The first Pride celebration in Columbus, Indiana, the hometown of notoriously anti-LGBT Vice President Mike Pence, was a hit.
“The first gay pride festival here, the hometown of socially conservative Vice President Mike Pence and a city that once drew protests against health benefits for same-sex couples, proved surprising Saturday,” the IndyStar reported.
“The turnout was larger than expected,” the outlet noted. “More than 2,000 people cared less about the gloomy weather and more about the message.”
The celebration was organized by high school senior Erin Bailey, stemming from a class project. “It’s crazy,” she told the newspaper. “It’s awesome.” The celebration covered two blocks and featured drag performances and three dozen vendor booths.
The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) was also in attendance to “celebrate with local advocates at the first-ever LGBT Pride Festival in Columbus, Indiana — hometown of Vice President Mike Pence,” the organization wrote, “whose political career has been predicated on anti-LGBTQ animus.”
“By fearlessly standing up for equality, Erin Bailey is showing Mike Pence, who has a long, disturbing record of attacking and demonizing the LGBTQ community, that Hoosiers won’t stand for his brand of discriminatory politics,” HRC Senior Public Policy Advocate Jennifer Pike Bailey advised.
Twitter users quickly shared images of the event:
Congratulations to all of those involved!