River City Pride Festival and Parade to be hosted Saturday in Evansville

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WFIE) - We’re now a couple days into pride month, and Evansville has its annual River City Pride Festival & Parade tomorrow. It’s going to look a little different to how it’s been in the past.

If you’ve been to the pride festival in the past, you might be expecting it to be in Haynie’s Corner, where it usually is. This year, however, River City Pride is holding the festival on Main Street. Organizers say the change is for a number of reasons, but mainly because they outgrew the other space.

Ashley Riester grew up in Evansville, moved away for a time, and has since come back. They say a lot has changed here since they were a kid.

”To see the difference from the Evansville I grew up with to the Evansville now is heartwarming and coming back I knew that I needed to be a part of that change if I was going to see it happen,” said Ashley.

They became president of River City Pride in January of 2022. They say their first pride festival in charge went off better than expected, so well in fact that River City Pride decided to move it for this year.

Its usual home is at Haynie’s Corner, but this year’s will be downtown.

”We’re excited to bring it to downtown Evansville where we’ve got room to grow and space for everybody and it will be a little bit more accessible,” said Ashley.

They say the festival will include food trucks, vendors, and a full day of entertainment; including a drag queen who competed on Ru Paul’s Drag Race.

They also say they’re working with the local sheriff’s office and EPD to ensure the event will be safe for all who come.

The festival won’t be the only event downtown Saturday. They’ll be sharing downtown with three other events expected to draw sizable crowds.

”Parking is going to be insane so definitely come early,” said Ashley.

Ashley says it can be an emotional experience to see the festival come together, and provide a space where everyone can feel like themselves.

”It’s humbling, for sure, to be a part of something this grand, on this scale, and to give it to the community that I love and that I’m a part of and I’m proud to be a part of,” said Ashley. “It’s a lot.”

The festival starts with the pride parade at noon and will run until 10PM. Event organizers say to plan ahead before coming since they’re expecting more than 3,000 people in attendance.

Click here for more information on this event.

Copyright 2023 WFIE. All rights reserved.