Pride festivities are growing in the San Fernando Valley. It’s no longer necessary to drive long distances as each year, more local events are being held bringing an opportunity for residents to gather in support and celebrate the LBGTQ+ community in the valley.
This Saturday, June 22, in the City of San Fernando, the San Fernando Outdoor Market, in collaboration with the nonprofit Somos Familia Valle, is celebrating Pride with the theme “We Are Family.”
This event features LGBTQ+ vendors, various entertainers, dignitaries and community organizations coming together to showcase their talents and products, bring information and speak about their commitment to equality from the stage.
A celebratory parade is planned with participants gathering at 6:30 p.m. at the corner of San Fernando Road and Brand Boulevard. The parade will travel a short distance through the mall where visitors can eat, dance and shop from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
During San Fernando’s Outdoor Market, visitors can stop into the nearby Midnight Hour Records store for an additional Pride celebration where the infamous Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are scheduled to perform. There will also be a resource fair, vendors and music.
The Valley Pride March
On June 29, in Van Nuys, State Sen. Caroline Menjivar, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and local nonprofit Somos Familia Valle are hosting the official San Fernando Valley Pride March and Rally, with the support of LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath and LA Councilmember Imelda Padilla.
“San Fernando Valley pride is for the first time ever being led by a queer representative,” said Menjivar, the first LGBTQ+ person to represent the San Fernando Valley for the state’s 20th District.
As the daughter of Salvadoran immigrants, Menjivar also advances queer representation from communities of color. She noted that this year’s theme, “Míranos, aquí estamos,” sends the message “that we exist in communities of color” and that, “we need to make sure representation happens.”
The Valley Pride March starts at noon on the corner of Van Nuys Boulevard and Gault Street. It will make its way one mile along Van Nuys Boulevard, ending at the Van Nuys Civic Center, where a block party will take place from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., with a resource fair, free vaccines and testing, food, art, a kid’s fun zone and more.
Performances from DJ Jules Ortiz, Elektra LaKill, Calypso Jeté Balmain, Marque and Hybrid will bring the energy and keep the celebrations going throughout the afternoon, while attendees can receive resource information from organizations including PFLAG, LA Family Housing, LA Civil Rights and The Village Family Services.
The History: Building Blocks for the LGBTQ+ Community
It was a decade ago when the grassroots organization Somos Familia Valle got its start organizing the first Pride March in the San Fernando Valley, themed “Coming Out of the Shadows.”
“We thought it was going to be like 20 people and 150 people showed up,” said Kevin Al Perez, co-founder and president of Somos Familia Valle.
What was once just an idea is now a staple of Pride – celebrating the queer community in the San Fernando Valley.
“I think one of the things in the valley is, we’re always hiding, or people say we don’t exist here,” said Perez. “[But] we’re part of the community. We work here. We play here. We have kids here.”
Kicking off Pride month, Somos Familia Valle opened the first LGBTQ+ center in the San Fernando Valley run by and for LGBTQ+ people.
“I think it means that we can finally be proud and be visible in our community,” said Perez.
Lifelong Valley resident Devin Gutierrez was excited to share the family-friendly queer space with his daughter during the center’s grand opening in Sun Valley.
Gutierrez said there weren’t a lot of options for him growing up as a queer person in the Valley.
“I couldn’t travel far. I didn’t have a car, I couldn’t drive. I could only take the bus around here,” said Gutierrez. “I didn’t have anywhere to go. Where was I supposed to go?”
“I feel that [the center] is going to bring a lot more peace to struggling youth,” said Gutierrez. “It’s going to bring a lot more opportunities for kids to be open about themselves, have that help and not struggle so much [with] feeling that they’re lost in the valley [and] that they don’t know where to go.”
Caring for the Next Generation
Although there is a positive change for the queer community in the San Fernando Valley, there is still work to be done, Menjivar pointed out at the center’s grand opening.
“I know the lack of resources that exist, especially for our youth,” she said. “The next thing I want is [to provide] housing for queer youth.”
Queer transition-age youth (TAY) are “disproportionately represented in the foster system and the homeless system,” emphasizing how important it is to provide them care, “before they get on the streets.”
According to the nonprofit The Trevor Project, 28% of LGBTQ+ youth have reported experiencing homelessness or housing instability at some point in their lives. Trans and nonbinary youth report even higher rates of homelessness and housing instability, including 38% of trans women, 39% of trans men and 35% of nonbinary youth.
Menjivar believes we are, “missing the gap of opportunity to assist our young individuals,” and that we need to provide them housing “before they leave the system.”
“That’s my next goal, to see how we can bring resources down to create LGBTQ+ housing,” said Menjivar.
Editor Diana Martinez contributed to this article.