And they’ll be bringing the longest rainbow flag in the world with them.
By Johannes Werner
Original Air Date: June 21, 2024
Host: Project Pride SRQ had the 400-foot rainbow flag made five years ago, and they keep it in their offices on Boulevard of the Arts. Now, they expect hundreds of people to walk across the John Ringling Causeway and back this Saturday morning, carrying the nation’s longest rainbow flag to make a statement in support of LGBTQ Floridians. WSLR News has the details.
Johannes Werner: It’s a signal of defiance, and it’s a signal of love, diversity and inclusion — all at the same time, according to Project Pride SRQ, the organizers of the Grand Flag March. The Project Pride website frames the event as a “powerful response” to restrictions from Gov. Ron DeSantis that prevent the bridge from being lit in rainbow colors for Pride Month.
Jason Champion, president of Project Pride SRQ, says they first got wind of the bridge lighting ban in May when Manatee County Commissioner Mike Rahn took his opposition to lighting the Sunshine Skyway in rainbow colors to the state government.
Jason Champion: We actually got word that something like this was going to happen a couple of months ago, when one Manatee County Commissioner decided to say no, approving the Skyway Bridge being lit, because with the Florida transportation of the bridge touching the Skyway Bridge multiple areas — Pinellas, Hillsborough, and Manatee County — all commissioners needed to sign off on it, and there was one that decided that he did not want to. And therefore it got passed up to DeSantis — I’m sure, at that point, in protest of not wanting to light the bridge — not just for the gay community in town, but also Moms Against Gun Violence, Autism, Latin Month, Women’s Awareness … there’s multiple organizations that have been affected by this, but probably Pride was the impetus of it all.
So, we knew it was coming, and then it passed down … it was the Freedom Summer from Memorial Day to Labor Day. And with that, that eliminated all of these people having representation, because we believe in freedom in the US. We are one of the greatest countries in the world. And not to be able to have that representation during that time of pride month is definitely a blow. So we wanted to make sure that we still have that representation in many ways, that’s why we’ve produced the events that we have and are working on making the LGBTQ community visible within Sarasota. And we felt like this is the right time to carry the 700 foot progressive flags across the bridge.
JW: The last bridge walk in February 2022 drew some 900 people, to protest the Don’t Say Gay bill. Like this last one, this one will have multiple speakers, donors, allies. Champion hopes there will be 500-700 people, to carry the flag and “spread the love”. Three hundred and fifty people have already signed up to carry the flag as of Wednesday morning. The march is not just about LGBTQ Floridians. It’s also about Juneteenth, National Gun Violence Awareness Day, and other causes.
JC: We’re an inclusive community. It’s not just gay: it’s straight, it’s black, it’s white, it’s green, it’s purple. We believe in love and representation for all and respect that, because we do live in the greatest country, the United States, and we believe in equality, and our service of our service members that have protected our freedoms, and we feel that this is a good representation of our freedom as well.
JW: Pride event organizers have had to deal with political accusations of indecency and grooming in Sarasota County lately, which seems to have prompted a move into more private settings. Is this Bridge March an effort to break out from that privacy cage? Jason Champion denies that the LGBTQ movement has been boxed in – kind of.
JC: True, but to give a little background on why we do Pride events inside in June is … it’s hot. So we kind of coin June Pride as Pride Inside, and then we do our large Pride Festival out in public in October.
JW: The event begins Saturday 9 am near the roundabout at Ringling Causeway and US 41. For more information about the Grand Flag March, go to ppsrq.org. While there, you can also sign a petition to legislators in protest of the bridge lighting ban.
This has been Johannes Werner, reporting for WSLR News in Sarasota.
WSLR News aims to keep the local community informed with our 1/2 hour local news show, quarterly newspaper and social media feeds. The local news broadcast airs on Wednesdays and Fridays at 6pm.
