Dance music, food and rainbows: 2023 Bartlesville Pride celebrates freedom

Despite the heat and humidity, Bartlesville’s Tower Center at Unity Square was vibrant Saturday, adorned with rainbows, dancing and celebration at the Bartlesville Pride 2023 event, hosted by Oklahomans for Equality Bartlesville.

Like previous years, celebratory dance music played on speakers. Food trucks lined the south sidewalk, kids enjoyed bounce houses and attendees wore creative rainbow attire. Vendors sold crafts and gave away bracelets, buttons and stickers.

Unlike last year, however, the protesters set up at the corner of Dewey Avenue and Silas Street could barely be seen or heard by event attendees. Bartlesville Police cars lined the street in front of them, blocking the protesters’ view and a large stack of speakers blasted music at the edge of the park’s lawn, drowning them out.

“I think this year the event is going really great. It’s running really smoothly, it’s well set-up, it’s well organized, like always,” said Morgan Lawrence-Hayes, OKEQ Bartlesville Executive Board President. “I also think it’s gone really well as far as the protesters that are here because BPD has done an excellent job ensuring they have their right to exercise their free speech but also ensuring we have a safe event.”

She said the turnout seemed to be about the same as last year.

It has been a contentious year for the LGBTQ community in Bartlesville. Despite being a mainstay of Bartlesville Pride for several years, the drag show at the 2022 event drew the ire of local churches and then city council candidate Chelsie Wagoner.

After a year of sometimes combative City Council meetings and personal harassment that led Lawrence-Hayes and her wife to get a restraining order, she said this year’s event is more important than ever.

“We are better together. That has really been the sticking point for OKEQ this year. We want to work within this community and be a part of the community, because Bartlesville is better when all of us are together,” Lawrence-Hayes said.

She did say, however, it was a “different event” without the drag show.

At 6:30 p.m., The Michael Colaw Band began singing on the stage, the lawn in front of them full of people watching and dancing. The sidewalk behind the stage, usually teaming with drag queens primping and prepping to go on, was instead blocked off, devoid of the large wigs and glitter it was used to.

By no means did that indicate the absence of drag queens.

When Bartlesville resident Josie Lee Turrelle arrived, adorned in a large black wig, floor-length black dress with comic book scenes printed on it and bright makeup, she did not make it far before she was stopped by delighted strangers, adults and children alike, wanting pictures and to hug her.

Later, during the band’s performance, she sat with three other drag queens at a table, listening to the music.

Turrelle, who has performed at Bartlesville Pride in past years, said she found it important to attend, even without the performance.

“To show we’re here. We are doctors, we’re lawyers … we’re everywhere,” she said.

After several heated Bartlesville City Council meetings, OKEQ Bartlesville struck a one-year deal with the City to keep the vendor portion on the lawn at Tower Center, but host the drag show in the Bartlesville Community Center.

Organizers later decided to forego the drag show, deeming the planning of it in BCC too logistically complicated, Lawrence-Hayes said.

Throughout Pride, a small group of people ebbed and flowed on the west side of the park, standing on large rocks to enjoy the shade and peer over police cars at the protesters, whose chants and preaching were drowned out by the blaring party music.

Part of a group called Official Street Preachers, the protesters held signs with messages like “Turn to Jesus or burn in hell.” Protester David Grisham said the group travels the country spreading their message at county fairs, sports games, Pride events and other occasions.

Lawrence-Hayes said moving forward, OKEQ-Bartlesville will work with the City to decide the next step after the one-year agreement is over.

She said through discussions in the past year, she and other organizers have built a rapport with City officials.

“I really respect them and what they do. They were put in a really tough position and they’ve done a great job of navigating it. I am thankful for the relationships we have,” Lawrence-Hayes said.

This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Dance music, food and rainbows: Bartlesville Pride celebrates freedom