By Lexi McFarlane, Times Chronicle
A major returning Pride event will be taking place in Osoyoos in early-September.
The fourth annual Pride Arts Festival will be taking place on Saturday, September 6 at Gyro Beach Park. Primarily organized by SOS Pride, this day-long festival stands out as a celebration of Pride that takes place later on in the year than most events do. The reason, according to SOS Pride artist coordinator Keisha McLean, is “twofold”.
“The first big grant we received to even think about this project was from the Town of Osoyoos,” McLean says, “and they offered a shoulder-season grant. Meaning, it has to be a festival either in Fall or in Spring.”
Whereas a number of events will take place during what’s widely accepted as “Pride Month” in June, the Pride Arts Festival’s grant funding doesn’t allow for it to take place in that month. But it plays into the secondary reasoning, which is that SOS Pride is perfectly happy with the September slot.
“SOS Pride is one of the primary sponsors as well… and [we] host quite a few Pride events in June, and in the Summer,” McLean notes. “So really, this is a great opportunity for us to have a specialized event, when it’s not competing with other events that the organization is putting on.”
As such, the Pride Arts Festival seeks to remind that Pride, for members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, is something that isn’t limited by a specific day or month.
“Removing a specific date from that is helpful, because this is something that we live with, every day of every year, not just in June.”
This year’s Festival will feature a beer and wine garden, along with an Artisan Garden. McLean says organizers are also looking into activating concession stands or food trucks for the day’s festivities. The activities will be kicked off by a Pride March, starting at 11a.m.
A major selling point for the Pride Arts Festival, of course, is the wide array of artists and performers that will feature at this event. Organizers ensure that the process to be a performer at Pride Arts is a much less complicated one than it can be for some other events.
“The entertainment is top-tier,” McLean touts. “We really try to have a low-barrier approach to our application process, so that we’re getting folks who may not have a whole artist profile, but they’re still phenomenal musicians, dancers, spoken-word artists, whatever it [may be].
“We really try . . . to amplify creatives who are within our community, within the Black Indigenous & People of Colour community, really demonstrating that there’s a wide range of performing artists who are extremely talented, who may be otherwise underrepresented.”
The performers also aren’t just limited to Osoyoos, or the British Columbia Interior. The Pride Arts Festival reaches well beyond the regional boundaries.
“We have people coming in from the Vancouver area, who have applied to be part of the festival and showcase their talent,” McLean explains. “So we get a really wide range of entertainment, from all over BC.
After the day’s festivities, the evening will feature an after-party at the Owl Pub. This is a feature that’s new to this year’s edition of the Pride Arts Festival.
Above anything else, McLean reminds people that Pride is more than just a celebration.
“We wanted to be clear in our messaging – this is a true celebration, and it’s also a protest- really honouring the lineage of Pride movements in North America.”
Sponsors of this event, in addition to SOS Pride, include Pride Canada, Richter Pass, Valley First, Watermark Beach Resort, Walnut Beach Resort, Munday Media, Penticton & District Community Arts Council and the Times Chronicle.
