FeaturesHouston Pride

Planning Your Pride

June is chock full of LGBT festivities in Houston.

Compiled by Marene Gustin
Photos by Dalton DeHart

Wear your rainbow best and get downtown early for a good parking spot, as there will be hundreds of thousands of folks celebrating the 2017 Houston LGBT Pride Festival on June 24. The party kicks off at noon at Hermann Square in front of City Hall, and frolics along until the big nighttime parade beginning at 8:30 p.m. But don’t expend all your energy on just one day, because Pride Houston (one of the oldest and biggest Pride parties in the South) rocks and rolls along all month long! Here’s the lowdown on the rundown of events in and around Houston. 

June 1

• Pride Superstar Competition

Season 11 of this singing competition will be held at Rich’s. Free and open to the public.
pridehouston.org

• HATCH Youth Prom

Free for youth ages 13 to 20, HATCH celebrates LGBT awareness and the upcoming Pride Week at Numbers Nightclub. This year’s theme is Forest of Dreams.
hatchyouth.org

June 2

• Stripper Circus

Every Friday, hot male dancers and no cover throughout June.
richsnightclub.com

June 3

• LHI’s Health Fare

Learn about accessing ACA health insurance and some free health services at Legacy Community Health.
lhihouston.org

June 4

• Trash Disco 2017 

Krewe of Olympus kicks off Pride with a party at Rich’s. The disco starts at 4 p.m.
kreweofolympus.org

June 5

• HIV Long-Term Survivor’s Awareness Day 

June 5, 1981, was the CDC’s first mention of a rare pneumonia affecting gay men. Remember, resist, and be resilient.
letskickass.org 

Season 11 of the Pride Superstar competition, won last year by Christina Edwards Wells, continues at Rich’s through June 22.
Season 11 of the Pride Superstar competition, won last year by Christina Edwards Wells, continues at Rich’s through June 22.

June 8

• Pride Superstar Competition

Season 11 of this singing competition will be held at Rich’s. Free and open to the public.
pridehouston.org

June 9

• This Is How We Pride 

Party on at TC’s Houston Premier Show Bar.
facebook.com/events/1368223839938268/

June 10 & 11

• Galveston Pride Beach Bash 

Party on the beach during the day with DJs, drag queens, and Jell-O shots, then wash off the sand and head to 23rd St. Station for drinks and drag shows.
galveston.gaycities.com

The parade typically draws several hundred thousand people, making it the largest Pride event in the Southwest.
The parade typically draws several hundred thousand people, making it the largest Pride event in the Southwest.

June 15

• Pride Superstar Competition

Season 11 of this singing competition will be held at Rich’s. Free and open to the public.
pridehouston.org

June 16

• Gay Men’s Chorus of Houston Concert 

Broadway, Boys and Boas, GMCH’s first show at MATCH, will be an exciting and electric Pride concert featuring the very best of Broadway, past and present.
bcpahouston.org 

June 22

• Interfaith Pride Service 

A special Pride service at Congregation Emanu El at 7 p.m.
faithleaderscoalition.org

• Pride Superstar Competition Finale 

Season 11 of this singing competition will be held at Rich’s. Free and open to the public.
pridehouston.org

The Houston Pride Festival begins at noon on June 24 in Hermann Square at City Hall.
The Houston Pride Festival begins at noon on June 24 in Hermann Square at City Hall.

June 23

• Eden, A Girl Pride Party 

This is an official Pride Houston party for the ladies at Pearl Bar (okay, guys can come, too). Starts at 5 p.m., must be 21 years of age, and there’s a suggested $10 donation at the door. Fun includes an inflatable funhouse, silent auction, and a burlesque show!
pridehouston.org

• Rainbow on the Green 

Come downtown for the Pride park party at Discovery Green, across from the convention center. Food, fun, and entertainment on several stages, including CeCe Peniston and The Voice’s season 12’s Stephanie Rice. It all starts at 7 p.m. Presented by Legacy Community Health.
discoverygreen.com

• Pride Shabbat Dinner 

With the support of several local congregations, Houston-area Jews will attend a Pride Shabbat Dinner at Congregation Beth Yeshurun. Following 6 p.m. services, the Lanier Middle School Klezmer Band, along with other invited musicians, will play at the dinner and in the June 24 parade.
keshethouston.org

• Intercollegiate Pride Mixer 

Aggie Pride, the Texas Exes Pride Alumni Network, and the UH LGBTQ Alumni Association will host the fourth annual Intercollegiate Pride Mixer from 6 to 9 p.m. at Guava Lamp.
tinyurl.com/pride-mixer

June 24

• Houston Pride Festival 

Join us downtown for the daylong festival and the exciting nighttime parade. It’s all free and open to the public (a couple hundred thousand of them), so get here early. The festival starts at noon, and the parade kicks off at 8:30 p.m. Yes, it’s free, but VIP tickets are also available that include food, drink, and stadium seating.
pridehouston.org

• Pride Pub Crawl 

Get your drink on from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. with this downtown pub crawl. Tickets include a free cup, koozie, wristband, and shades. Get your ticket online.
itsahoustonthing.com/collections/pubcrawls

• Official Pride After Party, Beyond Wonderland 

When the parade’s over, head on over to Rich’s for the official after party. If you haven’t been to Rich’s since the remodel, you are in for a world of delight—two levels for dancing, DJs, and flashing lights. Be 21 or over and drink responsibly, but don’t forget to have fun.
pridehouston.org

June 25

• Mad Tea (the Official Closing Party) 

Don’t be sad, come back to Rich’s for one final blowout until next year! Cover charge TBA. It starts at 5 p.m. and runs until midnight.
pridehouston.org

June 30—July 4

• Austin Chill Weekend 

A fun, three-day weekend featuring Bears, Brotherhood, Beverages, Bar-B-Q, and a Bear Party Barge on Lake Travis.
austinchillweekend.org

July 1

• Bigger than Texas Pride Parade and Festival 

San Antonio’s main Pride event held at Crocket Park.
pridesanantonio.org

August 26

• Austin Pride Parade/Festival 

The capitol’s Pride parade and fest.
austinpride.org

 

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Marene Gustin

Marene Gustin has written about Texas culture, food, fashion, the arts, and Lone Star politics and crime for television, magazines, the web and newspapers nationwide, and worked in Houston politics for six years. Her freelance work has appeared in the Austin Chronicle, Austin-American Statesman, Houston Chronicle, Houston Press, Texas Monthly, Dance International, Dance Magazine, the Advocate, Prime Living, InTown magazine, OutSmart magazine and web sites CultureMap Houston and Austin, Eater Houston and Gayot.com, among others.
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