TAYLOR, Texas — The city of Taylor hosted its first-ever Pride celebration on Saturday afternoon, featuring live music speeches and dances downtown.
Organizers said the event was a first for all of Williamson County, home to nearly 600,000 Texans. Taylor, in eastern Williamson County, has about 17,000 residents.
The idea for the Pride celebration originated in a private Facebook group started by founder Denise Rodgers as a way for the LGBTQ community to support one another during the pandemic.
"We had 300 people join in two weeks' time," Rodgers, who is bisexual and has a lesbian daughter and a transgender daughter, told KVUE’s media partners at the Austin American-Statesman. "Many had lived in town for decades and had never met another gay couple or another gay person. We decided in that moment that we wanted to celebrate Pride in June."
The event featured live music, schooling, drag queen reveals, speeches by native officers, a drag queen story hour and dances at four venues in Downtown Taylor beginning at 2 p.m.
During the pandemic last year, Rodgers helped organize a virtual Pride celebration for Taylor that drew more than 4,000 viewers.
"Williamson County has never had a gay Pride festival before like this," Rodgers told the Statesman.
"We have the full support of our city council and mayor as well," she said. "I think part of it being held in Taylor has to do with the tremendous amount of growth and people migrating from Austin and more progressive cities."
While Austin holds its Pride parade in August, many other Central Texas cities, such as San Marcos and Dripping Springs, also hold their events in June.
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