On June 29, The MoCo Pride Center will host their inaugural MoCo (Montgomery County) Pride Party in Rockville, MD Town Square. MoCo Pride Party 2019 is “a celebration of queerness, and endeavors to foster fellowship.” The event date of the MoCo Pride Party marks the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York City, which ultimately gave birth to the first LGBTQ Pride celebration.
The goal of the MoCo Pride Center and MoCo Pride Party is to create a safer Montgomery County for the LGBTQ population.
“Montgomery County always prides itself in how diverse and accepting the community is, but we don’t often see those notions translated into thoughtful actions and representation throughout our country in the queer and queer minority communities, existing within Montgomery County,” says Phillip Alexander Downie, President of PAD Awesome Entertainment and co-producer of MoCo Pride.
Headlining the night is television personality, drag superstar, and activist, Miss Peppermint. She is best known as a fixture in the New York City nightlife scene and as the runner-up on the ninth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race.
The event features a night of diverse entertainment from DJ Tezrah, BOOMscat, Malijra and other local performers. Guests can enjoy outdoor games, eclectic food and drink vendors, and resources from local queer organizations.
“Representation is so important, especially when you don’t have a familial or community support system,” Downie explains. “So, when designing this event, I wanted to showcase the most underserved populations of the queer community. Black trans women of color, trans and non-binary people, queer black women, and queer people of color.”
The Saturday night event is metro accessible and wheelchair accessible. And, all live performances are ASL interpreted. There are also sliding scale ticket prices available.
The MoCo Pride Center is a 501(c)3 organization designed to organize, support, educate and provide outreach to and for the LGBTQ community and its allies in Montgomery County, MD. To learn more about MoCo Pride Center and the MoCo Pride Party, visit mocopridecenter.org.
