Rapid City parade will try to foster inclusivity within, around Black Hills community

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - AAlthough support and legal protection are high nationwide for LGBTQ people, some still feel unwelcome in their communities, and people in Rapid City and the Black Hills aren’t immune.

The Black Hills Center for Equality, along with Liberty and Justice for All, is trying to change that by working together to sponsor a parade in Rapid City. The groups set a June 1 target date, hoping that such an event would provide people with another outlet to express themselves and would create a welcoming feeling in the city.

“They want to have a place that they can call home, and we can make that here in Rapid City. We want Rapid City to be a place that everybody can call home, and this is a great way to do it by having a Pride Parade saying, ‘Hey, everybody is welcome’,” expressed Black Hills Center for Equality president Toni Diamond.

“We represent many different people in our community, though some of them are not represented equally, and so that’s why I’m involved, because even though we’re kind of nestled in the Black Hills, that doesn’t mean we aren’t worldly, that we aren’t forward-thinking, and that we don’t encourage and support inclusivity,” expressed Liberty and Justice for All community outreach person Ranee Haglund. “Inclusivity starts with me; it starts with you; it starts with the kids in the schools; it starts with everyone, and it needs to include everyone.”

To learn more about the parade, you can keep track of the progress on the Black Hills Center for Equality Inc. Facebook page or the Liberty and Justice For All website. To participate, you can email blackhillscenterforequalitysd@gmail.com or info@libertyjusticeforall.org for entry forms.

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