Pocono Pride Festival comes to Courthouse Square in Stroudsburg Sunday

The Pocono Pride Festival returns this Sunday for its biggest year yet.

The celebration and recognition of the LGBTQ+ community in the Poconos has come a long way since 2019, when flags were put up in downtown Stroudsburg but no event was held.

Now, the event has expanded from Courthouse Square and will include vendors down 7th Street and onto Main Street, said Erik Diemer, one of the Pocono Pride founders and organizers. (Parking on the north side of the 600 and 700 blocks of Main Street will be removed, but the street will not be closed.)

Drag queens and bands will take the stage, while outreach and resource groups will have booths. Food trucks will be available, along with beer from ShawneeCraft and slushies from Silverback Distillery.

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“Come on out and show your true colors,” Diemer said. “We’re real happy to have an accepting community that allows us to have these events without problems.”

The main festival takes place from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.

“I think it’s important that we have these conversations, and I’m very grateful that Pennsylvania’s a state that’s not actively trying to silence or prevent these people from living life,” Diemer said.

That’s not the case everywhere: By the end of March, more than 650 anti-LGBTQ bills had been introduced across 46 state legislatures, according to a report by the Movement Advancement Project.

More:'War' on LGBTQ existence: 8 ways the record onslaught of 650 bills targets the community

Related:Pride month arrives as wave of anti-LGBTQ bills make many states less equitable

“It is important to remember that the first Pride was a riot, and that’s where this all begins. There still are challenges that we face,” Diemer said, but society is moving forward on LGBTQ issues even if it doesn’t always feel that way.

People are comfortable with openly expressing themselves “more now than ever,” he said. Compared to New York City or Philadelphia, that’s a relatively recent development for the Poconos, even though Rainbow Mountain Resort has operated here for decades. Diemer recalled receiving handwritten letters from older residents of the Poconos who never expected to see Pride flags go up.

“It’s fun seeing all the generations of people, and it is also important to recognize that there’s a generation of people who aren’t at Pride,” he said, referencing the devastation of the AIDs epidemic.

“When you see some old-timers out at Pride, you might see one, but there’s really five more who just didn’t survive,” Diemer said. “So there’s definitely gravity to it.”

Additional events

Christ Episcopal Church (205 N. 7th St., Stroudsburg) will hold a Pride Mass at 5 p.m. Saturday.

At 8 p.m. Saturday, drag queens take the stage at the Sherman Showcase (522 Main St., Stroudsburg) for the Love Is Love Pride Drag Celebration.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show plays at 10 p.m. Saturday with a live cast at Pocono Cinema and Cultural Center (88 S. Courtland St., East Stroudsburg). Costumes are encouraged.