“I’m not sure I’ll ever be the same,” he said. The 32-year-old PR agent said he was out during the pandemic and was too shy to attend Nashville’s Pride event, so he hopped on a Southwest flight “which doesn’t costs almost nothing” for his first trip to the desert or to SoCal. It was also a reaffirmation of the spirit of the gay community coming together after a difficult and challenging year,” he added. It was a magical escape to party in the streets and feel welcomed by everyone in the city. “Honey, I booked this ticket and here I am, but he wasn’t It’s okay, he said, smiling and gesturing towards an older man, “I’m sure you’ll be fine.”Įvan Caplan, who visited Palm Springs Pride from Washington, DC, said, “Palm Springs Pride was a chance to get away from it all in DC and enjoy the weather, the festivities, and meet all kinds of different people.
says he met a “dad” on Grinder who invited him to Palm Spring Pride after a series of X-rated photos.
But today at Pride, surrounded by people willing to talk to me, I feel free and even sudden loud noises don’t trigger me.
I have too much PTSD and can barely take care of myself. He misted his eyes as he stroked Cody, the dog of Arturo Jimenez and his partner, LA Blade publisher Troy Masters, saying, “I can’t have a dog but I love them. John W, a homeless and disabled Transman who only has one arm, said he lives in Palm Springs. “So I splurged him on $1200 a night AirBnB and we have a mansion with a pool and we’re going home now!” “Yeah, that bitch forgot to book a hotel room,” Randall snapped. Joel Stern and husband Randall arrived from Seattle: ‘We love Palm Springs and we love Pride, so when we found cheap airfare on Alaska from Seattle to Palm Springs during Pride week, we jumped said Joel. I’m fully vaccinated and ready for some loving, so if you know any hot dykes you can hook me up with, I also waxed just for Pride baby!” “I’m so tired of all this isolation that I could scream. Tammy Green said the event was her first public event since Covid. “I couldn’t sit on this one, so we came from the border today. He laughed and rushed into the bouncy house the festival organizers had set up for the children, and his mother followed him. “Don’t make assumptions about people, Stanton. Pointing to other passing children, he said, “Look, they’re like me.” His mother corrected him. Mom told The Blade, “at this point he says he’s gay, so I thought he should see this.” Stanton, who wore a mask since he is not vaccinated, said he knew he was not alone but had no idea there were so many like him. Lydia, mother of Stanton, 9, says her son insisted they attend the Festival on Sunday. “I hung up on the phone this morning with my son in London, he’s gay like me, he laughs, and he told me that her husband and my newborn grandson will be arriving on a flight from Paris Friday next week.
Thousands and thousands of people from all walks of life, mostly without masks, swarmed the city for three days from end to end, something that seemed unimaginable just a few weeks ago.ĭan Bertin, 87, wiped away a tear when the Los Angeles Blade asked him why he decided to attend Palm Springs Pride. Last year’s event was held virtually on Facebook.
felt that way, at least for a weekend.Įverything Pride and all of Palm Springs - literally everything - the pandemic had stolen from us was on full display, but with an added twist: It was the first large-scale celebration of Pride in California since January 2020 and people were ready to to celebrate. PALM SPRINGS - Even the palm trees were sashaying this weekend as the 35th Greater Palm Springs Pride Festival liberated the city from the doldrums of a pandemic that, while not exactly over, has certainly ended.