Eugene’s Annual Pride Festival takes place this Saturday at Alton Baker Park. KLCC’s Jill Burke spoke with Brooks McLain, one of the event’s organizers, about why it’s celebrated here in August instead of June — which is typically when Pride Month is observed in the U.S. McLain also spoke about what it means to celebrate and be visible in 2023, a year when anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, political actions, and protesters are getting more aggressive.
A drag queen faces the crowd at a Eugene Pride event.
Courtesy of Eugene Pride
For context, early in 2023, the Human Rights Campaign, a LGBTQ+ civil rights and advocacy group, identified 340 state-level anti-LGBTQ+ bills, 150 or which targeted transgender people. In recent years the organization has also tracked record numbers of fatal violence against transgender and gender non-conforming people.
The interview that follows has been edited for length and clarity. McLain is the Co-President of Eugene Pride.
MCLAIN: We don’t have a ton of, you know, queer events or queer spaces that are dedicated in Eugene or Lane County. So pride is really important so that we can kind of see each other know who each other are and make the connections that will help us kind of combat some of these issues that we’re facing.
BURKE: Is pride celebration, or is it activism or is being visible and celebrating its own form of activism?
MCLAIN: It’s all three. I mean, that’s the reality of being queer in the United States, we can’t have celebration without being activists, because we’re not full citizens yet under the law. And so anything we do is inherently political.
BURKE: I’m wondering, would you tell me about why Eugene celebrates pride in August instead of June when many Pride celebrations take place around the country?
MCLAIN: Absolutely. We get that a lot. Actually. June, of course, is when the anniversary of the Stonewall uprising which started the modern gay rights movement, and what pride represents in June. We do it in August here, because June is kind of an impossible month, throw another event in Eugene with the university’s graduation with track and field events, it’s really hard to get the tents and the infrastructure that we need to put the festival together. So we do ours after people are back in town, when we know we can get the infrastructure in the park that we need. And when we kind of have everyone’s attention, and we tend to like to say we’re here all year. So it’s really important to have Pride celebrations year-round.
BURKE: This has been a really challenging year for LGBTQ rights. I’m wondering what that’s done in terms of altering the mood or the concerns or the preparations that you have for this year’s event.
Eugene pride attendees rest under a colorful shade structure.
Courtesy of Eugene Pr
MCLAIN: Really, the most impact has been on safety. I mean, we’re very fortunate to live in Oregon and live in Eugene, where we have a really supportive government, a lot of institutional support, especially at the city level. We’re sponsored by the city of Eugene this year, and we’re seeing really incredible support from them. We are expecting some fairly aggressive protesters from out of areas to show up at the event. So we’ve added additional security, we have done the escalation trainings and conflict resolution trainings to try to keep folks from getting too agitated by those who would prefer that we not exist. And it’s really important that we keep the festival lively and fun, and that we have a dedicated space to really celebrate ourselves, despite all of that that’s going on nationally. And so while you know, we’re taking extra precautions, we’re not changing kind of the tone and tenor of the event.
BURKE: Do you feel that there’s been an uptick in rhetoric or in the aggression level this year over past years?
MCLAIN: So yes, it’s more intense. We’ve had protesters before, but for the most part, they would kind of stay on the outskirts, they would have their message and would be seen, but they wouldn’t be aggressively forcing themselves into the festival. We noticed that change in 2019, and again when we took a break for COVID. When we brought the festival back in 2021, they aggressively pushed themselves to the main stage and tried to actually disrupt the festival. The rhetoric itself is more intense to where, you know, there’s this kind of almost genocidal approach where they want us rounded up and killed. So you know, that obviously has effects for mental health for people in the LGBTQ community. And we’re really trying to provide supports in the festival to counter some of that hate directed at us.
BURKE: The Human Rights Campaign has declared for the first time ever a state of emergency surrounding these and other types of issues. Is this what you’re speaking of when you say it really affects the mental health, you know, the conditions that people find themselves in, we would absolutely agree that this is a state of emergency nationally for the LGBTQ community. One thing we’re experiencing here in Oregon and in Eugene is kind of an exodus of folks from states that are passing these more restrictive laws, especially against trans youth. We’ve seen you know, people get involved in crime who are moving from states like Florida and Texas, because they’re being oppressed there and in some cases, would be arrested for the way they’re parenting their children. I think we all feel very grateful to live here and have a supportive community and supportive government despite you know, the protesters that’s really a minority in Oregon, but that’s obviously not the case nationally, and it’s gratifying to be a refuge for these folks. And it’s also heartbreaking at the same time that they actually have this either state.
BURKE: Are you aware of groups that have maybe applied for permits to hold their own protests?
MCLAIN: As far as we know, no one’s applied for permits. But almost every year at Eugene Pride, we have protesters who show up, so this is not a new experience for us. And I think what some people don’t realize is that’s kind of the reality that we have been facing for many, many years. We have a celebration, we have folks who come to protest us to try to enter the festival grounds and disrupt the festival and who really, you know, have disturbing imagery and signage that is upsetting to attendees. And so this is not new to us. I mean, I think the awareness is new among the general public, but it’s very ultra real for us all the time, every year.
BURKE: What strategies do you employ, or are you ready to employ, to minimize potential disruptions?
MCLAIN: De-escalation is really a big part of the training for our volunteers. I don’t want to talk too much about specific logistics because that could be harmful. But I will say that we’re coordinating very closely with Eugene police department and with the city of Eugene to make sure that the event is safe for everyone.
BURKE: Would you be able to give one specific suggestion or piece of advice for individuals who find themselves find themselves in the midst of a challenging conversation, one that may be heated or feel hostile? What can people on either side do or say that lowers the tension, and encourages civil discourse?
MCLAIN: I think at its root, we’re all human beings. And we all want the same things. We want love. We want acceptance. We want our children to be taken care of. We want community. We want to feel that we have respect for each other. And we’re more alike, even though we’re on opposing sides politically. We have differences, and oftentimes that division is deliberate in order to keep us from coming together so that we can attack some of the root causes of the issues that we’re facing, things like income inequality, climate change or other issues. There is a long history in the United States of divide, conquer and keep minority groups separate so that they don’t come together to overthrow the reigning power structures. And so I think if we can focus on common humanity, and the things we have in common, that’s really helpful when having these conversations.
BURKE: Tell me about pride this year, is anything new? What are you really looking forward to?
MCLAIN: Sure, you know, last year was our biggest event ever. We’re able to expand on that this year. So we’re really looking forward to having two full stages of programming all day. We have a new silver circle that we’re excited for so that members of the LGBT community who are in recovery will have a place where they can network and feel safe. We have a pet zone, Kid Zone, a lot of good things going on at the festival. There’s really something for everyone this year.
BURKE: Brooks, thank you.
MCLAIN: Thank you. Appreciate it.
BURKE: Eugene’s pride celebration takes place Saturday from 10 to seven at Alton Baker Park, Jill Burke, KLCC News.