Pride 365
Sarasota's LGBTQ community
celebrates Pride year round
RYAN WILLIAMS-JENT An estimated four million people fi lled the streets of Manhattan for WorldPride in
June 2019, a diverse representation of the LGBTQ community’s international quest
for equality. It was the fi rst time in the global gathering’s 20-year history that it
had been held in the United States, and only the second time it had been held in North
America at all.
The celebration was held in New York City to commemorate
the 50-year mark of the Stonewall riots, considered the
beginning of the modern fight for LGBTQ civil rights.
Participants honored our collective community’s past and vowed
to continue the fight for our future.
It’s a model the LGBTQ community in Sarasota has magnified
for decades, from the long-running Sarasota Pride to the area’s
newest celebration in Venice. Year-round, community leaders
and members gather to offer LGBTQ citizens and visitors a safe
place to laugh and love—showcasing a wide variety of festivities
to highlight our shared LGBTQ experience.
» FABULOUS INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL
The Fabulous Independent Film Festival (IFF)—presented
by the Harvey Milk Festival (HMF)—celebrated its ninth
year Sept.27-29, 2019. It screened the best of LGBTQ
cinema at Burns Court Cinema in Sarasota, pictured on the cover
of this year’s Sarasota Living with Pride.
The Fabulous IFF was previously gifted to the HMF by
founder Magida Diouri, who continues its annual programming.
Attendance and support has grown every year since.
Diouri shared with Watermark that the Fabulous IFF’s merger
with the HMF was the perfect marriage. It had previously served
as a beneficiary of funds raised from the film festival, and she’s
continued to program each year because of its audience impact.
“Respecting differences that no one chooses is so important
to me,” Diouri noted. “Being LGBTQ is not something you
choose … it just happens, you’re born that way. LGBTQ films
have that wonderful thing about them. They bring a sense
of acceptance and it’s essential. It’s important to celebrate
differences and diversity.”
In its ninth year, Executive Director Shannon Fortner
partnered with the Jewish Federation of Sarasota-Manatee
to host a special screening, something she called an exciting
move. “They have supported us over the years and we look
forward to bringing the community together to explore cinema,”
she shared. “It has had such an impact in society offering a
perspective and view through others eyes.”
She hopes to expand even more community partnerships
in the future, something Diouri has always hoped for as well.
The Fabulous IFF “is for everyone,” Diouri told Watermark,
“absolutely everyone.”
Learn more about the next Fabulous Independent Film Festival
by visiting WatermarkOnline.com and FabulousIFF.com.
» HARVEY MILK FESTIVAL
The Harvey Milk Festival (HMF) celebrated a decade
in Sarasota May 9-11 in 2019, honoring the life and
legacy of politician Harvey Milk by fostering the arts
as a catalyst for change.
“Starting the festival was an opportunity for me to combine
my music career with my activism,” HMF Executive Director
Shannon Fortner recalls. “Our organization offers a political
platform for our community with plenty of chances for growth
within the organization.”
Entering the tenth year was empowering, Fortner shares,
and notes that Milk’s legacy as California’s first openly gay
elected official has endured long after his tragic assassination in
1978. “I feel proud of our community that we’re able to sustain
festivities,” she notes. “The gathering exists to honor Harvey; it
really carries itself in and of itself. People are supportive and feel
a connection to it.”
/WatermarkOnline.com
/FabulousIFF.com