Gay rights activists in North La. scored their biggest win yet in their fight for equality by hosting the region’s first annual gay pride event over the weekend.

“We wanted to do something to strengthen our community,” said Tommy Stewart, co-chairman of the pride committee and co-owner of local bar Club Pink.

The goals of the event were to “help close the gay-straight gap,” said event representatives, and to promote equality for the area’s homosexual community.

About 250 people attended Friday night’s opening activities at Club Pink, which included a pageant, dancing and a general celebration of life itself. Saturday featured a softball tournament and outdoor venders, and Sunday closed the weekend’s activities with a performance by the pageant winners.

Stewart is already planning for next year’s event, saying that this year was a learning experience and bigger things are planned in the future.

“Our intentions were not to have it at a bar, but due to time constraints, we had no choice,” said Stewart. “Next year will be more family oriented.”

Jeremy Katz, president of the ULM Gay/ Straight Alliance, said that the success of this event will hopefully lead to more pride events in Monroe in the future. He said the mere fact the gay community was able to have a pride event in this heavily conservative region shows that tolerance and acceptance are coming.

“[Pride] means a lot because I don’t want people to be spreading hate,” said Katz, a junior atmospheric science major from Mandeville. “I want people to be open to love.”

Katz said pride events in heavily conservative regions like North La. can inspire people struggling in the closet to be themselves.

“Pride gives them the message that they are not alone,” he said. “There is a safe haven. There are people they can come to.”

North Louisiana Pride was heavily advertised in South La. at pride events in Baton Rouge and New Orleans, as well as Facebook and radio stations. People throughout the state and as far away as California and Florida came to the event.

“People were shocked and amazed that Monroe is finally coming out of the dark ages and adding some color to this place,” said Bo Myers, a bartender at Club Pink.

Big-named gay activist and event planner Shane Rogers put his full weight into making the North La. event a success. Rogers, a Bastrop native, is a major player in some of the largest pride events in the country including Southern Decadence in New Orleans and the White Party in Miami. He listed the North La. pride event as a “highest priority” on his website, www.justcircuit.com.