Annual gay pride festival held in Dover for first time

Sasha DuBoyz marched onstage wearing knee-high black boots and a dress adorned with a fake money print.

The spire of Legislative Hall towered behind her as DuBoyz tore off the removable part of her dress and danced through a crowd gathered on Legislative Green Park for the 17th annual Delaware Pride Festival.

The Pride festival, which has long been in either Rehoboth Beach, or New Castle County, was in Dover Saturday afternoon, the first time ever the annual celebration of Delaware's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Asexual community took place in Kent County.

"I loved every moment of it. It was a great experience," said DuBoyz, who was born and raised in Dover.

Through the afternoon, a good thousand or so people streamed across the lawn in front of Legislative Hall, watching drag shows, checking out vendor stalls and enjoying the atmosphere.

Many people attending, like Dover residents Sandy Clark and Beth Shockley, said they never thought they'd see such an event in Delaware.

"The first gay pride festival I ever went to was in New York City. When I saw that, I was blown away. I thought, 'Oh I'll never see that in Delaware'," Clark said. "It's pretty amazing."

Having the event in Dover is a way of thanking lawmakers for enacting marriage equality in the state.

"It's a milestone," Shockley said. "I never believed I'd see marriage equality in my lifetime. I'm 54. It's just an incredible thing."

The festival's theme this year was 'Reflections of Pride,' an observation of the 45th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots in New York City's Greenwich Village, which began the LGBT civil rights movement.

Steve Newman, president of Delaware Pride, said the location change was partly due to passage of gay marriage last year, and partly to have a more central location so everyone in the state could easily attend, he said.

"We'll be back next year," he said. "There's been nothing but positive feedback from people here."

Contact Jon Offredo at (302) 678-4271, at joffredo@delawareonline.com or @jonoffredo.