This story has been edited to correct the end time of the event.
The western Kentucky LGBTQ+ community is marking Pride Month this June with a festival in Paducah this weekend.
Organizers with the group Paducah Pride United Together – which formed last year to put on its first large-scale Pride event – have planned a day of live music, comedians and a drag show for Saturday at the McCracken County Convention & Expo Center.
PPUT founder and chair Rafiel Banks-Nailing said he’s happy the group has been able to join in the tradition of Pride in the region, which has hosted Pride celebrations for the better part of two decades.
“We want everyone to have a good time, enjoy themselves and be encouraged, but we want people to walk away also with boldness, with fear released. We do not want our community in fear these next four years. We do not want our community in fear anytime,” Banks-Nailing said. “Whether a community member of the LGBT community or an ally, we want people to stand bold and continue this fight, because the fight is not over. It's only begun.”
The festival will feature programs aimed at educating attendees about the history of the LGBT+ movement and Pride Month, both locally and nationally.
“One of our biggest missions is to make sure that everyone leaves with new knowledge that they may not have known before,” he said. “I think it's very important that we talk about our history and we talk about where we've been because – if we don't know where we've been – we don't know where we're going.”
The festival will run from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday at the convention center. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster.
Banks-Nailing said that the festival is family friendly and that activities for kids and young adults would be available.
Vendors and nonprofits will also be on-site to showcase LGBTQ+ creators and to educate members of the community about available services and opportunities in the region. Free HIV testing will also be available at the festival.
Musical performances are planned from Julia Watkins, Gina Caturano and Justin Ryan, among others. Comedians Sarah Hines and Jeremiah Martin will also take the stage Saturday, alongside more than 20 local and regional drag artists like Zoey Monet, Tsunami Rayne Duvall, the Maserati Family and Carmen Triple C.
More information is available on Paducah Pride United Together’s Facebook page.
