The 2016 Pride in the Street headliners have been announced, and they are a stark contrast from last year’s Iggy Azalea debacle. Azalea had used what some consider racist and homophobic language on social media in the past, and protest erupted over the 2015 announcement that she would be headlining Pittsburgh largest LGBT pride event.
While on the surface, the controversy seemed to be about Azalea’s selection, the issues went deeper. (Azalea dropped out because of the protests and was eventually replaced by Nick Jonas.) Many local LGBT groups criticized the Delta Foundation, Pride’s organizers, for operating on behalf of one segment of the community — namely white, gay males — and not including all of the individuals who make up the community.
This year Kesha and African-American rapper Angel Haze were selected. According to a press release from Delta, “Kesha has used her music to bring attention to the bullying and harassment that many LGBT people continue to face.” The release also states that Kesha has recently been awarded the Visibility Award from the Human Rights Campaign, which is given to high profile individuals who use their platform to advance and advocate for the LGBT movement.
“Kesha has used her influence and international platform to bring attention to the challenges faced by women and the LGBT community,” said Delta president Gary Van Horn in the press release. “We are thrilled to bring her to Pride in the Street this year, and we know that Pittsburgh’s LGBT community and allies will be excited to welcome her.”
Haze, who identifies as pansexual and agender (having no gender) has also recently been recognized by an LGBT organization when they were nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for their record “Dirty Gold.” (GLAAD, which stands for Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, is an LGBT rights group focused on the media.)
The group that started the protests against Delta last summer, Roots Pride, is not very impressed with this year’s selection. Joy KMT is one of the founders of Roots Pride, and she says that while she has noticed a slight effort on Delta’s part to shift their culture, having Kesha and Angel Haze does not solve the issues that were raised last year.
KMT says that Roots Pride and others in the community have yet to see Delta increase their transparency and focus on the marginalized in the community, like homeless queer youths.
“There are people who care about the marginalized people, and Delta is not investing in those who can help those people,” says KMT. She would like to see Delta become more involved in the community and contribute more of its powerful fundraising abilities towards community causes and events, not just “throw parties.”
“If you are going to take on the title of largest LGBT organization, you have to serve the community.”
Michael David Battle, also a founder of Roots Pride, says the organization is planning to hold an alternative pride festival again this year, but they are still finalizing plans.
He says the festival is not meant to attack Delta, but is to continue to create safe spaces for everyone to celebrate Pride.
“We want to bring a collective effort and all work together,” says Battle.
According to Delta’s Facebook page, the foundation has raised more than $2,000 in the four hours following the Kesha announcement for the Center for Victims, an East Liberty nonprofit that provides support for trauma victims.
The Delta Foundation did not return calls seeking additional information. We will update if they do.
Editor’s note: The original post improperly identified Angel Haze using the singular pronoun “her” and has been updated to use the gender-neutral pronoun “they,” since Haze identifies as agender.
This article appears in Mar 23-29, 2016.
my buds, if you’re gonna note that the artist identifies as agender, you may as well go that extra mile and look up their preferred pronouns. it seems Haze’s are they/them, not she/her
thanks for covering this story. since you went to the trouble of updating your article to reflect Angel Haze’s pronoun, there’s one more pronoun to correct in the same sentence: ‘they were nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for her record “Dirty Gold.”’
This “Roots Pride” movement exists as a result of Tumblr generation social justice warriors run amok. A group of marginalized individuals seeking further marginalization pushing against the status-quo simply because they can — or (more likely) because it gives them something to complain about. #triggerwarning
As a member of the LGBTQ…AAIXYZPVFG community, I think the “Roots Pride” movement is preposterous. A group of radical fringe community members whom wish to stir the pot because their feelings are hurt. But, I must ask why? Why are your feelings hurt? Name an occasion where a member of the trans-person of color, gender non-conforming, bluebird-kin, agender members of our community have been barred entrance from a Delta Foundation event? Name an occasion where they actively silenced your voice or ignored your requests. Better yet, name an occasion where those community members actively attended Delta’s open to the public town hall meetings to voice your opinions proactively. Name an occasion where you held letter writing campaigns requesting this or that form of support from the Foundation. Name an occasion where you phoned Delta (not to pitch a fit about Iggy effing Azalea), but to participate as an active member of your LGBT…QQAAITDHFSK community in a manner in which you could affect positive change. You only scream and yell when you’re feeling “oppressed”; an oppression which is purely a manifestation of your mind and your movement.
You’re of an entitled generation of children whom expect the world to bow down before you. Goddammit, if Pride in the Streets isn’t headlined by a gender non-conforming trans-person of color every single year, then Delta is bad. If 100% of Delta’s events aren’t specifically to benefit gender non-specific trans-persons of color then they are purposefully exclusionary.
Why not consider that you marginalize yourselves. Why not consider that instead of participating in the greater community, and instead, creating communities of your own, your visibility within the greater community drops significantly. By not being visible at Pittsburgh Pride, you further ostracize yourselves. You silence your own voices and you fail to further your own cause. No one dis-invited you to Pride. No one actively excludes your fringe community no matter how marginalized you’ve made yourselves to become. Join the celebration of Pride. Rather than scream and shout and protest — become an active participant and affect positive change and awareness within your own community. Or are you waiting for an invitation to arrive to you on a golden platter delivered by Laverne effing Cox herself? Or is she too conformist for you?
The Delta Foundation of Pittsburgh does help smaller organizations. Their members DO donate to necessary organizations like the GLCC. Could they do more, sure, but so could the ENTIRE community. Many more of us could give our time and monies to the GLCC, Persad, Dreams of Hope, Garden of Peace, PFLAG, and others. More of us COULD volunteer for Gay4Good (you probably dislike them because of that cis, gay, white, male thing). More of us COULD donate winter clothes and tampons for queer homeless youth.
You complain about privilege and cis-gender white men, but you forget that within the trans-person of color community, Mr. Battle is about as privileged as they come. He may even be better off than many of those cis-gender white gay men you all dislike so much.
Here’s the deal: “Roots Pride” will never take off for anyone other than those who are exactly like you. Delta’s Pride welcomes people from all walks of life: gay, straight, bi, cis, trans, black, white, gender conforming, gender non-conforming, people in rainbow tutus with cat tails, folks with jeans and t-shirts, and everyone in between… or on the fringe. Delta’s Pride WELCOMES you. “Roots Pride” will never draw tens of thousands of supporters. “Roots Pride” will never bring money into the City of Pittsburgh and the LGBT… WLSKDGKL community you claim to serve. “Roots Pride” is a thorn in the thumb of Pittsburgh’s gay community. You serve no purpose but to further marginalize yourselves and create a divide and a tension within the community.
The Delta Foundation and its members does more than you know for this Pittsburgh community. Kesha and Angel Haze are phenomenal choices for Pride and I can’t wait to dance on a glitter covered Liberty avenue with a thousand other members of my community. I hope you’ll be there too!
At best it is unethical to charge a ticket starting at $33.00 to attend the Pride in the Street concert on a public street. Excluding the citizenry from their own street unless they pay a private non-profit is simply wrong and unfair. Pay to play or you can not be on a tax payer funded public street. I sign my name to every statement I believe in. Shawn Foyle
Shawn Foyle how is this any different than the Marathon or any other run in Pittsburgh? Or how about the Great Race? You have to pay to be in the marathon or the Great Race? Should they not be allowed to use 26.2 miles of public streets since they charge for every participant?
My understanding that this event is a fundraiser to keep the other events that Pride does free.
What exactly is your issue with them? Do you hate the GLBTQ community?
Love what you think tiptoe! We share the same feelings about this group! They are nothing but trouble! I heard about what they did to people last year if they didn’t think like them!