm. â┚¬Å”Their intention was to take him to that event every year to teach him about diversity and love and inclusion. It was very moving to me, personally, because it validated what we were doing.â┚¬ÂÂ
â┚¬Å”They sat out in their front yard and watched the entire parade, and it was the first parade this little boy had ever seen,â┚¬Â says Levett.
And while the family may have been moved by the event, the founders were moved by the values this family sought to instill in their child.
â┚¬Å”They loved it, and wanted to know if we were going to be doing it again the next year. I thought that was just a terrific moment,â┚¬Â says Levett.
â┚¬Å”In many cases, you have media that sometimes just focuses on some of the more outlandish parts, the costumes and things of that nature,â┚¬Â says Longstreth. â┚¬Å”One of the things I love about the St. Pete event is that, from our original desire to keep it friendly for everyone, it really gave people a chance to see the true diversity of the community.â┚¬ÂÂ
The heat is on
And along with seeing diversity came experiencing the sweltering heat of summer in Florida. But while the temperatures have the potential to reach near triple digits, the significance of June to Pride events far outweighs the discomfort of few droplets of sweat.
â┚¬Å”I think you can put up with a little sweating for one day,â┚¬Â says Longstreth. â┚¬Å” It was pretty hot in June in New York in 1969.â┚¬ÂÂ
â┚¬Å”You don't change Christmas because it's cold,â┚¬Â says Stemm. â┚¬Å”It's written in our by-laws that the celebration will take place on the last Saturday in June. The reason being, that marks the anniversary of Stonewall.â┚¬ÂÂ
The Stonewall Riots of 1969 echoed through the streets of New York City, and it is marked as the first time in the history of the United States that the gay community fought against the persecution of sexual minorities. It is the spark that started the modern gay rights movement, and the founders of St. Pete Pride are in unanimous agreement that to celebrate Pride at any other time of year would be a disservice to the historical events that led the community to where they are today.
â┚¬Å”Would you have Fourth of July in December?â┚¬Â asks Levett with a chuckle. â┚¬Å”This is when it happened, and this is when we need to celebrate it.â┚¬ÂÂ
An optimistic future
As St. Pete Pride enters its 10th year, the original founding members recall memories fondly from the event's infancy, and are optimistic about its future.
â┚¬Å”This, I think, has really helped put St. Petersburg on the map as a â┚¬Ëœdestination', and that is very satisfying,â┚¬Â says Longstreth. â┚¬Å”It's about the diversity of the crowd, it's people from strollers to scooters, and seeing the smiles on people's faces.â┚¬ÂÂ
â┚¬Å”We're starting to get such mainstream recognition,â┚¬Â says Stemm. â┚¬Å”You go onto the pride website, and 98.7 is listed as the official pride radio station.â┚¬ÂÂ
Levett agrees, and is glad to see the support and acceptance of not only the local community, but of the powers-that-be, as well.
â┚¬Å”The acceptance of the general community continues to be greater and greater as time goes on,â┚¬Â says Levett. â┚¬Å”But in addition, politicians are realizing they have to recognize us, and they participate with us, and I think that is a big step forward.â┚¬ÂÂ
Stemm holds a similar sentiment, and has high hopes for the future.
â┚¬Å”I would love to see one day a classy car coming down the parade route and have the mayor sitting in it waving to the crowd,â┚¬Â says Stemm. â┚¬Å”It took decades for the mayor of New York to march in the Gay Pride Parade, and now it's almost a given that the mayor will be there. And for us, I think that day will come too.â┚¬ÂÂ
