Matthew Baldwin has become a veteran of pride events in the city since his first time celebrating “living out and proud” when he was 22.
Now 54, Baldwin said he hopes that the greater visibility of celebrations like this weekend’s Chicago Pride Fest in the Northalsted neighborhood makes it easier for younger LGBTQ+ people to be proud and open about who they are.
“Kids are coming out now at 12, 13-years-old, how fantastic is that?” Baldwin said at the festival Saturday. “Every generation gets raised up by the previous generation. The people before me had a harder time than I did, and the people after me will hopefully have an easier time.”
Baldwin said visible pride celebrations were particularly important this year because LGBTQ+ rights were under attack across the country, with trans youth being the biggest targets.
“I feel like we’re sliding backwards… It’s even more important now to say we’re here, we’re queer, get used to it,” he said.
This year’s two-day festival features three stages lining Halsted Street for music and drag performances by top names like Heather Small, Cookiee Kawaii and Ariana and the Rose, among others.
The $15 suggested donation to get in helps to pay the performers and fund community programs.
Rising punk band Meet Me @ the Altar was among several headliners on Saturday, and French singer JORDY is set to close the festival on Sunday.
Other attractions include vendors selling clothing, food and drinks, and competitions like a dance exhibition and a high heel race for prizes.
Toph Shulkin, 16, of Lincoln Park, was one of thousands who attended Saturday.
“It makes me very happy,” said Shulkin, who came with his mother. “I just love seeing everybody dressed in rainbows and I love seeing people who are just like me.”
While he has been attending pride events for years, the fest was his first after having his name legally changed.
Saturday’s event was Vanessa Montoya’s very first pride celebration in Chicago. The 33-year-old said she was moving to the West Side on Tuesday with her “best friend” and wife of two months, Shevonn Damper.
Montoya said she was looking forward to spending time at the festival with her “found family,” a term often used by those in the queer community who build familial bonds with other LGBTQ+ people, sometimes in place of lost blood relatives.
“You’re among people who love and respect you,” Montoya said. “I think a lot of the queer community doesn’t find that in their biological families, they feel rejected, so I think when we call each other family it’s a way to say if your biological family won’t accept you, we will unconditionally.”
Lindsay Jones, a Denver native, ended up at the festival this year while visiting her cousin who lives in the neighborhood.
She also found the atmosphere welcoming — but a lot of fun, too.
“This is absolute queer joy right now… It can’t always be about struggle. Take a step back, smile, laugh and get up again tomorrow morning,” she said.
