As stroke inducing heat, irritating dust storms and torrential rains bedeviled the Fourth of July celebrations in the nation’s capital, the opposite occurred at the 8th Annual South Side Pride Festival on the campus of Dusable Museum at 750 East 56th Place.
Hundreds gathered for Love in Action, the official close of Pride Month on July 5 for a full afternoon of hospitable weather amid an ongoing celebration of sexuality, creativity, self-expression, wellness, health and the joys of dancing. There was plenty going on with a stacked lineup of performers, a number of wellness organizations, a section for podcasters, community outreach organizations and sitting politicians making appearances.
On the entertainment front there was something for just about every taste, and host Otis Mack and Ruebella Sashay had a high old time cracking ribald jokes and quips while keeping the show lively. Vocalist Brvndon (pronounced Brandon) serenaded the crowd with laid-back velvety soul, while up-and-coming trio Boifrnd (pronounced boyfriend) summoned up memories of The Temptations and Morris Day and the Time with a dash of queer sass, becoming the early festival favorite.
Sapphire Feliciano wowed the audience with a truly athletic performance while Kingsley, wearing a blouse made up entirely of silver metallic hearts, had a blast with her salty set of elegant originals. S@N!C Healing (pronounced Sonic Healing) opened their set with Prince’s “KISS,” then promptly got lost in their mix of feel good funk/rock/soul, which enraptured the crowd. Other performers included Just Logan, Cream of Nature, Nami Flareand Manasseh.
Among the politicians making an appearance were Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. Mayor Brandon Johnson arrived later in the day and told the enthusiastic crowd, “I don’t care what ‘buddy’ does in Washington…as long as I am mayor of Chicago we will never bow down, we will never capitulate, we will never give in!!!”
Johnson also sat down for a short interview with podcaster Anna DeShawn and spoke about the upcoming city policy shifts for the LGBTQ+ community by the just appointed Director of LGBTQ+ Affairs Antonio King. In closing, the Mayor wished the community to, “Love loud, love boisterously and to love consistently,” before promising to return to the festival in 2027 and wear “cute shorts like Antonio’s.”
Sponsors and participants for “Love in Action” included Equality Illinois, Project Vida, Chicago Center for HIV Elimination, Uberlube, Greater Chicago Food Depository, Adler University, Impulse Chicago, Chicago Teachers Union Foundation, South Side Help Center, and Near North Health. Also included are Human Rights Campaign, Chicago Foundation for Women, Taskforce Prevention and Community Service, Lambda Legal, Brave Space Alliance, Revolution Brewing, Northwestern University, BLACC, SG Media, NWI Institute of AI and SEIU State Council.
Podcasters featured at the festival included Black Gay Table Talk, The Table, DeShawn and Bad Queers.
Photos by Vern Hester
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