June marks Pride Month and to celebrate, recently formed nonprofit, C-Pride, is hosting its first ever Clarksville Pride Festival which will feature live music, drag performances, art exhibits and much more.
Anita Hart, the president of C-Pride, shared that the nonprofit formed around nine months ago to host support groups for members of the LGBTQ+ community and connect them to resources. After Hart and some of her friends attended Nashville’s pride festival in 2023, she thought they could bring some of the pride festivities back to Clarksville.
Hart says Clarksville is home to a large LGBTQ+ community, but it may not be visible to everyone. C-Pride serves to create a visible LGBTQ+ community where individuals in the can connect with one another.
Hart says the desire to form C-Pride also came as LGBTQ+ rights and livelihoods have become more common topics of discussion and division among state legislators.
Hart says the festival will feature two performance stages, appearances from Clarksville’s reigning drag queen and king, music from Nashville artists and an art display spotlighting Clarksville’s LGBTQ+ community and history.
Hart says the festival will feature a variety of vendors including food trucks, nonprofits focused on providing LGBTQ+ related resources and local artisans selling their work.
Hart says it has been many years since a pride festival has been hosted in Clarksville, so she looks forward to bringing it back for the community. The Clarksville Pride Festival is on June 29 at the Wilma Rudolph Event Center from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tickets cost $10 and will be on sale starting June 1 on c-pride.org.