With Pride Month underway, the Aurora community is holding a number of events this coming weekend, including the annual parade downtown on Sunday.
Starting off on Saturday, June 13, the city’s LGBTQ Advisory Board is hosting its third annual Pride at the Plaza event. It will take place from 6 to 10 p.m. at Millennium Plaza in downtown Aurora, according to a press release from the city.
The board works to advocate for the needs of the LGBTQ community, create community in the area, participate in community service initiatives and host educational events, according to Luis Lopez, who joined the LGBTQ Advisory Board about a year ago and serves as its chair.
Growing up in Aurora, Lopez recalled being told that opportunities to celebrate Pride generally required traveling to Chicago.
“Being able to bring that back close to home is definitely something we’re trying to create,” Lopez said.
This year’s Pride at the Plaza is going to be bigger than past years, according to Lopez. The event is set to feature drag performances and live music, vendors and a new arts and crafts activity area for children and their families, Lopez said.
Later that night, Vibez on the River, 29 W. New York St. in downtown Aurora, is holding “Pride Vibez,” according to a post by the city’s advisory board on Facebook. From 10 p.m. to 1 a.m., those 21 years old and older can see live performances as part of a “larger-than-life celebration of excellence, identity and raw creative power in Aurora,” the post said.
Then on Sunday is the Aurora Pride Parade, which has taken place yearly since 2018, aside from two years during the COVID-19 pandemic. The event is put on by the Aurora Pride organization.
Gwyn Ciesla, Aurora Pride’s president, told The Beacon-News that sponsorships and marching participation have been strong this year, with upwards of 70 marching groups expected, and that more than 80 people are registered to volunteer.
“Given everything going on in the world, I think we’re in a really good spot,” Ciesla said.
The annual event typically draws 5,000 to 6,000 spectators, according to Ciesla. The parade will start at noon, Ciesla said, and its grand marshal will be Carlos Arechiga of Aurora restaurant El Jefe.
“I’m excited that it’s still going on after all this time,” Ciesla said.
Meanwhile, the community can also head into Society 57 in downtown Aurora for a “celebration for introverts” hosted by the LGBTQ Advisory Board, which will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday.
The event is meant to provide people for whom “a parade isn’t really their scene” to “have open dialogue or, again, just to enjoy a cup of coffee while, you know, the parade is passing by,” Lopez said.
And following the annual parade, a family-friendly after party is going to be held at Two Brothers Roundhouse starting at 1 p.m. It’s set to include music, dancing and a drag show, according to a Facebook post from Aurora Pride. Tickets to the event cost $10 with proceeds going towards funding next year’s Pride Parade.
mmorrow@chicagotribune.com
