DIY 4Ever! A Pride 2025 recap

I went into Pride this year ready for a fight, rather than a party. Pride in 2025 is back firmly in its roots as protest- camaraderie, rage, and discontent with the status quo tangible in the gathered crowds. This is, in my opinion, as it should be. The atrocities we are witnessing today cannot stand. Pride started as a protest for our lives and has evolved into a semi-mainstream, corporate party holiday, with (rainbow) capitalism as the beating heart behind it all. I’ve been going to Pride for nearly a decade now, and each year the social/political backdrop behind the rainbow balloon arches gets noticeably darker. With this most recent wave of transphobia and anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment crashing through our congress floors and neighborhoods, we’ve seen which of these corporations truly care for their Queer customers and employees, and which ones were just out for the money. Support is being pulled for Queer people left and right, between healthcare, federal grants, and private brand deals falling through because hate is paying more right now. In times like this, where our government is persecuting us, people are being disappeared, and human rights are being stripped away, turning towards our community and using our collective voices and energy to stand up for each other is the most important thing we can do.

This past weekend was my big Pride weekend for work- my two biggest events taking place within hours of each other back to back on Saturday and Sunday. I was so excited for a busy weekend of Queer joy and community, but honestly– I was worried about the potential pushback. We’ve heard about raids on LGBTQ+ events, spaces being shut down, protesters causing disruptions, or worse all this year already. But showing up together is more important than the fear, so I packed up all my gay little zines and creative projects and went off to Pride. I made sure that my setup featured radical slogans front and center: “QUEER LIB NOW,” “GENDER REBEL,” “ANTI-BINARY,” and “GENDER ECOLOGIST” flags all adorning my table. I handed out Know Your Rights red cards in English and Spanish for free both days. I wanted it to be clear that my work is not here for maintaining any kind of status quo, and that my creative projects are working exclusively towards a Queer future– with liberation for all. 

First up was a night of vending at the Pride2K event hosted by the Electric Lady Lounge in Kankakee, IL. This 3rd annual event was a fundraiser benefiting the Kankakee Area LGBTQ+ Network, a local org that provides support and resources to LGBTQ+ folks in the Kankakee area. Hosted in the lovely Majestic Theater, this event was packed full of gay nostalgia and resistance in the form of Queer joy. There were drag performances, karaoke, tacos, and an incredibly well-curated Y2K aesthetic. It was such a fun event to be a vendor at because of the good vibes and high energy! People were able to meet friends, make new ones, and just let loose for a while dancing and performing on stage (very much necessary in times like this). I saw folks coming in wearing protest gear (presumably showing up after the No Kings protest) and full-on nostalgia cosplay alike. Queer folks never fail to amaze me with their ability to show up for a themed event! The place was full of people, which surprised me at first because I’d heard that Kankakee was a smaller and more conservative community. But of course, Queer people are everywhere, in every community, and they certainly showed up for each other on Saturday night. I got to meet some cool humans who really enjoy self-publishing, gender rebellion, and Queer lit, and I truly enjoyed all the conversations I got to have! 

I also sold Pride-themed beaded bracelets by donation to the Kankakee Area LGBTQ+ Network, so there would be another opportunity for folks to support their important work. By the end of the night, we were down to only a few bracelets left and we were able to raise an additional $135 for the cause through everyone’s donations! 

A close-up of my table, highlighting the bracelets by donation displayed in a green school lunch tray. Behind are zines on display.

A big thank-you to Bri from ELL for having me as a vendor at this event, and to the ELL/Majestic Theater teams for putting on such an amazing night! I encourage you to check out the Kankakee Area LGBTQ+ Network and support their important work as well.

After an hour drive back home and about four hours of really-anxious almost-sleep, we got right back on the road at 6am Sunday morning, headed to Woodstock. Earlier this spring, I was invited by Kelly and Michael of The Records Department to join them at Woodstock Pride as their featured artist (!!) for the day. I immediately said YES, of course! Not only do I love the Woodstock community and their always-amazing Pride events, but The Records Department is one of the most cool, punk-rock, stand-up-for-what’s-right small businesses I’ve ever encountered. I was honored to have been asked to join them for the day and wanted to curate a cool, interactive art booth that would honor our shared DIY spirit and give the community a chance to think about their genders in new ways– and share their experiences with each other. 

I decided to have three main stations in the booth: a main “for sale” zone for all my zines, prints, stickers, and bundles (plus freebies, including the KYR cards and my What’s a Zine minizine), a Gender Ecology Community Collage station where folks contributed their experiences to our shared collage, and a Positive Message Exchange where folks left messages of support on cards for LGBTQ+ and other marginalized people. I decorated the booth with handmade signs, made in the classic DIY fashion of cardboard and Sharpie (hey, I just moved! I have a lot of cardboard!). Each station flowed naturally into the next, and we were grateful to have a full space empty next to us so there was plenty of room for people to gather (thank you, organizers!). 

And gather they did- Woodstock Pride was absolutely packed all day long. Between the parade, the live music, the food trucks, and the drag show– there was a big draw with lots to see and do all day! We barely had enough time to get the tent set up before folks started coming through. My wonderful wife and roadie for both days (@queerwitchtattoo) staffed the interactive art station while I took the zine setup at the front of the tent. All day, we both had really amazing conversations with people out enjoying the community feel. I talked to what felt like hundreds of Queer folks, their families, allies, and activists about the importance of self-publishing and Doing It Ourselves right now, about gender and perception and becoming who we really are, about what is happening in the world and what we can do about it, about mental health and love and loss. People left thoughtful, hopeful, inspirational, and brave messages to each other at the Positive Message Exchange. I gave away about as many zines as I sold and made sure to let folks know that all my work is available for free as digital downloads on my website- so my zines can continue to be accessible to everyone regardless of budget. 

The Gender Ecology Community Collage was easily my favorite part of the whole day. We answered a prompt from the first Gender Ecology Minizine: Sense Your Gender. Folks were asked to reflect on what their gender sounds like, smells like, tastes like, feels like. I’d pre-cut a bunch of collage elements and loaded them into scrapbook pages (thanks, @brattyxbre for the idea) and folks chose/made elements that reflected their own gendered experiences to add. You can see the before and after of the board below! I was so struck by everyone’s creativity, open-mindedness to the prompt, and willingness to make something cool and beautiful together. It was great to share Gender Ecology on this kind of scale and I hope the prompt continues to get people thinking! 

While we held down the fort in the tent, the Records Department team ran a DIY patch-making table and were open for business as well. The storefront and the tent were both slammed nearly all day, and the support from the community was so encouraging and uplifting. To see so many people show up for all the small, Queer businesses vending at this year’s Pride gave me so much hope, even as things are dark and uncertain around us. 

I am so, so thankful to have had this opportunity to make connections, share the good word of self-publishing and zines, and give the Woodstock community a place to express their genders through art. I am coming away from this weekend with many new folks on my email list, a heart full of Queer joy, and a significantly lighter inventory! Thank you to The Records Department for having me, and for all the important work that you do! Please continue to support them through showing up for events, buying records, and sharing their work. It’s through community that we thrive and survive! 

Finally, I’m pleased to report that both events went off without a hitch (at least, that I could see) and with no major disruptions from detractors. I was fully braced for a fight this year– for bigoted protestors, for demonstrations, for outright violence. But the well-organized nature and the large crowds of people unabashedly showing up for their communities at both events made for peaceful and joyful celebrations. This weekend reminded me that we are stronger together, that showing up and doing the thing is important even when you’re afraid, and that those of us with a platform have a responsibility to use it for good.

We cannot succumb to hate and fear, and we cannot go down without a fight– even if our weapons are cardboard, paper, Sharpies, and glue.