Buy an Aurora Pride parade T-Shirt for $15

Thank you to our wonderful friends at The Yetee for our wonderful Aurora Pride Parade 2018 t-shirts!

If you are interested in getting an Aurora Pride shirt, we will be selling them at the Pride Parade for $15.

Want a shirt before the Parade? Visit our table at First Fridays in Downtown Aurora on Friday, May 4th and Friday, June 1st!

In addition, The Yetee generously donated t-shirts to all of our volunteers who will be helping out on the day of Aurora's Inaugural Pride Parade!

A huge thank you to The Yetee team!

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Scott Mackay and Danielle Tufano, from 95.9 The River, to MC Aurora's Inaugural Pride Parade

We are honored to announce Scott Mackay and Danielle Tufano, weekday morning show hosts from 95.9 The River, will officially be MCing Aurora’s Inaugural Pride Parade!

Not only are we excited to have the amazing support from the Mackay in the Morning with Danielle Tufano show, but Danielle has also been an Aurora resident for more than 20 years!

Mayor Irvin determined to take Aurora to the mountain top in State of the City

...

The latter two announcements, which came as a surprise to many aldermen, got a nice round of applause — but no bigger than the one Irvin received when he reminded the audience this year Aurora would hold its first pride parade.

"Controversial, I know," Irvin said, invoking his hero again. "In keeping with the words of Dr. King, there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe nor popular nor politically correct. But he must take it because conscience tells him it is the right thing to do."

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Become a Sponsor Today!

As a sponsor, your, your family's, or your company name will be included on all printed parade communications including the website and app.

Below are the three sponsorship levels which qualify you for inclusion in printed materials as well as additional exposure based on your donation level:
$500 - Platinum level
$300 - Silver level
$150 - Bronze level

If you are interested in donating to or sponsoring Aurora Pride Parade 2018, please click here!

If you'd prefer a more traditional form of donation, you can mail a check or money order to our physical address at: 
Indivisible Aurora
3015 East New York St
Suite A2-273
Aurora, IL 60504

The deadline for all sponsorships is May 1, 2018.
 

We truly appreciate all of the donations, efforts, and support from the community to make this parade become a reality!

See our fabulous sponsors, here!

Aurora approves city's first gay pride parade

Illinois' second-largest city will soon have its first gay pride parade.

The Aurora Pride Parade is set to step off at 1 p.m. Sunday, June 17, bringing an event celebrating the LGBTQ community to a city that loves to promote its diversity.

Organizers with the progressive group Indivisible Aurora said the parade will be "G-rated" and "family-friendly" as it affirms the identity of those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning.

For people who are afraid to acknowledge their true identity, Chuck Adams, founder and executive director of Indivisible Aurora, said the parade will be more than a procession of floats.

"This parade is bigger than that," Adams said Tuesday before an Aurora City Council committee decided the fate of the parade. "It's about ensuring that every member of the LGBTQ community knows they are an important member of this community."

The Government Operations committee, which oversees parade permits, voted 2-0 in favor of allowing the parade. Alderman Scheketa Hart-Burns, chairwoman of the committee, abstained.

Hart-Burns said parade organizers did not provide enough information to the committee about the logistics, safety and financing of their plans, and she asked for the full council to vote on whether to allow the parade. But city procedure specifies that the Government Operations committee makes the final determination on parade permits.

So when Aldermen Richard Mervine and Judd Lofchie voted in favor of allowing the event, many members among a crowd of 150 cheered and Indivisible Aurora leaders knew they had the green light.

"Love here, the day before Valentine's Day, is greater than any kind of fear or hate that can come," said Penelope Garcia, a transgender Aurora resident.

Questions about the parade came from members of some Aurora faith groups and individual residents, who worried a pride parade might bring nudity or unlawful behavior. Four people spoke against the parade and 10 in favor before the committee voted.

"Aurora has been a family town and this is not a family parade," Tim Padilla of Aurora said. "We do not have a stripper parade."

Adams said organizers do not know the exact content of the parade because they have not yet reached out to groups about making floats.

But he said the parade aims to be a positive event suitable for families. He said Indivisible Aurora will cover the full cost, which he estimates at between $5,000 and $6,000, and the group raised half of the funds within six weeks.

The timing of the parade, which falls on Father's Day, also drew some questions.

But Gina Moga, special events manager, said the city provided that date to avoid conflicts with other activities, such as shows at the Paramount Theatre and a fundraiser at RiverEdge Park. She said the city hosts parades only on Sundays, so as not to disrupt downtown business, and when Indivisible Aurora asked for a date in June to coincide with Gay Pride Month, only the 17th was available.

Now Moga said the city will work with Indivisible Aurora to hire police to provide safety during the event at the group's cost. With approval granted, planning and fundraising for the parade is set to continue.

"I commend the committee for doing the right thing," Mayor Richard Irvin said, "by approving Aurora's first gay pride parade."

Aurora Pride Parade supporters say it's about time the city accepted the LGBT community

Howard West came to Aurora City Hall a few days ago to say he was disappointed.

It's a forum the lifelong Auroran has rarely if ever used, but he came this time to share his disappointment — not in the fact that an organization had applied for an LGBT pride parade in the city, or that members of the Government Operations Committee eventually approved the permit.

The father of a transgender child was just upset that it was such a big deal.

"I grew up in Aurora, and I've seen it come to prominence as the second-largest city in the state," West said. "I would think a city of that caliber shouldn't require controversy over this."

He suggested that if other organizations came to ask about a parade, "you'd all be falling over yourselves" to make it happen.

"I don't understand why it's taken this much effort," he said.

His wife, Margaret, agreed, saying it was time the city recognized this part of its community.

"It was hard to raise a child who was transgender," she said. "But it's much harder to be a transgender child."

The Wests were likely two of a number of people who made their way to City Hall for the first time, or who had maybe not been there for a while, to have their voices heard about the Pride Parade , which will be held in June.

Penelope Garcia identified herself as a "transgender American," and said she had faith that Aurora would hold a parade of celebration, in keeping with the values of the city.

"My hope is we are a community accepting of everyone," she said.

Joanna Kenyon said she is the parent of a transgender child, a son, who came out two years ago. She said Aurora needs to be "willing to take a stand against the hatred and bigotry" she has seen her son endure.

"We need to show that we are accepting of them, that they're valued and supported," she said.

Chuck Adams, executive director of Indivisible Aurora, the organization that applied for the parade permit, said that value and support is an important thing to show, for a tangible reason. He quoted the Centers for Disease Control saying that some 40 percent of people identifying themselves as being in the LGBT community have seriously considered suicide. Some 25 percent have actually attempted it, he added.

It is about potentially saving lives. It's so that every member of the LGBT community knows they are a member of this community.— Chuck Adams, executive director of Indivisible Aurora

For that reason, he said the parade "is bigger than" the concern about the date for it and who will pay for it.

"It is about potentially saving lives," he said. "It's so that every member of the LGBT community knows they are a member of this community."

Nonetheless, Adams did address some of the nuts and bolts concerns people had. He said Indivisible Aurora has already raised about half of the estimated $5,000 to $6,000 it would take to stage the parade. He said fundraising stopped when the permit was delayed, but that with the permit in hand, "I have no concerns about the money at all."

He also said that Indivisible Aurora did not provide details about the content of the different floats and units because they have not gone out and solicited the floats, bands and other content for the parade. He repeated what he and Gwyn Ciesla, who brought the permit application to City Hall, have said — that the floats would be "g-rated" and family friendly.

"Many of us also have kids here," he said.

The lack of detail about the content of the parade is what upset some people who questioned whether or not the city should allow the permit.

In its vote, the Government Operations Committee approved the permit 2-0, with Ald. Scheketa Hart-Burns, 7th Ward, who is chairman of the committee, declining to vote on the matter.

She said she is not against a parade on its face, but that all people wanted "was an impact study." At one point, she said because this is a new event, the city needed more information than usual. At that point in the meeting, someone said, "It's a parade!"

"It is a parade," Hart-Burns said. "It's a new parade."

Gina Moga, Special Events director for the city, said it is usual for the city to get more information after a parade permit is approved. She pointed out that the city is unsure yet how many police to hire for the event, or what it would cost, because they usually don't start that process until after a permit is approved and the event is closer.

She also pointed out that it was the city that chose the June 17 date, which is Father's Day, not the parade organizers. They simply asked that the parade be in June, which is Pride Month, and that it not be June 24, because that is the date of the Chicago Pride Parade.

The city only does parades on Sundays because it is too disruptive downtown otherwise, and there already were downtown events on the first two Sundays in June.

None of that concerned Teresa Millies, who came to the meeting with her husband and two young kids. The 36-year-old said she grew up in Aurora, is a straight housewife, and is "all for this parade."

"Because my kids are (young) and I don't know what they are yet," she said.

Aurora City Council committee greenlights city's 1st Pride Parade

Aurora City Council committee greenlights city's 1st Pride Parade
by Carrie Maxwell, Windy City Times
2018-02-14

 


Aurora's City Council Government Operations Committee approved, by a vote of 2 to 0, Indivisible Aurora's permit request to hold the city's first Pride Parade on June 17 at 1 p.m.

The vote took place Feb. 13 at Aurora City Hall amidst a packed house of more than 100 people, a majority of them LGBTQ supporters, after a three-month delay due to local religious leaders concerns.

Aldermen Rick Mervine and Judd Lofchie voted in favor of the measure while Committee Chair and Alderman Scheketa Hart-Burns did not vote or voice her abstention.

Newly elected African-American Mayor Richard Irvin urged the committee to approve the parade ahead of the vote.

The parade was spearheaded by Indivisible Aurora founder and Executive Director Chuck Adams, who also spoke during the meeting.

Prior to the vote, Hart-Burns noted her objection to the date of the parade ( Father's Day ), what transpired in the intervening months between parade organizers and committee members, and religious leaders request for an impact study to be done before the committee voted. During her remarks, Hart-Burns appeared to be hostile to having the parade and repeated that she still did not have the answers she needed on this issue.

Aurora Community Relations and Public Information Special Events Manager Gina Moga explained the approval process for new events. Moga noted June 17 was the only open Sunday on the city's event calendar during pride month.

Both proponents and opponents of the parade made statements prior to the vote.

Chuck Adams ( who also noted his preferred pronouns ) noted the suicide statistics among LGBTQ youth and said the parade has the potential to save lives.

"It is about ensuring that every member of the LGBTQ community knows they are an important part of the fabric of this community," said Adams. "It is about affirming a population that has been beaten, shamed, ostracized and told to stay in the closet. Today we kick that closet door wide open in Aurora."

Adams' remarks drew applause from the crowd.

Aurora resident and New England Congregational Church Rev. Gary McCann noted his church is LGBTQ affirming and said having a Pride Parade in the city is the right thing to do.

The mother of a transgender son and longtime Aurora resident, Joanne Kenyon, asked the committee to approve the parade while HRC Chicago Steering Committee member Penelope Garcia ( who identifies as transgender ) said this vote goes beyond a parade.

Aurora residents Margaret and Howard West, parents of a transgender lesbian daughter, also voiced their support for the parade. Both noted that the vote should note have required this much controversy and LGBTQ people pay taxes and vote and they should be afforded the same rights as everyone else.

UCC minister Rev. Karon Van Gelder noted that it was easier to get Detroit's Pride Parade approved 40 years ago while Open Door Clinic Aurora's Sally Bice spoke about the discrimination that her patients face and how much this parade would mean to them.

Aurora Human Relations Commission Vice-Chair William Small read the city ordinance that includes an LGBTQ non-discrimination clause and urged the committee to approve the permit.

Among the parade opponents were speakers Marjorie Logman, Tim Padilla and A Future and A Hope Foundation Executive Director Dan Hass.

Logman brought up the controversy surrounding last year's Toronto Pride Parade, the "problems" she believes the parade might bring to the city and the parade date to explain why she objects to the parade.

Padilla noted that he has stood with the Chicago Pride Parade opponents at the end of the parade route in the past.

"Aurora has been a family town and the Pride Parade is not a family event," said Padilla. "Seeing naked people on a float gyrating is not what people need to see in Aurora. Keep it in Chicago."

Following the vote, cheers erupted from the audience.

"The vote is a victory for all of Aurora, not just Indivisible Aurora or the LGBTQ community," said Chuck Adams. "This is a move to a more inclusive city that Mayor Richard Irvin has made a priority."

Pride Parade Planning Co-Chair Kimberly Adams ( married to Chuck Adams ) explained that Indivisible Aurora will be paying for the entire cost of the parade and they have already raised half of the money. She said people will now be able to apply to march in the parade and noted the application will be made available in the coming days.

"We are going to work closely with the city to have vendors present, advertise so Aurora businesses will be flooded with customers and are hoping to have a wide variety of parade participants from across the city," said Kimberly Adams. "We are excited that we get to move forward after tonight's vote."

As attendees were leaving the building, a few members of the anti-LGBTQ group Love Kills Pride were handing out palm cards.

A number of parade supporters celebrated their victory at the nearby Ballydoyle Irish Pub.

This vote came on the heels of a letter written by ACLU of Illinois Senior Staff Attorney Rebecca Glenberg to City of Aurora Corporation Counsel Richard Veenstra stating that the reasons behind the objections to the parade were a violation of the first amendment. A written statement also came from by Equality Illinois CEO Brian C Johnson urging the committee to stop delaying the vote and approve the permit.

See WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/INDIVISIBLEAURORA/ and TWITTER.COM/INDIVISIBLEIL11 for more information and to make a donation, visit WWW.GOFUNDME.COM/AURORAPRIDE2018 .

Pride Parade Gets OK In Aurora, Over Some Objections

(WBBM Newsradio) — An Aurora City Council committee has given final approval to a Pride Parade in the western suburb on Father’s Day, June 17.

Aurora becomes the first city outside of Chicago to host such a parade in the metropolitan area.

Several speakers, including Ruby Raefort, expressed concerns about a 60-float parade that could be anything but family friendly, saying: “There’s no benefit in celebrating sexual preferences.”

Indivisible Aurora sought the permit. The organization’s chair, Chuck Adams, called the vote “a win for all of Aurora.”

The vote by the three-member committee Tuesday was 2-0.

The committee chair, Ald. Scheketa Hart-Burns, said she lacked the information to vote, and accused city personnel of going around her.

A couple of speakers expressed disappointment that the parade will occur on Father’s Day, a week before the Chicago parade,  City staff said they chose the date because of conflicts with local events the two previous weekends and the Chicago parade the week after.

Indivisible Aurora will pay policing costs. Adams said the group is $2,500 from its goal.

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