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Capital City Pride celebrates its 27th birthday

Photo credit: capitalcitypride.net

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If you're from Olympia, or a visitor, you probably noticed a couple things about the city. One of them being dreadlocks and pajamas are a common fad that the community wears very well. And what I really hope that you took away from your visit is how loud and proud the community is. Yes, there are a lot of protest and painted cardboard signs; however, these are not people looking for a fight, or to convince you of something one way or another. They are people looking for what we all should give more of to each other, support.

This weekend, Olympia is hosting their most proud event of the year. Capital City Pride is celebrating its 27th birthday. This event has come a long way since 1991. Starting with just a gathering of people with a handful of supporters, Capital City Pride is now one of the largest small town festivals in the Northwest drawing over 15,000 people, over the course of three days. Thursday is the Pride Power Up at Jakes on 4th - consider this your Pride weekend pre-funk party. Friday, we continue the celebration with a kick-off party. All ages are welcome to join for a dance party in front of Oly Underground complete with a fire show and drag performances. Saturday is the day you need to get downtown early and find a spot for the parade. The parade starts on Capital Way and ends at the capitol building. Following the parade from 1-6 p.m., the festival continues reserving Heritage Park, blocking off Water Street and 7th Avenue. The blocks will be packed with food, music, family activities and more.    

This is a wonderful time to bring the family downtown and really celebrate the community of Olympia. As wonderful as this celebration is, this weekend is not a celebration for everyone involved. Everyday the LGBTQ community fights battles that still need to be fought and won. Anna Schlecht is a partner with Capital City Pride. She says, "LGBTQ youth still face harassment at home and at school. Yes, we need to celebrate, but we can't forget that being LGBTQ is not a festival for all of us, at least not yet." Not yet, there will be a day that we can stand together as just a community of people that are just that: people. As we walk toward that day, come walk with us as we support each other in this walk we call life.

Capital City Pride, June 15-18, downtown Olympia, capitalcitypride.net

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