ST. GEORGE — While Pride of Southern Utah marks its celebratory month in September, that didn’t stop several Southern Utah organizations from focusing on inclusion in June, which marks national LGBTQ+ Pride month.

Katie Methe, executive director of Pride of Southern Utah, said participants included Encircle House in St. George, Zion National Park, Cedar City and the Short Creek area. 

“Those organizations aren’t actually run or affiliated with Pride of Southern Utah, but we like to make sure that we’re promoting the events that are happening, even if other folks inside the community put them on,” Methe said.

Since June is typically a hot month, Methe said Pride of Southern Utah moved most of its activities to celebrate Pride month in September. But throughout the year, the group hosts recurring events such as host Queer Coffee on Saturdays at different locations in Southern Utah. 

“Those events are there for everyone. We are celebrating creating a safe, inclusive space for our community,” Methe said. “But anyone who wants to come is welcome as we have a lot of allies and other members of the community that also don’t necessarily identify as LGBTQ.”

Zion National Park staged a service parade that involved people picking up trash on the Pa’rus trail and ended with face-painting and button-making. There was also a Leave No Trace seminar.

“Historically, national parks have not typically had public-facing Pride events,” Methe said. “A couple of national parks have done kind of internal employee events. I think this was the first Pride festival in a national park, which was really cool to see in our state, particularly in Utah.”

Zion National Park spokesman Jonathan Shafer said the park service aspires to make Zion a safe place where all people can thrive.

“We welcome everyone to enjoy the outdoors, any time of year,” Shafer said.

Short Creek on the Arizona-Utah border, which includes the towns of Hilldale and Colorado City, Arizona, conducted a Pride event for the second year. Methe said it has grown in size and that the organizer said it had a “comfortable vibe” and offered family-friendly fun with games and music.

All of the Pride groups rely on volunteers, Methe said, which is another way people can support Pride activities. Those interested in donating their time can sign up online.

“You can fill out the form and it puts you into our volunteer database so that we can contact you for important events that we might need help for,” Methe said. “Our Pride festival in September is a good example of one of those events where we need a certain amount of people manning certain booths.”

Volunteers are also needed for security. They also seek donated goods to raffle or auction off at events to support Pride programs. Methe added that a couple of executive committee positions are also available. The committee carries out most of Southern Utah Pride’s tasks and mission.

“Getting involved at the executive committee level is also another way that folks could donate their time if they wanted a more specific role within the organization,” Methe said.

Pride of Southern Utah is planning September events at different locations. And Methe said they plan to emphasize that Southern Utah means more than just St. George and hope to be more inclusive to other regions this year. 

According to their website, Pride 2023 highlights and welcomes stories of LGBTQIA+ individuals across Southern Utah: “Stories create strong emotional connections and share information in a way that feels honest, unique, and vulnerable. They help us to gain a deeper understanding of other people’s lived experiences. Our stories matter. Past and present. They are the foundation of this fearless and resilient community.” 

Nationally, Pride month is an annual celebration held in June to honor the 1969 Stonewall riots. In June 1969, patrons and supporters of the Stonewall Inn in New York City staged an uprising to resist the police harassment that LGBT Americans were subjected to. The uprising began a movement to outlaw discriminatory laws and practices against LGBT Americans.

Today, celebrations include pride parades, picnics, parties, workshops and concerts. Also, memorials are held for those members of the community whose lives were lost to hate crimes or HIV/AIDS. According to the Youth.gov website, “The purpose of the commemorative month is to recognize the impact that LGBTQ individuals have had on history locally, nationally, and internationally.”

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