On Saturday the annual Warrensburg Pride Festival took place at the same venue as last year. The well-attended family friendly event included vendors, information, activities, entertainment, music, discussions, speeches, swag, food (and an outdoor food truck!). There were protesters.

Several statewide and local Democratic Party candidates attended and spoke at the event.

Elad Gross (D), the Democratic Party candidate for Attorney General, attended, spoke to the crowd, and visited one-on-one with attendees.

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Elad Gross (D): [….] As Attorney General I will start Missouri’s first civil rights division in the history of our state. It’s about damn time that we have one [applause]. Twenty other, at least twenty other, twenty-eight other states have one. Most states have one, including the, uh, vaunted Democratic capital of Oklahoma. I mean, come on, like, we need to have one. Okay? And we need to protect our rights, we need to protect our rights to reproductive freedom, which we will put in the state Constitution this November [applause]. We need to protect our rights on the job, we need to protect our rights in education, we need to protect our rights in public housing.

And I know that the state legislature refuses to pass the Missouri Non-discrimination Act, or MONA, which is a statute that would say you cannot discriminate against folks because they’re gay, because they’re a member of the LGBTQ community.

Well, I’ll tell you what. Whether or not they want to pass that law we are going to enforce that right. Because that is the right that every American and every Missourian already has. And our civil rights division will make sure that right is protected here in the State of Missouri [applause].

[….]

I think we need an Attorney General who represents the people of the State of Missouri, not big government, not big corporations that are paying for them, but for you and your family. And as your Attorney General I will get that office working for you again.

It’s about time that your rights are protected in our state and it’s about time that those folks who want to take ’em away suffer the consequences. So, we’ve got a lot of folks that we got to get elected, we got a whole lot of folks that we got to start suing, and I would be honored to be your next Attorney General to do that.

[….]

Previously:

Warrensburg Pride Festival – June 26, 2021 (June 26, 2021)

Local busybodies engage in pearl clutching (June 3, 2022)

“I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians, they are so unlike your Christ.” (June 4, 2022)

Pride Festival – Warrensburg, Missouri – June 4, 2022 (June 4, 2022)

The pearl clutching right wingnut bigots among us (April 19, 2023)

Always the other (April 21, 2023)

Meta – The pearl clutching right wingnut bigots among us (April 22, 2023)

Unified Field Theory of Right Wingnut Pearl Clutching, Self-Righteousness, and Victimhood (April 22, 2023)

Addressing Bigotry – Warrensburg, Missouri City Council – April 24, 2023 (April 25, 2023)

Addressing Bigotry – Warrensburg, Missouri City Council – April 24, 2023 – part 2 (April 26, 2023)

Addressing Bigotry – Warrensburg, Missouri City Council Meeting – May 8, 2023 (May 9, 2023)

Addressing Bigotry – Warrensburg, Missouri City Council Meeting – May 8, 2023 – part 2 (May 9, 2023)

Addressing Bigotry – Warrensburg, Missouri City Council Meeting – May 8, 2023 – part 3 (May 9, 2023)

Addressing Bigotry – Warrensburg, Missouri City Council Meeting – May 8, 2023 – part 4 (May 9, 2023)

Addressing Bigotry – Warrensburg, Missouri City Council Meeting – May 8, 2023 – part 5 (May 10, 2023)

Living in a self-imposed cultural vacuum (May 10, 2023)

A downward spiral…of pearl clutching (May 25, 2023)

Warrensburg Pride Festival – June 3, 2023 – Returning to Family Friendly Format (May 26, 2023)

Thoughts and… (May 27, 2023)

Everyone is here for the ratio (May 28, 2023)

All means all (May 29, 2023)

Warrenburg, Missouri Pride Festival – before the crowd – June 3, 2023 (June 3, 2023)

Warrensburg, Missouri Pride Festival – hand wringing, pearl clutching, and sign waving in the noonday sun – June 3, 2023 (June 3, 2023)

Warrensburg, Missouri Pride Festival – June 3, 2023 (June 3, 2023)

Warrensburg, Missouri Pride Festival – June 1, 2024 (May 19, 2024)

Warrensburg Pride Festival – June 1, 2024 – Starting at 11:00 a.m. (June 1, 2024)

Warrensburg Pride Festival – June 1, 2024 – Across the street (June 1, 2024)

Warrensburg Pride Festival – June 1, 2024 – on being an Ally (June 1, 2024)

Warrensburg Pride Festival – June 1, 2024 – Same Planet, Different Worlds (June 2, 2024)

Warrensburg Pride Festival – June 1, 2024 – useless platitudes pave the road to self-righteous certainty (June 2, 2024)

Breaking News: Pearl Clutchers Clutch Pearls (June 3, 2024)

Warrensburg Pride Festival – June 1, 2024 – Crystal Quade (D) (June 4, 2024)