Leaders to join Kent Pride rally

It’s a show of color and an opportunity for the gay and lesbian community.

The downtown area comes to life Sunday with the inaugural Kent Pride 2012 – a rally for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) communities in South King County.

Civic, state and local leaders are supporting the event. The Kent Downtown Partnership and the Long Dog Tavern have endorsed the rally.

The event, an effort coordinated by Kent residents and domestic partners Bill Walters and Wade Schwartz, is designed to raise awareness and support for the LGBTQ community.

The rally runs from 2-5 p.m. at the Gazebo Stage at Burlington Green Park, off Railroad Avenue and East Meeker Street. Guest speakers include Mayor Suzette Cooke, Kent City Council President Dennis Higgins and State Rep. Dave Upthegrove (D-Des Moines, District 33), among others.

Cooke is expected to proclaim Sept. 9 as Gay Pride Day in the city of Kent and “encourage all citizens to recognize and applaud the numerous contributions of LGBT members of the community.”

State Sen. Joe Fain (R-Auburn, District 47) has issued a senatorial proclamation to “commend Kent Pride for its efforts to promote diversity and the value of community to all our friends and neighbors who call Kent home.”

In the backdrop of the rally is Referendum 74. Local leaders and dignitaries are expected to voice their support for the same-sex-marriage measure that will appear on the state’s Nov. 6 general election ballot.

“I’m extremely hopeful,” Walters said of the bold measure. “It would be ridiculous for me to say that it will pass, no matter what. But the more the word gets out there, the less people are confused about the initiative.”

Educating the public is an important part of the rally, organizers emphasize.

“Pride to me is about educating people and helping them understand,” Schwartz said. “In my eyes, if we reach one person, that’s what it is for.”

Raised in a small, rural town in southeast Idaho, Schwartz was shunned and abused because of his sexuality. He overcame it, and now wants to help others rise above the challenges and misunderstanding of living a gay or lesbian lifestyle.

For Walters and Schwartz, it is time to recognize and protect the lives of same-sex couples. The initiative is a big step, they say, allowing same-sex couples to have the same basic legal rights that everybody is afforded.

“There is no difference whether you’re a same-sex couple or an opposite-sex couple. You should have the same rights … to hospital visitations, to benefits, to joint tax returns,” Walters said. “There are so many things that go into being able to marry the person you love.”

While it might be difficult to gauge how many people will attend Sunday’s rally, the event has received a good, initial response, Walters said.

“We’ve been getting a wonderful response from a lot of people,” he said. “People are surprised and shocked that the city Kent is actually having a gay pride event. Period. The comments? ‘Kent, wow, you’re finally getting up there’ or ‘it’s about time’ or ‘I never knew,’ that type of thing.”

Kent has been a generous community for Walters and Schwartz, who have worked successfully to raise support and donations for nonprofit organizations.

They intend to build a nonprofit effort of their own in the spirit of this weekend’s rally and in the hope of staging similar events in the future.

Schwartz would like to hold a Kent Pride rally each year.

“I’m not going to let it go,” he said. “It (support) may go up, may go down, but it ‘s always going to be here.”

A PRE-RALLY KICKOFF EVENT is at 8 p.m. Saturday at Long Dog Tavern, 209 E. Meeker St. Supporters are invited to gather for a trivia night and pre-pride celebration