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STEERING COMMITTEE

Event Coordinators

Development

Entertainment

Finance

Children’s Area

March

Marketing

Merchandise

Safety & Services

Vending

Volunteers

5k Run

Emeritus

Community Representatives

ABOUT AKRON PRIDE FESTIVAL

Brian Lamoda-Genet (Chair) & Julie Beckert (Co-Chair)

Julie Beckert

Michael Davids

Josh Parks

Maria Espinosa

Phil Montgomery

Rebecca Callahan

Becky Oram

Lucas Barstow

Isaac Baez

Cass Warren

Julie Beckert

Jill Migone

Angie Falcone

Lauri Natko

Greg Nyburg

Julie Beckert

LaTonda Mobley

Morgan Heskett

Michael Davids

Cindy Christman

Esther Thomas (City of Akron), Maurice Thomas (CANAPI), Kimberly Reese-Glover (Lock 3), Autumn Frampton (U of A), Lauren Lienhart-Miller (Downtown Akron Partnership)

Akron Pride Festival is an open celebration of music, entertainment, and information focused on promoting equality and inclusion of all people. The mission of Akron Pride Festival is to unify and affirm the LGBTQ+ community and allies in celebrating our diversity and promoting our likeness. We promote acceptance of all individuals by defending human equity.

OUR FISCAL SPONSOR

The mission of the Community AIDS Network Akron Pride Initiative (CANAPI), a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, is to serve and promote the well-being of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Questioning (LGBTQ) community and persons at risk and/or affected by HIV through education, support services, quality housing, and advocacy. To learn more about CANAPI, visit www.canapi.org.

Lighting the way today—and every day.

PRIMARY CARE

PHARMACY

SPECIALIZED HIV/AIDS CARE COUNSELING

PrEP CARE

GENDER AFFIRMING CARE

SUPPORT GROUPS

Celebrating those who make Akron brilliant.

At PNC, we’re proud to live and work among the people and organizations that dedicate themselves to making our communities brilliant.

PHOTOS BY SHANE WYNN

2024 APF DRAG BATTLE

For every care in the community.

We proudly support Akron Pride and your mission of enriching the lives of the diverse LGBTQ+ community through advocacy, support, education and celebration.

ClevelandClinic.org/LGBTQ

Ready to stand tall together.

At Huntington, we believe that the strongest communities are the ones in which every voice is heard. Because a diversity of perspective, experience and ideas just leads to better all-around outcomes for everyone. That’s why we’re proud to support the LGBTQ+ community and their allies. And that’s why we say to every customer and colleague who walks through our doors, Welcome.

THE 2024 EQUITY MARCH ON MAIN ST.

Akron Pride Festival’s seventh annual March (“The Akron Equity March”) is a celebration of our lives and our community. Join us as we march to show that Akron as a whole, supports equality and equity for all people! The March will kick off the 2024 Akron Pride Festival with step off Downtown on Main Street (from Spaghetti Warehouse) at 10 a.m. and head towards Cascade Plaza, ending at Mill Street.

EQUALITY VS EQUITY

The Akron Equity March emphasizes the difference between equality and equity.

In short, “equality” refers to the equal distribution of (the same) resources to everyone, whereas “equity” refers to the distribution of resources based on an individual person’s needs.

“STAND

UP, LIFT UP”

From social justice issues impacting the Black-Indigenous-People of Color (BIPOC) community, to legislation impacting women’s access to healthcare, and legislation sweeping states that impact the transgender community and LGBTQAI+ youth - We stand in solidarity with you and will continue working towards a time when everyone can be their authentic self and feel safe (and included) within their city.

Standing together as a community and becoming active in other marginalized community issues is how we achieve change.

We march for our seventh year to demonstrate that Akron - OUR city, OUR home - is a safe and equitable community for all!

THE 2024 AKRON PRIDE FESTIVAL

Entering its seventh year, the Akron Pride Festival, presented by the JM Smucker Company, is a day of fun and celebration in the name of equity. The festival is gearing up to bring a wide range of entertainment and experiences for all ages.

Attracting over 45,000 attendees in 2024, festival goers will again be connected to a vast array of local and out-of-state exhibitors (comprised of corporate groups, community organizations, craft merchants, and more) as well as a diverse lineup of food purveyors offering tasty treats for festival patrons to enjoy throughout the day.

The 2024 Akron Pride Festival will conclude with a fireworks show sponsored by Downtown Akron Partnership and The Johns S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

WHEN & WHERE AUGUST

SATURDAY, AUGUST 24TH | 10 AM - 10 PM DownTown AkRon | MAin STReeT, (RelocATeD) lock 3 & cAScADe PlAzA

The day’s events are free and open to all. Free parking at City and County decks surround the festival and Metro RTA will be providing free rides to festival goers throughout the day. Refer to the Parking & Road Closures Map at the back of the Pride Guide for more information.

PRIDE HEROES (KIDS’) ZONE

Visit the Pride Kids’ Zone at Cascade Plaza from 11:00am to 3:00 pm. Families and children of all ages can enjoy free activities, including a rock climbing wall, trampoline bungee jumping, photobooth, and inflatable slides and games! Kids can also enjoy activities and giveaways provided by the Akron Summit County Public Library and Akron Public Schools.

By sharing our innermost thoughts, we externally connect. LA-based pop singer/songwriter JORDY amplifies the back-and-forth of his internal conversation as loudly as possible. Penning plainspoken lyrics and belting them with no shortage of personality, he ponders what to say to a crush, the ups and downs of mental health, the trials and tribulations of being a third wheel, the inevitability of getting older, and why it’s okay to move on. Earning acclaim from Rolling Stone, PAPER, Billboard, People, The Huffington Post, Consequence of Sound, and more, he holds nothing back. n 2018, he broke through with the independent single “Just Friends,” and maintained his momentum with “Close To You”. His 2021 standout track “Long Distance” resonated with audiences nationwide and simultaneously lit up TikTok. In its wake, JORDY made his television debut with a showstopping performance on The TODAY Show and subsequently earned a nomination at the iHeartRadio Music Awards in the “Social Star” category. When JORDY opens up, you might just feel a little bit better about doing the same. He candidly uses his music to share his authentic experiences with fans, providing a safe haven for those who may not have a support system at home.

CRYSTAL WATERS

Multi-platinum singer, songwriter, producer, pioneer, Dance Music Legend Crystal Waters was named by Billboard Magazine as one of the most successful Dance Music Artist in the history of the Billboard Dance Music Chart. In 2019 Ms. Waters was featured in “Unsung” a TV documentary about the singers life . In 2022 Crystal received “Howard University’s Prestigious “Distinguished Post Graduate Achievement Award” and is also listed in the “Book of Who’s Who in Black America”. Ms. Waters currently hosts her “I AM HOUSE Radio Show” on iTunes and her radio show can also be heard on SiriusXM Channel 141 Saturday and Sunday nights 8pm EST. As a House Music Icon with over 2.5 million monthly listeners and 100,000 followers on Spotify, Crystal continues to consistently tour and engage her enormous fan base. She boasts 12 #1 Billboard Dance Chart hits and 11 top ten songs. Her music has been sampled and covered by the likes of T.I. , Mary Mary, Pit Bull, Alicia Keys, G-Easy and many more. Her accolades include 6 ASCAP Songwriter Awards, three American Music Award nominations, a MTV Video Music Award nod and four Billboard Music Awards. Always prolific, her latest release “Party People” with DJ Spen and remix by Michael Grey is a massive success garnering major support from the likes of BBC Radio One, Nexus Radio, Pete Tong, Carl Cox, Low-Steppa and more.

LADY CAMDEN

After a rollercoaster journey of self discovery while creating iconic TV moments, Lady Camden has become one of the true breakout stars of RuPauls Drag Race season 14. Actor, dancer, choreographer… this gal is one busy lady! While she spends most of the year traveling the world kicking, pirouetting and pasde-bourse-ing, she proudly calls the gayest city in America home - San Francisco.

Before stepping into the Werk room Camden began her career as a professional ballet dancer with Sacramento Ballet and Smuin Ballet before becoming a working freelance choreographer and an acting teacher with First Take Acting. Since finishing as the runner-up of Season 14, Lady has gone on to tour with Werq The World, produce music and continues her choreographic work in the ballet world.

What’s ahead? YouTube content, more music, more touring and perhaps even some solo acts… stay tuned. The orchestra is warming up!

NINA WEST

Nina West is an American drag queen, actor, singer, songwriter, author, and LGBTQ+ activist played by Andrew Levitt. She rose to national prominence in 2019 on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 11, where she placed sixth and won Miss Congeniality (later to be anointed as “America’s Sweetheart” by RuPaul herself) and returning for Season 9 of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars. She made history at the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards as he first-ever person to walk the carpet in full drag, while her season won five Primetime Emmy Awards. In 2020, Nina released a charity partnership with Dolly Parton - The “Dolly X Nina: Kindness is Queen‘’ Collection - with all proceeds going to the Dolly Parton Imagination Library and The Nina West Foundation to benefit LGBTQ+ youth and literacy. In 2021, she partnered with Nickelodeon and Blue’s Clues for a series of Pride videos and hosted the first-ever DISNEY PLUS “This Is Me: PRIDE Celebration Spectacular”. Nina headlined the 20th-anniversary national tour of the Broadway Musical HAIRSPRAY in the lead role of Edna Turnblad. She played over 450 shows in over 80 cities to over 800,000 people nationwide. Nina made her big screen debut as legendary drag queen Divine in 2022’s Award-Winning “WEIRD: THE AL YANKOVIC STORY” starring Daniel Radcliffe. Her first ever children’s book, “THE YOU KIND OF KIND” was released on October 25th, 2022, through PA Press with the support of Country Legend Dolly Parton.