
                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, June 12, 1994                    TAG: 9406120062 
SECTION: LOCAL                     PAGE: B5    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: STAFF REPORT 
DATELINE: 940612                                 LENGTH: Medium

GAY PRIDE MONTH KICKS OFF LOCALLY TODAY WITH PICNIC

{LEAD} Local gays, lesbians, their families and friends will mark Gay Pride Month today at Mount Trashmore Park in Virginia Beach, from noon to 5 p.m.

The sixth annual Gay Pride Picnic is sponsored by the Hampton Roads Lesbian and Gay Pride Coalition. Performers will include the bands Mermaids in the Basement and Melissa Reeves & Strange Brew.

{REST} ``Every minority group has a festival that's part of their culture,'' coalition president Thomas L. Long said. ``This is the kind of festival that's grown up around the United States as a gay and lesbian community celebration.''

Long said last year's event drew more than 1,000 people, and 1,500 are expected this year. For more information, call 489-8000.

The picnic is also serving as a pep rally for Team Hampton Roads/ Eastern Virginia, the region's contingent to Gay Games IV in New York City on June 18-25.

The Olympic-style games will bring more than 10,000 athletes from around the world to New York. Among the participants will be about 150 Virginians, including 40 affiliated with the local team.

The Gay Games, first held in 1982, are held every four years and this year will feature 31 sports. Local athletes will compete in everything from tennis and softball to track and field events and the triathlon. Athlete registration has closed, but tickets are available.

In conjunction with the Games, a multifaceted cultural festival is also being held in New York. Performers include Jimmy Somerville, C+C Music Factory, Phranc, Betty, Janis Ian and Crystal Waters. Call (800) GAY GAME for information.

June is celebrated as Gay Pride Month in commemoration of the 1969 Stonewall Inn riots, a signal event in the gay civil rights movement.

The 25th anniversary of the riots will be marked June 26 with the International March on the United Nations to Affirm the Human Rights of Lesbian and Gay People.

For information, call Virginia Stonewall at 1-358-6789.

Together, the Gay Games and the Stonewall 25 march are expected to bring 300,000 or more people to New York City.

{KEYWORDS} HOMOSEXUALS

by CNB