(C) Verite News New Orleans This story was originally published by Verite News New Orleans and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . New Orleans Pride Center reopens with a party [1] ['Josie Abugov', 'More Josie Abugov', 'Verite News'] Date: 2024-04-08 New Orleans welcomed its first LGBTQ+ community center in two years with crawfish, drag performances and a second line last weekend. The New Orleans Pride Center, located at 2762 Orleans Avenue, will offer a directory of resources for queer people in the greater metro area, host social events and provide information for teachers trying to navigate anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. The local human rights and social justice radio station WHIV is also locating its offices at the center, where the two organizations will collaborate to teach radio production to queer youth and amplify LGBTQ+ voices. Kyle Devries, the center’s board president, said at a grand opening on Saturday (April 6) that the new space will allow queer people to find community and access to resources such as shelter and medical care. According to Devries, the LGBTQ+ population in the greater metro area is over 95,000, but queer programming within the city is often geared toward tourists. “To have this for our community — the locals — I think that’s what I’m most excited about with the center,” they said. The New Orleans Pride Center was created out of efforts by residents to save the LGBT Community Center, which shuttered its nearby location on South Broad Street in late 2022 after financial troubles. The center’s grand opening kicked off with a celebration at the Broadside, where people listened to Mia Borders, a Black lesbian singer-songwriter, sing rock and blues tunes. Other performers included the drag and burlesque artist Queen Quan and the founders of the monthly queer variety show Big Gay Baby. Devries also said the center would serve as a safe space for LGBTQ+ people in light of anti-queer bills that have been filed in the Louisiana State Legislature this year. One bill would require public school officials to use the names and pronouns of students indicated on their birth certificates. Another bill would prohibit school employees from being able to discuss gender identity or sexual identity. A third proposal, a so-called “bathroom bill,” would limit transgender people to public school bathrooms designated for their assigned sex at birth. That bill would also affect domestic violence shelters, jails and prisons. The center plans on hosting support groups for queer students and local teachers on ways to support LGBTQ+ youth amid these legislative attempts, Devries said. “The world is at us and we’re being targeted, so we need a space where we can just come together, hold each other and love on each other — just help each other,” said Jasmine Davis, a board member of the center. As a Black trans woman, Davis said she grew up without spaces like the pride center, but its opening gives people the opportunity to work through their trauma. “The value of this is life-changing,” said Davis, now 45. “This space is going to save people’s lives, literally.” Davis also works as a clinical research coordinator for T’Cher NOLA, a group running a multi-year study that aims to make the HIV prevention treatment PrEP accessible for trans women in New Orleans. T’Cher was one of six organizations tabling at the celebration. Staff members with the harm reduction group Below Sea Level Aid, offered free fentanyl tests and emergency contraception, while St. Thomas Community Health Center gave out lube and condoms. Guests could also learn more about the HIV prevention group Avita Pharmacy and the grassroots group New Orleans Advocates for LGBTQ+ Elders. Alex Lopez, who lives a few blocks from the Broadside, attended the celebration on a bit of a whim with their roommate. Both Lopez and their roommate are queer and have been hungering for more fun gay activities, Lopez said. “God, it just feels so nice to be back in a queer space,” they said. “It just feels so relaxing. I just walk around and I see everybody smiling and that makes me happy.” After the second line, the center’s board members gave attendees tours of the new space. Liana Elliott, who co-founded the station with her husband MarkAlain Déry, an infectious disease doctor specializing in HIV treatment, said the plan for WHIV and the Pride Center to cohabitate with the radio station felt like an obvious choice. The missions of both organizations aligned because of their aim of protecting and empowering marginalized and vulnerable communities, Elliott said. Elliott also noted that sharing a location with the radio station can also help protect people’s queer identities. “Having a co-location means going into the building doesn’t mean anything,” she said. “You could be coming in for a show, you could be coming in to access some sources. There’s a little bit of protection.” Ana Zorrilla, a board member of the center who became involved with the organization after her child came out as trans, said the radio programming will help amplify a range of narratives about local queer people. “Those stories are often not heard, unless it is for something awful and bad that’s happened,” Zorrilla said. “So we want to celebrate all the good that is in the community.” Related Republish This Story Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license. [END] --- [1] Url: https://veritenews.org/2024/04/08/new-orleans-pride-center-reopens-with-a-party/ Published and (C) by Verite News New Orleans Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 US. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/veritenews/