Silicon Valley Pride Continues to Evolve

Silicon Valley Pride continues to evolve, offering Pridegoers something new every year.

This year's festival is themed "Diversity, Inclusion, Success," and takes place Saturday, August 27 and Sunday, August 28 in San Jose.

About 5,000 people are expected to come out to the celebrations this year, said Thaddeus Campbell, chief executive officer of the Gay Pride Celebration Committee of San Jose, which produces Silicon Valley Pride.

"We are making it a very diverse and inclusive festival, which is representative of the community," said Campbell, a gay African-American man who declined to provide his age. "This year's Pride is so different from what has been experienced in the past."

For the first time, Pride organizers are hosting a night festival with an electronic dance party, along Almaden Boulevard in San Jose, Saturday from 6 to 11 p.m.

Organizers are also introducing two new stages celebrating Latin and reggae music at the festival on Sunday, with lesbian reggae fusion singer Diana King headlining the reggae stage Sunday.

"Pride is the one place where I can be 100 percent myself," King told the Bay Area Reporter. "I'm always excited to be at Pride and be around that energy and to be myself. I can't wait."

Jamaica isn't far from her mind wherever she goes. Her homeland recently celebrated its second Pride event, something she never thought she would see in her lifetime, she said. Since King, 45, came out in 2012, she usually does a shout out about Jamaica or has the crowd send a "Happy Pride" message to Jamaica's LGBT community.

King plans to sing all of her fan favorites, including her hit "Shy Guy," which, for her LGBT audiences, she changes the words to "Shy Girl," she said.

She's currently working on a couple of projects, including new house music and reggae songs, she added.

The parade and festival also return to Silicon Valley Pride this year. The parade begins at 10 a.m. Sunday at Market and St. John streets and runs down Market Street to Park Avenue directly into the festival, which opens at 11 a.m. and closes at 6 p.m.

The festival, featuring booths and stages presenting live entertainment, will be hosted along Almaden Boulevard. Advance tickets are $10 each day or $18 for two days.

Additionally, following Sunday's festivities gay Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager will officiate a wedding at the Cocktail Wedding event. Two lucky couples won an all-expense paid wedding and Pridegoers are welcome to celebrate with the couples, who will be revealed at the event. The ceremony begins at 6:30 p.m., the reception begins at 7:30 at the GlassHouse, 2 South Market Street. Tickets are $20 per person. To RSVP, visit http://www.thecocktailwedding.eventbrite.com.

Campbell is also excited about new sponsor Delta Airlines, as well as other corporate sponsors, including Bank of America.

"It's important for companies like Bank of America to publicly and proactively support Pride celebrations in local communities as yet another way to promote acceptance, inclusion and diversity," Josh Russell, Silicon Valley market manager at Bank of America, said in an email to the B.A.R. "Through inclusive workplace policies, support of LGBT resources, and a strong ally program internally, we can help our employees feel confident in bringing their whole selves to work. It's a win-win for our colleagues and customers."

Campbell told the B.A.R. that the festival and parade's budget hasn't changed from last year, which was $152,000, but last week the board was finalizing the figures. Producing the parade only cost an additional $8,000, last year. The total cost for the parade and festival last year was estimated to be $168,000. However, Campbell never actually confirmed the numbers after promising to do so following an August 13 board meeting. He didn't respond to the B.A.R. 's multiple attempts to confirm this year's production budget.

During a phone interview, Campbell said that the board has remained stable and only added one new member, Robert Peabody, who is the chief financial officer, during the past year. Board members continue to search for women and transgender individuals to join the board, said Campbell. Attracting volunteers from these segments of the South Bay's LGBT community continues to be a challenge for the organization.

However, the Pride event that celebrates being in the heart of innovation and technology is testing out new ways for community engagement. The board has recently started using Google Hangouts to allow community members to participate in the organization's meetings, Campbell said. Individuals interested in participating should send an email to [email protected] to receive an invitation to the Google Hangouts.

To purchase festival tickets, visit http://www.svpride.com/festival-tickets. For more information, visit http://www.svpride.com