Drag will be had and queens will be seen. One superstar drag artist after another took the stage at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood on June 1, kicking off Pride Month. At a moment when one-time allies are running for the exits, Seminole Nation is doubling down on support.
“I can’t tell you how proud we are to continue our support of the LGBTQ community,” Susan Renneisen, VP of Community Affairs and Special Events, told the crowd. “We fully embrace every single person in the world. It is our definite mission.”
The brunch benefited The Pride Center and honored community advocates and allies, including The Our Fund Foundation, which helps fund LGBTQ events and organizations.
Also honored was Nadine Smith, who has dedicated her life to fighting for LGBTQ equality and justice.
“We gather together today to kick off Pride, in the true spirit of defiance that is Pride,” she said. “Right now we need that spirit of defiance and resistance and also this other thing: joy.”
Guest of honor was Ana Navarro, co-host of “The View” and a South Florida native. You could hear her passion as she gave a masterclass in allyship.
“Whether it’s African-Americans, transgender, it doesn’t matter. It’s about making weak people feel strong by making them feel they can stomp out others,” she said in a thinly veiled reference to President Donald Trump and his people. “We need alliances right now. People who are racists and bigots and discriminate, it’s usually not against just one community. We need to lock arms and march together and protest together.”
When it came time to perform, it was one über-talented drag artist after another, including reigning Mizz Out South Florida Velvet Lenore and the first Mizz Out South Florida, Erika Norell.
Fans showered them with tips, which will also be donated to The Pride Center. One of the goals was to break the world record for largest drag brunch. They reached the goal, but Guinness did not send a representative to certify the event.
Credit: Stephen Lang.
