GILROYTwo years in the past, Terry Hernandez feared {that a} Satisfaction flag would draw undesirable consideration. So she marked her place with a Cinco de Mayo balloon and instructed these within the queer group to fulfill behind the now-defunct Chacho’s Mexican restaurant in Morgan Hill.
Little by little, a dozen individuals trickled into the restaurant, discovered her cue and breathed a sigh of reduction. Some anxious that it is perhaps a lure arrange by a hate group and that they might be attacked.
As an alternative, that first apprehensive assembly planted the seeds of Satisfaction Social South County, one of many few teams in southern Santa Clara County devoted to the LGBTQ+ group. Now on August 2, that group will have a good time a historic milestone for the area by internet hosting Gilroy’s first ever Satisfaction celebration. The celebration stands in defiance of a neighborhood historical past of harassment and concern for the queer group amid a nationwide political surroundings more and more hostile to LGBT+ individuals. Organizers hope it’s going to mark a transfer towards a greater metropolis for queer residents.
“To (the rest of the County), it’s not monumental, but to us, it’s just something we’ve never seen before,” stated Jesse Santos, 23, a queer youth advocate and lifelong Gilroyan. “It’s something that can hopefully spark change … I hope it makes a difference.”
At every of these early conferences, many would recount how they’d been harassed on-line or in individual.
As president of Satisfaction Social and a South County resident, Hernandez heard every kind of horror tales: a pair filed a restraining order after being threatened by a neighbor wielding a gun, a younger lesbian couple was stalked and queer college students had been outed by academics. And, Carlos Pineda, a neighborhood queer advocate who works with deprived youth, pushed to fly satisfaction flags and banners in entrance of his office, solely to have them torn down and run over.
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Within the face of the abuse, Hernandez determined to combat for extra illustration within the area.
“This is not normal. You should be able to live in your community freely and not have a restraining order against your neighbor or worry that you’re gonna go home and hide the flag because somebody’s gonna come onto your property,” stated Hernandez, recalling how the group needed to hop from location to location simply to discover a assembly area. “Pride is a protest.”
So she, Pineda and others started to push to fly Satisfaction flags at authorities buildings throughout South County. Final yr, she helped manage the primary Satisfaction celebration in Morgan Hill at Chacho’s, the identical restaurant the place Satisfaction Social first met. Afterwards, she and her cohorts knew it was time to carry Satisfaction to Gilroy.
“I’ve felt there was a need here,” stated Augustine Alvarez, treasurer for Satisfaction Social South County and one of many lead co-organizers of Morgan Hill and Gilroy Satisfaction. “(Our) goal is ultimately to make sure that we create a safe space down here where there isn’t really any queer space at all.”
Whereas the remainder of the Bay Space has an extended historical past of trailblazing assist for LGBTQ+ individuals, many from the southern reaches of Silicon Valley felt left behind. “Being born and raised in this community, I wasn’t able to understand what it meant to be confident, to be your authentic self … Growing up in a Hispanic household, it’s a lot of ‘we don’t talk about it,’” stated Pineda. “I wish growing up I had that, because there wasn’t any organization (in Gilroy) … You’d have to go to San Francisco to have conversations about how to find yourself.”
The entire occasion is a home-grown effort, with a handful of volunteers designing web sites and flyers and reaching out to distributors and companions. “It’s amazing when everybody comes together,” stated Hernandez. “At times, we don’t realize what we bring to the table. And Gilroy has pride, family, the love of community. That is what has taken Gilroy forward anytime something has happened, and that’s what’s going to propel forward the LGBT community.”
Whereas some locally expressed hesitation or confusion, Hernandez endured in connecting and educating individuals on her mission to carry the group into the fold for Satisfaction, assuring residents that the occasion could be a family-friendly affair.
“We’re very grateful for the support that we’ve gotten in Gilroy,” stated Augustine Alvarez, pointing to metropolis officers like Mayor Greg Bozzo or Councilmember Zach Hilton as key supporters. “We went all around here and we got a lot of no’s … but we’re very grateful for the people that said ‘yes.’”
The occasion subsequent Saturday can be a celebration of each Gilroy’s queer group and the town’s Latino heritage. Attendees can count on distributors, meals vehicles, a DJ, and queer performers together with a queer group doing baile folklorico – Mexican people dance — and reside music from native artists. Sources for immigration, psychological well being, and HIV testing can be supplied. Hernandez famous {that a} latest county report confirmed that Latino males have twice the speed of recent HIV prognosis as countywide, with Gilroy being essentially the most closely Latino metropolis within the county. The group can be organizing an grownup occasion that night that includes drag queens and DJ units.
Even so, there’s the sobering information amongst many within the group that the occasion comes after a legacy of harassment, with federal actions in search of to push again in opposition to LGBT+ group, particularly trans and non-binary individuals. Many inside the queer group and allies expressed concern of backlash on the occasion or due to it.
“It’s a new day for Gilroy, having (Pride) happen,” stated Rebeca Armendariz, a former councilmember who helped lead the push to fly the primary Satisfaction flag at Gilroy metropolis corridor in 2021. “It’s an absolute leap in the right direction, but it’s a scary one for all of us.”
Regardless of the concern, others say that the context makes celebrating Satisfaction much more important.
“The administration and governments are all trying to push us back into the closet,” stated Alvarez. “For us to have Pride in a conservative area where it’s never been done before, hopefully it will send a loud message to the queer community: ‘We’re here. We’re going to continue to be here. We’re going to continue to fight for you.’”
The primary Gilroy Satisfaction will happen on Saturday August 2, from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Gilroy Civic Heart, 7350 Rosanna Court docket. Attendance can be free.
Beginning at 9 p.m., Tempo Kitchen and Bar, 7560 Monterey Rd, will host an afterparty and drag present for adults 21 and older. Tickets are $15 if bought prematurely and $20 on the door. Proceeds assist Satisfaction Social South County.
