PRIDE
Controversy Brews Over Representation at Pride
Tensions rise as meeting between Heritage of Pride and STARR gets scrapped
BY TAT BELLAMY-WALKER
After a group of trans
leaders called on Heritage
of Pride (HOP) to
hand over control of
New York City’s Pride festivities to
Black and Brown transgender individuals,
a planned meeting between
the two sides was cancelled
— and a bitter controversy fl ared
up.
Citing a “history of antagonistic
behavior,” HOP, which organizes
New York City’s annual Pride
march and related events, nixed a
meeting with STARR director Mariah
Lopez and accused her of using
hostile language towards HOP
members ahead of their planned
discussion regarding representation
at Pride.
“NYC Pride is always willing to
work in partnership with any organization
that is collaborating in
good faith,” HOP said in a letter to
STARR, which was also sent to
Gay City News. “Over the course of
the past few weeks, NYC Pride and
STARR have engaged in discussions
about the logistical details
and content of our meeting. Given
how this process has played out,
we no longer believe this meeting
would be appropriate or productive.”
STARR’s original letter was sent
on January 26 to the co-chairs of
HOP and InterPride as well as Mayor
Bill de Blasio and out gay Speaker
Corey Johnson. Along with Lopez,
it was also signed by activist Cecilia
Gentili; City Council candidate
Elisa Crespo of the Bronx; New
York Transgender Advocacy Group
founder and executive director Kiara
St. James; Transgender Strategy
Center deputy director Aryah
Lester; LGBT Community Center of
New Orleans president Syria Jackson
Synclaire; Daronesia Duncan
Boyd, the executive director of the
Trans United Fund; Al Michaels, a
relative of Marsha P. Johnson; and
Marissa Miller, a national community
organizer.
“We the undersigned call on InterPride,
Heritage of Pride, and the
City of New York to turn over the
Trans leaders sent a letter to Heritage of Pride demanding swift changes in the leadership structure at New York City Pride festivities.
responsibilities of producing and
coordinating the annual NYC pride
festivities, to Queer Black, Brown,
and Indigenous people of color,” the
letter noted. The letter also raised
concerns that Pride has become
too commercialized, though these
advocates are not calling to eliminate
corporate ties to the events.
Instead, the letter requested partnerships
with Black and Brown
corporate entities at the festivities.
However, discussions on those
initiatives stalled before they could
even begin.
“While we have extended every
effort and attempt to collaborate,
Mariah Lopez’s history of antagonistic
behavior toward this organization
and its staff has become an
obstacle to effective and safe communication,”
HOP added. “There
have been repeated incidents of
Mariah using incendiary language
towards individuals, over email
and in person. Much of the aggressive
tone and language Mariah
has used towards HOP over the
years have continued in many of
the emails we’ve received from her
in the past few weeks. We are not
willing to subject our staff, board,
or volunteers to treatment that
demeans, dismisses, or threatens
them.”
The original letter also demanded
Black and Brown-led festivities
and Black and Brown performers
and talent. Last year, Tangina
Stone, a Black lesbian, sang the
national anthem for Heritage of
Pride’s virtual broadcast, and the
grand marshals were the Ali Forney
Center, which relinquished
its role to Black Lives Matter; Victoria
Cruz, a trans woman from
Puerto Rico who worked with the
Anti-Violence Project; Chinese
LGBTQ rights advocate Yanzi
Peng; and Dan Levy of “Schitt’s
Creek.” The grand marshals in
2019 included the Gay Liberation
Front, the Trevor Project, the
cast of “Pose,” UK Black Pride cofounder
Phyllis Akua Opoku-Gyimah,
or Lady Phyll; and Monica
Helms, who created the Transgender
Pride Flag.
In the email, HOP pointed to
growing disagreements with
STARR and cited issues with selecting
a “neutral moderator” and
developing a plan for the discussion.
HOP alleges that STARR invited
political candidates to join
the meeting, but they declined that
offer due to their non-profi t status.
Furthermore, HOP’s leadership alleges
that those seeking to mediate
the discussion were forced to take
“sides by individuals representing
STARR.”
In response to these allegations,
Lopez accused HOP of being “sexist”
REUTERS/BRENDAN MCDERMID
and gaslighting her requests to
make Pride more inclusive. When
explicitly asked about HOP’s complaints
about her behavior, she argued
that the organization is exaggerating.
“How can emails about a moderator
and an agenda reach a point
where they’re like, ‘you’re antagonizing,'”
she said. “Come on; it’s
insulting.”
When Gay City News repeatedly
asked her to clarify her comments,
she doubled down on her passion
and how it causes her to have
strong reactions.
“I am not perfect, they are not
perfect, and nothing about how this
went down and how we reached
this point has been perfect. We are
human,” she said. “But the larger
principles shine through. Black
and Brown trans people should not
have to go through white people for
power or wealth.”
She added, “We should not have
to go through white cis people for
opportunity. We should not have
to ask as a favor, that a parade
and festivities meant to…honor
our founders’ accomplishments
doesn’t look anything like our
founders.”
Johnson declined comment for
this story and a spokesperson for
Mayor Bill de Blasio did not respond
to a request for comment.
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