Building Community with Pikeville Pride | Main Street America
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A group of people watching a drag performance at a pride event

Attendees enjoy a drag performance at Pikeville Pride 2023. © Pikeville Pride

Do you remember the first time you felt truly accepted? What did that mean to you? What did you have to do to find that acceptance? These questions are why we created Pikeville Pride. Through our annual Pride Month event, we work alongside Pikeville Main Street to create a welcoming, accepting community in rural Eastern Kentucky.

Y’all Means All

Pikeville is a beautiful town nestled in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky. We make sure our neighbors are warm and safe when it storms and give them extra vegetables from the garden. Our rural community is surrounded by mountains that are tall enough to touch clouds and snaked by some of the best white-water rapids in the world. 

In 2017, a group of neo-Nazis planned a rally in downtown Pikeville. Using the name ​“Traditionalist Worker Party” and symbols that evoked memories of coal mining, they hoped to recruit the stereotypical downtrodden and out-of-work coal miner to their white supremacist and anti-LGBTQ+ cause. They were organized by the same group of people that had previously rallied in Charlottesville, Virginia, resulting in the death of Heather Hayer and injuries to 35 others. In response, the Pikeville community made it clear they did not accept these hateful groups. We knew we needed to make it clear that our community was welcoming and inclusive.

As part of this goal, we decided to create Pikeville Pride. The members of Pikeville Pride come from all walks of life, but we have one thing in common: we want to create the LGBTQ+ community that we needed when we were younger. We want younger generations to grow up knowing it’s okay to be queer and that hatred is not accepted in our community.

Two people wearing Pikeville Pride shirts selling merchandise at a booth during the pride event

Pikeville Pride booth selling Pride merchandise. © Pikeville Pride

Growing Pikeville Pride

In 2018, we hosted our first Pikeville Pride event in Pikeville City Park. The event included vendors, nonprofit resources, drag shows, art, and live music. That year, around 200 attendees joined us to celebrate love and acceptance. The event continued to grow in 2019, doubling guest attendance and offering more vendors and entertainment. The COVID-19 pandemic prevented any in-person events in 2020 and 2021, so Pikeville Pride focused on maintaining a social media presence, providing mutual aid, and conducting fundraising efforts. We returned to an in-person event in 2022 and saw more growth: attendance nearly doubled from the last event! This incredible growth also meant that we were running out of room for vendors and activities in our current venue space. That’s when we realized we needed help. We reached out to Pikeville Main Street Program and began a partnership with them.

Pride on Main Street

In 2023, Pikeville Pride moved to Main Street. The same day, Pikeville Main Street hosted Hippie Fest, an event that focused on peace and love. This ended up being an awesome coincidence, as guests were able to easily attend both events and spend a full day enjoying our downtown community. Over 2,000 people attended Hippie Fest and Pride, making this one of the largest events our Main Street has ever seen. Between the two events, we had nearly 80 vendors, music, art, drag performances, and most importantly, neighbors showing up in support of one another. One of the most beautiful parts of the day was the diversity of the crowd — young, old, many different ethnicities, all genders, all orientations. 

We were excited to grow our Main Street connection when we were invited, along with Pikeville Main Street, to speak at the 2024 Main Street Now Conference. At the conference, we highlighted the amazing collaboration between Pikeville Main Street and Pikeville Pride and explained how we are committed to creating inclusive, safe communities in the mountains. Our relationship with Pikeville Main Street has been such a wonderful partnership because we have the same goals in mind — we want to create a vibrant, thriving community that welcomes everyone.

Staff from Pikeville Pride and Pikeville Main Street pose for a photo after presenting their conference session

Pikeville Pride and Pikeville Main Street at the 2024 Main Street Now Conference. © Pikeville Pride

Bringing Pride to Your Community

Are you interested in organizing a Pride event in your community, or bringing new energy to an existing celebration? Here are some strategies that we used to bring Pikeville Pride to life:

Getting the Word Out

We have used television, radio, newspapers, and social media platforms to advertise our event. We find that using a mixture of traditional methods, as well as digital ones, helps expand our reach and invite folks from many facets of our community.

Finding Vendors

We utilize our existing platforms and contact lists to book vendors. We put out calls for vendors on our social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok), encouraging anyone who is interested to fill out an application online. Pikeville Main Street has also helped us tremendously by sharing their vendor list with our organization, allowing us to reach out to vendors from various backgrounds to invite them to apply to our event. 

Encountering Pushback

Since our first Pride event in 2018, we have received pushback from community members and protesters have appeared at our events. We coordinate with local and state law enforcement to ensure the safety of our attendees, vendors, and team, as well as fulfilling our duty to respect the rights of those protesting. It’s a fine line to walk, and one that is difficult to navigate, but we have been fortunate to overcome this pushback as our event continues to grow in numbers and representation. 

Making it Work on a Budget

At our first event, we saw over 500 attendees and only spent $800. It doesn’t take a lot of financial backing to produce an event that will bring a community together and set the tone for the future. We formed a dedicated group of volunteers that were willing to do the heavy lifting, like researching city ordinances and event guidelines. 

We are so proud that Pikeville Pride has grown into a place to celebrate LGBTQ+ folks, build community, find resources, and show that rural towns can be for everyone. Whether you dream of starting a Pride event in your community or growing existing celebrations, we hope that our story offers inspiration and advice. And remember that you’re creating something more than just an event — you’re creating a movement. Happy Pride!

Redevelopment Resources, a Main Street America Allied Member, is this quarter’s Main Spotlight advertiser. For more information about the services they provide to Main Street organizations, click here >

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