Pride fee to raise cash for LGBTQ support centre
(CNS): The Cayman LGBTQ Foundation will be charging $100 per person for the full package to join the second annual Pride Parade in the Cayman Islands and the after-party. To just join the Parade costs $50, which includes a t-shirt and soft drinks. Though some people have criticised the decision, the leader of the organisation, Noel Cayasso-Smith, said that they need to raise money to cover the cost of the event and towards the acquisition of a support centre for young members of the community whose decisions to come out have left them homeless and rejected by their families.
“We are charging a $100 fee to enter Pride Parade because we did not get enough support for funding,” Cayasso-Smith explained in a social media video message, noting that the event is costing around $40,000. However, the main reason for the participation charge is the need to raise money to support the growing number of people in need in the LGBTQ community.
“Over the last thirteen months we have had a lot of people coming forward with issues with family, being put out of their homes because they have decided to be true to themselves and join the LGBTQ community openly,” he said. “The foundation, since last year, has been working on building or purchasing a facility that would house people in transit until they get back on their feet and be able to function in society.”
Cayasso-Smith said the money raised would be going towards this goal of an LGBTQ shelter, which would also provide a hub for members of the LGBTQ community to get advice, support, counselling and testing.
While people have welcomed the aim to create such a centre and are happy to pay for the after-event, where most of the costs are incurred, some people have expressed concern that there is a participation fee for the Pride Parade itself, which is an opportunity to raise awareness about the community and for people to show solidarity with LGBTQ rights.
The celebrations for this year’s Pride Week will begin with a free event on the afternoon of Saturday, 23 July, when the Rainbow Flag will be raised on Seven Mile Public Beach.
See the full video message here.
Visit the Cayman LGBTQ Foundation website for more details about Pride 2022.
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Category: Community, Local News
More traffic obstruction over stupidness.
This is for time 11:09 am you is a big edat only if god was like you,you would never finished that sentence stop play with god he is not your companion dam fool .
…umm…is it me or does anyone else see the irony in this comment? LOL 😂
It’s pretty much you.
Typical progression of an NGO these days.
Starts out as a cause.
Becomes a social justice issue.
Gains popular support and morphs into a movement.
Develops into a business.
Becomes a racket.
Turns off its original core supporters and fades away with no one knowing where the money went.
So sad but true.
Paying to be in a parade? Noel hold a hat out like the church does. You might get more than you expect.
name one parade you dont have to pay for you lunatic
I’d be interested to know on what basis they consider that they are able to charge people to exercise their right to walk on a public highway at a particular time.
In any event, even by Cayman standards this is a particularly stupid decision. Taking a step which will inevitably reduce participation directly harms efforts to build a consensus in favour of wider rights. If people wish to show their support they should be free to do so without being required to pay for the privilege, and imposing a charge shows a fundamental lack of respect for that support.
My girlfriend spent $400 on a costume package for me and 3 next man to dry hump her on the streets for 6.7 hours.
As much as I wanna agree here, charging to “exercise their right to walk” is quite normal here even for heterosexual events.
“which is an opportunity to raise awareness about the community and for people to show solidarity with LGBTQ rights.”
Many people do have compassion and understanding for the LGBTQ community but most are simply nonchalant. Which is the best outcome and surely the goal. Just to be able to be you, in society. If people don’t go to these events for most it just means it doesn’t bother them either way, they are already accepting and have been for years. It’s a total non issue. It does not mean that they are not an ally which is being banded around. Most good hearted folk just want this community to get on with their lives and be happy.
For decades have been raising awareness about
• cancer
• congenital disease
* heart disease
* diabetes
• breast cancer
• global warming
* teenage pregnancies
* drunk driving
the list can go on…
What have we achieved so far, other than making the invited “celebrities” richer?
I am on a disability with a rare condition. I don’t organize parades so community would be aware of me, my condition and my suffering. I don’t need special treatment from community, recognition, understanding, empathy etc. There are thousands people like me.
Maybe I am missing the point of the parade, but it appears you have to be wealthy to able to celebrate and be proud of your sexuality in the Pride Parade organized by the Cayman LGBTQ Foundation.
I have always thought that Pride Parades and the Community they represent are about inclusivity.
People come on here going on about how they have to pay for Pride Parade. You have no idea of what it cost to put on such an event, I can say it costs quite a lot worse when you don’t have enough sponsors.
What about when people pay over $300 for Batabano or CayMas costumes every year. The $100 includes Ten food and drinks tickets, and a chance to enjoy the company of others while listening to great Drag Acts (along with a goodie bag, wrist band, and shirt)
Last year Pride had great sponsors so it was free, as the saying goes “there is no such thing as a free lunch” be grateful one year was free besides Pride is raising money for a good cause to help those who are in need.
I AM PROUD TO BE PART OF THE CLGBTQF COMMUNITY, TIME FOR PEOPLE TO WAKE UP AND STOP DISCRIMINATING AGAINST US.
Seriously, just get on with loving and living your life. Great you are proud and in cap locks too. People are NOT against you. But the victimhood grates on good people. Repeat, people are NOT against you. Stop with the unnecessary division when there is simply not the need for it.
Well you might not be against them but sadly there are MANY MANY who are. So please don’t devalue their struggle is real.
I would say the fact that the Islands continually reject gay marriage, the politicians speak out against it, and people were willing to take a case to the highest court available to fight the fact that it had become permitted suggests that maybe, just maybe, some people might be against it
Every other Pride parade in the world finds a way to offer free participation to those who cannot otherwise afford to contribute while covering its costs.
…ɢᴏᴏᴅɪᴇ ʙᴀɢ, ᴡʀɪꜱᴛ ʙᴀɴᴅ, ᴀɴᴅ ꜱʜɪʀᴛ… This junk would go strait to the Dump
I thought Cayman is trying to reduce its carbon footprint.
And not only that, where does the $300 for the Caymas and Batabano carnival go? At least the $100 for this parade is going towards a good cause.
But those people make the choice to spend that money on themselves. i.e they are purchasing a costume. Where are the funds going? has trust been set up for this building?
Is the president of this organisation elected? and Who are the other board members? or is it a board of one?
Is this The Cayman LGBTQ Foundation registered as a non- profit
I thought this was a LGBTQ article; what the hell is CLGBTQF?
They keep adding letters
Acronyms are getting confusing.
This obsession with acronyms is so weird, can’t we just all be “people” would eliminate a lot of the hate and conflicts if people didn’t spend so much time trying to define and label each other
Weird. Imagine if Martin Luther King had charged $100 to participate in civil rights protests.
I’m all for the cause here but please try not to lose the plot.
Oh no, they have been to the mountaintop and that for you is $99.99. classic!
Alot of expense goes into organizing this event including bringing drag acts from overseas, merch, drinks, food etc.
Perhaps if donations or sponsors were available like they are for other events i.e. Capella, there would be
no need for a fee.
Why not just ask for donations from local firms? Sure they would be happier to fork out money for the publicity over people paying 4x the amount than for other events (especially considering the cost of living crisis now!?!).
Just make a raffel as someone else said, the synonymous way of raising money in Cayman.
Great idea, why don’t you go ask the owners of Vampt motors for a sponsor. If for some odd reason they decline, then try Flowers or Kirks.
$100m for me and my wife to take part in the parade? Sorry Cayman LGBTQ but you’ve priced yourself out of the market with that one. Yes the centre is a great idea but that is far too much to ask.
Give your heart to god .
What’s he going to do with it?
Certainly, nothing you would or could do with or to it….joker!
The mean hateful bigoted imaginary God. How hateful to worship such a thing!
You first.
God is gay. Prove me wrong.
What really costs $40,000???? a few things fishy about this
Nothing fishy here. Other events have the benefit of spreading out the cost amongst different participants like CayMas, pirates week, Batabano the various heritage days. Here you have one organization that has to bear the cost of everything for a good cause.
Um, a centre for discriminated individuals on island….
The article says the event will cost $40K. Would love to see that breakdown.
Thanks Noel! The centre sounds like a great idea and a worthy cause.
Would it make sense to raise money for that separately, so that the parade can be open to anyone who wants to attend, including those in our community who can’t afford 50 or 100?
Also, is the cost of the parade so high? Or is the cost of the goodie bags, the t-shirts and the after party so high? If it’s the parade itself, who paid for that last year (when it was free to everyone who wanted to participate)?
Pride parades themselves are not usually fundraisers—they are demonstrations of support and solidarity for the LGBTQIA+ community, designed to increase visibility of LGBTQIA+ individuals and their allies within the community. I’d love to see as many people as possible showing their pride, regardless of whether or not they can afford 100.
If people want goodie bags and t-shirts and and after party, too, then I don’t see anything wrong with charging for those items separately, and raising lots of money for the centre there and at all of the other events you have planned, but can’t walking in the parade be open to everyone?
Honestly who wants a goody bag anyways? So antiquated!
What the heck does the “+” stand for?
It stands for any other category of people who do not fit into the cisgender heterosexual category.
Do some research and don’t be so ignorant
Youve got Google I’m sure…
Google is a search engine, it gives results of your search input not necessarily factual information. It is a shame that so many people think it to be an authoritative domain. Furthermore, did you know that if two people in two different countries search for the same thing they will not likely get the same results.
If you Google +, you will find the lgbtq answer among all the other uses of +.
Wow – what a crying shame we have to pay $100 to march in what should be a free parade.
Why again? to raise funds for a home, which is a pipedream that needs lots of funding.
Can we organise another parade that can represent PRIDE without the political bullshit, especially after last year’s blunder by actually preventing Ms Day her and partner from joining the parade? These ladies are ICONs on PRIDE. I don’t like our crab in bya barrel mentality here, but Noel, you have crossed a line. There is no justification for a fee of this size.
Suggest they consult the weekend forecast and pick a rain date. It is Wednesday, three days out. Buy some time to rethink fundraising ambitions. Canvas allies/corporate donors that have material fundraising ideas and experience they can lend to this. Horrible to learn that Caymanian families are treating their own kids/family this way. CIG Family Support should offer a lead investment of $1mln.
Scrap the merch and make it a $25 raffle with donated corp prizes for those that care about that. $25 is the discretionary unit trigger price for lesser fundraisers raising more money.
How about they publish their association account details so willing people can make a donation? Maybe even people from overseas.
of course not a bat of an eyelid about people paying hundreds of dollars to be a part of Caymas or Batabano. These things still cost money to organise.
They get sponsorships.
Curious it is that the sponsors of Caymas and Batabano arent involved with the Pride event!
Why? Is Gay Pride mandatory now ? Thought this was about personal choice! Are we bullying for support now ?
Caymas and Batabano are not equality marches.
The folks in Pride parade are being their true selves, not wearing a costume or acting out fantasy. It should be free in every sense of that word.
Nothing is free in this Island anymore
Walking on the beach and swimming in the ocean is and it’s heavenly
Things were so much easier back in
Llanddewi Brefi when i was the only gay in the village.
Daffyd Thomas
Computer says nooo!
Whomever wrote this is a cultured jem.
*Types 2 keys on the keyboard* Computaaa says nooooo.
For those unfamiliar, Google Little Britian.
The LOL button needs to be brought back!
I hope more than the Premier turns up this year, how embarrassing that he is the only member of his Government willing to separate himself from the religious zealots and stand up for LGBTQ rights. Come on Julie, Jon Jon, Chris, Kenneth, Jay, Sabrina, Andre, Bernie, show some backbone for once and join your Premier in fighting for us.
They won’t. They are cowards.
Why is it cowardice to not attend an event that goes not align with your personal core beliefs?
That sounds more like courage to me.
What has the Premier actively DONE in support of the LGBTQIA+ community beyond pose for photo ops and say words? All you fell for that so quick, he hasnt spoken a single solitary word in support since he got elected. Open your eyes…the government could EASILY set aside funds for the purposes in the article but has chosen NOT TO. He campaigned in support of the community and then disappeared and you single him out like he is so different.
In any event, considering ALL the commentary in support of civil partnerships etc in Cayman, the fact the Pride Events have to be paid is disgusting. Where are all the private sector donations, government funding???
I get so sick of the lip service here in Cayman (and before you tell me to hop on a flight, I am a Cayman as of right).
Why should the private sector feel they should have to donate. They may be donating to other causes, which is their right to do so, and then simply wish you all well. Why so disgusted? This comes across as a little demanding at best.
I am not a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. What I am saying is praising the Premier when all he did was piggy back off a cause that was high profile at the time only to do absolutely nothing to actively assist the cause is horrible.
There were so many comments on CNS in support of the civil parternship introduction that it is shocking to now see that there is no actual financial support for CIG or private sector. So what was all the lip service for?
The Premier walked with the Parade and gave his support to equality in Cayman. Alden and the PPM would never have done that..I used to often wonder why Noel was so pro PPM when they were so anti-gay. All that being said, why would the Government set aside funds for a Pride Parade. Which government in the world does that?
This is not a parade to make money. It is a parade to celebrate gay rights. Those that want to support it and walk with them have to pony up $100 a pop. Is it really then about equality because what the LGBTQ organization is telling me is that if I want to support them I better bring $100 otherwise stay off the street and out of the parade.
Wouldn’t it have been better to do something like sell t-shirts and mark them up to make a profit. I wouldn’t mind paying $25 for a T-shirt but I will be damned if I am going to pay to walk.
Noel needs to get out of this and stop being a drama queen. He made it controversial last time when there was no need and doing it again this time.
This parade even with collecting a $100 from each participant would not be a drop in the bucket to purchase a home or even a piece of land.
Let people come out and show their support and enjoy themselves and support the community. Making this a commercial and money making event will cause even smaller numbers of people to come out. Myself included.
Finally a politician who is not controlled by the “tooth fairy”
Yaaay Wayne Panton
They miss the point. They are fighting for EQUALITY. Not separate but equal resources, available exclusively to them. That is called apartheid. This is not based on nationality (which can be legitimate) but on something more fundamental (race, sexual orientation etc.).
Housing, counseling, food, etc. should be available to anyone in need. The moment you try to limit that to your own group, you lose the support of others. Shame.
Terrible timing to ask supporters to fork over that kind of money to participate.
So this parade will have about 50 people max in it then? There is not a lot of LBGTQ+ support on this island or in the Caribbean in general so its not surprising they want to charge.
To be honest, as backwards as Cayman may seem, we are actually one of, if not the most socially accepting Caribbean islands. Our younger generation is MUCH more open-minded than our neighbours. I’ve travelled around the Caribbean and observed attitudes towards the LGBTQ+ community, and Cayman, from what I’ve seen, seems to have a larger number of people who are more accepting. But obviously there’s still work to be done.