PRIDE GUIDE 1995 GAY PEOPLE'S CHRONICLE 19

Toledo will have its first Pride march and rally

The first ever "Toledo Gay Pride Day" will take place at 12 noon, on Sunday, June 25 with a rally at One Government Center, and a sidewalk march across the Dr. Martin

Onity 94

Grand Marshal Michael Johnson

Jite

Luther King Jr. Bridge to International Park. The rally and march is to coincide with National Gay Pride Day. The Gay and Lesbian Student Union at the University of Toledo (GLSU/UT) unanimously passed a motion to support this historical event.

GLSU/UT president Jeff Miller said, "I came away from the March on Washington with a renewed sense of pride and I look forward to the chance to recharge [my pride] again here at home." Miller networks with other gay organizations in the Northwest Ohio region as a gay community leader.

University of Toledo student and three time 1994 Gay Games Gold Medalist Michael Johnson will be the Grand Marshal for the march. Johnson criticizes that "Mayor Carty Finkbeiner proclaimed a day for me on June 25, 1994 and I believe it's time the

mayor recognize the entire Toledo gay community. He should sign a proclamation that the last day of every June be "Toledo Gay Pride Day" and he should be aware that I'm

not the only gay person who lives in Toledo, Ohio. Even though I am a Columbus native, I will be marching in Toledo."

The Toledo Gay and Lesbian Coalition

(TGLC) estimates that there are 61,400 gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered persons living in the Northwest Ohio area-ten percent of the region's popula-

tion.

There have been mixed feelings coming from the local gay community, as some people fear being outed by the

media, and others wonder how many will show at the June 25 event. Kim Dill of Stonewall Union, co-chair of the Columbus Gay Pride Day, said that "If supporters feel at risk, they can wear a hat or sunglasses, but it is important to be visible.""

Stonewall Union is a strong advocate for "Toledo Gay Pride Day"

along with other state and national cities such as Cleveland, Chicago, Atlanta, and Sandusky. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force in Washington, D.C. has offered their support as well.

Lair Scott, organizer of "Toledo Gay Pride Day" and TGLC director, explains that "we implore the Northwest Ohio gay community to completely understand that there actually is going to be "Toledo Gay Pride Day" and the message is clear that we are compelled to unite, and only solidarity shall toll the largest of bells." The Advocate and Out magazine have both recently done stories about the upcoming Toledo Gay Pride Day, and Scott says, with pride, "This is a day that all of us in Toledo have waited for all our lives. Whether twenty people or two hundred show up, there will be a march."

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