It’s here: Moab Pride 2020 will be happening this week! Like pretty much everything else, it will be a little out of the ordinary this year. This Pride season, we will feature three COVID-safe events: Hood Criatura at 7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 18, Spit Love at 6 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 25, and the Moth Ball on Saturday, Sept. 26 at 5:30 p.m.
Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 logistics, 2020 Moab Pride will not include three of our favorite annual events: the Visibility March, Gayla Festival and Orange Party. In the same vein, we are requesting that only folks living in Moab and the surrounding area attend in-person events this year.
At the core of Moab’s LGBTQ+ community is an openness to welcome everyone that arrives with kindness and love – but due to the pandemic, we must ask that people living out of town respect the health and safety of our community, and invite you to please join us next year.
The good news is our other events will be a lot of fun and COVID-safe!
Hood Criatura is a poetry workshop focused on “JOY,” led by féi hernandez. The event will be held live at the Moab Arts and Recreation Center. Masks required, or you can stream the event online through the Moab Pride Facebook event as well.
Spit Love is a poetry slam where performers explore love, community, and connection from LGBTQ+ perspectives. Spit Love gives us a chance to showcase some absolutely amazing local artists. The poems shared at Spit Love show how the queer experience colors the way we pass through the world, and to feel all the ways in which love and connection are truly universal. If you come to Spit Love, we can pretty much guarantee you’ll hear at least one poem that resonates with your own life experience, and at least one that helps you look at the world from a new perspective. The event will be held at Star Hall and broadcast live on the Moab Pride Instagram profile.
And the Moth Ball… get ready to dress up in whatever makes you feel the cutest and wiggle out your woes! The Moth Ball is a family-friendly, drug- and alcohol-free intergenerational dance party that celebrates LGBTQ+ youth. Held at the pavilion in Swanny Park, the Moth Ball will feature live drag performances from local performers.
In-person seating for Spit Love will be limited and entry will require sanitizing hands, wearing masks and socially distanced seating between separate parties. Please see the Moab Pride Facebook event or go to www.moabpride.com to register for in-person seating.
At the Moth Ball, social distancing will be required and we ask that everyone wear a mask even while outside, since proper distance can’t be assured.
Public perception of queer people has improved a lot over our lifetimes, but not everyone has received an equal share of that improvement. It is our youth, queer and straight and in-between, that will lead us into a more just and equitable future for all. In a world that is simultaneously sick and on fire, our youth understand that the future is here and they have the power to build a kinder, more loving world. We can create a supportive space together to celebrate queer folks of all ages with friends and families
Pride is more than a festival. Pride is something we live every day in our bodies and through our actions. It is wearing those cute rainbow sequin shoes around the house even when you only have your dog to appreciate the look. It is checking in with your queer and trans friends, lacking access to queer space due to being immunocompromised. Back of Beyond is featuring books by LGBTQ+ authors, with a focus on lifting the voices of trans people of color. By listening to QTPOC stories and narratives we are able to better understand the intersectional nature of systems of oppression, and how we can best work towards breaking them down.
Pride is more than the march and the party – it’s a celebration of the freedom to enjoy life without needing to compromise who you are. Sometimes, in order to be comfortable enough to do this, folks need a setting where they feel safe enough to explore their expression with honesty and vulnerability. We need our special, weird, red-rock loving community to help build these safe spaces, and we hope you can join us this Moab Pride season, either face to face or virtually.
Visit www.moabpride.com for more details on all events and how to plug in to our community.
