There were no parades at this Pride event, but there were plenty of drag shows! If you'd been there, you could have gone to a Family Friendly Drag Show at 11 AM, the Best of the Midwest Drag Show at 12:15 PM, Dancing Kings and Queens at 12:30 PM, Drag Queen Story-Time at 12:45 PM, Drag Queen Bingo at 1:15 PM, Lip Sync Battle (which I assume is a drag event) at 4:30 PM, Youth Court Drag Show at 5:30 PM, and a final Youth Court at 7:30 PM. I've never been a fan of drag shows, but it's pretty cool that they've managed to incorporate drag into so much of the programming!
In addition to the drag shows, there was a vendors court and various games for children and a Pride Picnic in the Park. At 7:45 PM, there's an event called "50 Years Since the Stonewall Riots & History." And at 8:00 PM, there's a Sundown Worship Hour with Pastor Cindy Johnson from the local ELCA church.
It's easy to feel disheartened about the push for reversals of LGBTQ rights on the federal level, as well as the recent resurgence of ex-gay ministries within certain church communities. And don't get me started about the various "straight pride" parades.
But it's heartening to see Pride events in small-town Iowa -- and it's a sign that LGBTQ inclusion continues to progress.