I cruised the various food vendors with their usual selection of finger food, brats, hamburgers, pizza, corn on the cob and other various and sundry dishes. Tuns of calories and way too much sugar for this diabetics taste and as usual nothing for vegetarians or health food junkies. A usual sore spot for myself and others, I'm sure.
Because of soaring gas prices and in order to save a trip to Chicago, this was a good time to stock up on new tee shirts, jewelery and other paraphernalia. Unfortunately Milwaukee isn't known for its wide variety of gay goods.
Soon after 1 pm the protesters showed up in force. If you want to count about Ten Neo-Nazis a force to be reckoned with. However (Drum roll please) Bash Back Milwaukee showed up about 30 to 40 strong as did the Police. Riot gear and all. It was a stand off to be sure, one group hurling insults back and forth while the Cops (by my count 16 strong in riot gear between them) facing Bash Back and all but ignoring the small group of Neo-Nazis.
Someone must have been watching over the whole thing because around 2:30 pm it started to rain dispersing onlookers and protesters. About this time I left and soon after the downpour began pretty much ending the festivities for the evening.
Sunday I returned. It was sunny but most of the groups that were in the center area had packed up and most tents were empty. The rest of the event went on as planned. So there you have it. My view of Pridefest. Now the only question is whether they broke even or was it a bust? We shall see.
Stay tuned. As soon as I hear something, I'll post it here.
Below is an email I just received just minutes ago
Many people have expressed concern for PrideFest due to the unprecedented challenges the festival and its patrons faced over the weekend. Both the weather and a small protest drew attention away from the purpose of this event: to celebrate our lives and our community. However, I want to assure you that neither weather nor protesters can or will stop PrideFest and its merry people from celebrating life, love and the history of the LGBT community. While weather and protesters can have an impact on the final results of success, our event is still a success none-the-less. Our crowds were smaller this year than in previous years, but they were a celebratory, hearty bunch. Few people left during Saturday's and Sunday's storms; instead, they stayed together and enjoyed what they could and created an atmosphere of community towards each other by sharing a common experience.
PrideFest's revenues will be down this year from previous years, but because of past successes and sound management, PrideFest will not fall. The strong involvement of the festival's many volunteers, who have worked diligently throughout the year to build financial and operational support, has made PrideFest strong enough to weather the storms.
I must acknowledge all those of the Production Team and Board who work all year long; all those volunteer groups and individuals that came together throughout the weekend; and all the sponsors that came forth and supported PrideFest. You have the thanks of PrideFest, the LGBT community and myself for all you have done to create and maintain this strong and wonderful organization known as PrideFest.
Forward in Pride & Peace,
Scott D. Gunkel
President, PrideFest
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