Oklahoma Pride events are taking place in urban and rural communities this month.
Pauls Valley just celebrated its first official Pride on June 1 and Ada is hosting Pride for just the second year tomorrow.
Jacob Jeffery is a cofounder of Rural Oklahoma Pride, an organization that helps people in different areas put on Pride events, and it shares information about other celebrations at any time of the year. Jeffery said it was started to show love, support and community growth in rural spaces.
"Most people don't have the ability to drive to Oklahoma City, Tulsa or even Bartlesville to witness Pride," Jeffery said. "So, it was a lack of understanding what Pride could be like."
This way, he said, it's accessible and available for everyone.
In Pauls Valley, Jeffery said the event was successful with more than 100 people in attendance. Over the years, he said there's been an increase in interest for rural Pride events across the state and in that time, he said people have become more aware.
"And a lot of them will contact us saying, 'Hey, we've been inspired by y'all because we see it is possible now to have Pride here when so many of us have been afraid to even step out with a pride flag,'" Jeffery said. "And it's been beautiful watching all of these amazing folks come together and make it happen in places that they never dreamed it would happen."
In addition to being at Ada's Pride, Jeffery said Rural Oklahoma Pride will be represented at Oklahoma City events later this month, showcasing performers who represent rural communities. According to social media posts and websites, other Pride celebrations coming up this month outside of Oklahoma's biggest metros include:
- Ada Pride, Wintersmith Park, June 7, 3 p.m.
- Eufaula Pride Event, 224 N. Main St., Eufaula, June 7, 7-10 p.m.
- Sequoyah County Pride in Sallisaw, June 14, 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.
- Lawton Pride, 103 NE 20th St., Lawton (VFW Post 5263), June 14, noon - 7 p.m.
- Claremore Pride Festival, Claremore Lake, June 21, 3 - 9 p.m.
- McAlester Pride, Rotary Park, June 21, time TBA
- Prague Pride, Prague Public Park, June 22, noon - 5 p.m.
- Western Oklahoma Pride Festival in Clinton, McLain Rogers Park, June 29, 4 - 10 p.m.
This report was produced by the Oklahoma Public Media Exchange, a collaboration of public media organizations. Help support collaborative journalism by donating at the link at the top of this webpage.
