Councilwoman Jeannine Pearce Seeks City Support for Pride 2018

Second District Councilwoman Jeannine Pearce is asking the Long Beach City Council to support the 35th annual Long Beach Lesbian & Gay Pride Festival and Parade. Her item goes before the council on March 20, 2018, at 5 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at 333 West Ocean Blvd.

The historic item recommends that the council examine ways to reduce city and staffing fees for the event. Vice Mayor Rex Richardson (Ninth District), Councilwoman Suzie Price (Third District) and Councilman Roberto Uranga (Seventh District) are co-authors.

A Councilmember Who Builds Bridges

Pride takes place in the Second District, and Pearce has been a steady partner to our community. Her first agenda item on the council was to permanently raise the Pride flag at City Hall. In 2017 we honored her with the “Whitey Littlefield” Community Bridge Building Award, recognizing her belief that a Long Beach that works for everyone starts with bringing all stakeholders together to find creative solutions.

In its 35th year, Pearce said, Long Beach Pride has become a staple in our community, drawing nearly 80,000 visitors from around the world to a two-day celebration of LGBTQ+ equality and diversity.

Each year, the event brings in over $12.3 million dollars to our local economy and with the city fees increasing over 40% in the past four years, it is in our best interest to examine ways we can support our … community in its time of need.

Councilwoman Jeannine Pearce, Second District

Why It Matters to Our Grants

Giving back has defined Long Beach Pride since the beginning. Raising enough to cover the City’s required fees for our very first event was a milestone in itself. After producing only two events, we began making outright grants to other nonprofits. Soon after, we started donating to our volunteers’ favorite charities, with each gift based on the hours volunteers worked at the parade and festival.

That tradition of sharing a portion of our proceeds has become the hallmark of the organization. Over more than three decades, we’ve granted more than $1 million back to the community. The parade and festival are our main project, but we operate year-round and sponsor other philanthropic work.

Today, city requirements and fees for the two-day event exceed $230,000, and that has made giving back harder. Festival and parade proceeds once funded 57 organizations a year across Long Beach. By 2015 it was 23. In 2017 our board made the difficult choice to temporarily freeze all grants and educational scholarships so the 2018 event could go on.

What Partnership Can Look Like

Pearce’s item points to a model nearby. Since incorporating in 1984, the City of West Hollywood has been a leading sponsor and partner of LA Pride (Christopher Street West). It waives permit fees, provides West Hollywood Park and the surrounding streets, and covers the LA County Sheriff’s presence on parade day. LA Pride has grown into one of the largest Pride celebrations in the world, and West Hollywood into an international destination.

Long Beach Pride attendees contribute an estimated $12.3 million a year to the local economy and $23.4 million to the regional economy. Pride has helped make Long Beach one of the most LGBTQ+-friendly cities in America, and thousands of people who came to know the city through Pride now call it home.

We’re grateful to Councilwoman Pearce and her co-authors for bringing this item forward, and we look forward to working with the City on what comes next. Our 35th celebration, themed “Remember the Past, Create the Future,” takes place May 19 and 20, 2018, along Shoreline Drive, with the parade stepping off on Ocean Blvd at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, May 20.

Media inquiries: info@longbeachpride.com