What might be La Conner’s largest Pride celebration kicks off this month with a reminder of why Pride began.

The La Conner Thrives Association has organized a month-long exhibit at the La Conner Swinomish Library exploring the history and legacy of the Stonewall Riots — a six-day clash between LGBTQ+ protestors and police in 1969 that ignited the gay rights movement in the U.S. and beyond.

“That was a turning point … people realized that (operating in the corners of society) wasn’t going to work, that they needed to be out there and visible and telling people that they existed in order to survive,” said La Conner Pride Committee Member Kee Hinckley. “Gay and trans people have always been part of humankind, even doctors and lawyers and soldiers for thousands of years. If we don’t educate people, if we aren’t out there and visible, we know what happens.”

Hinckley said that visibility saves lives, especially for LGBTQ+ youth who face higher rates of homelessness and suicide due to a lack of support.

The Stonewall Riots began June 28, 1969, after New York City police raided the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar. The raid was the latest in a long history of anti-LGBTQ+ police actions in an era when same-sex relationships were largely illegal. A year later, the first Pride parade commemorated the event.

La Conner Thrives Director Nicky McGarity said the exhibit feels especially relevant given a rise in anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and backlash.

“We’ve forgotten largely as a society what it was like when people were forced into the closet and persecuted in a way that ended lives,” she said. “We need to have the parade. We need to be visible. We need to be out there so that it’s normal, so that we realize how many of us are in the community and that it’s our community, too.”

The association has planned multiple events throughout June. Details are at laconnerpride.org. Organizers welcome everyone, including allies. 

McGarity said Pride promotes inclusion and encourages people to live authentically.

“Your humanity is so important, and none of us should suppress those core parts of ourselves. We can’t function as partial humans; we need to be whole,” she said. “And that’s actually what makes our community so incredible, is that we do have a very diverse population with so many different experiences and backgrounds.”

Building on a legacy

Though this year’s celebration may be the town’s largest, it’s not the first. The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community began hosting a Pride Parade in 2021. The tribe has not confirmed whether it will host a parade this year.

“We’re not the first, but we are building on and expanding what they’ve already started, what the tribe has already led the way on, to bring Pride to be a more central and more visible celebration in our community in La Conner,” said Pride Committee Member Mollie Pepper.

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Sydnee Chapman: Sydnee is a freelance and investigative reporter. Her work has appeared in various news outlets in the PNW and Intermountain West. She has lived in various parts of the Western U.S. and Mexico and currently travels and works full time from a camper van.