HOLLAND, Mich — A Pride Month event on the lakeshore has been postponed. A drag queen story time event for children, planned by LGBTQ organization Out On The Lakeshore in Holland, will no longer happen because of safety concerns.
The event was going to happen on Monday night.
"We'd had this planned for well over a month now, as part of our pride month offerings," says Kate Leighton-Colburn, Executive Director of Out On The Lakeshore.
But she says that began to change when talk of a protest spread online among a group of close to 50 people.
On top of that, Holland's Pride Festival on Saturday saw protestors intervene more than ever.
"The protesters entered the park for the first time ever, they'd been on the outskirts the last few years outside of the park," says Leighton-Colburn.
While she believes in their right to protest, the venue at Holland Community Center has a small space that has her worried.
"They're welcome to protest, but I felt like it would be really upsetting to folks if they were surrounded when they were entering the building," says Leighton-Colburn. "We're thinking about emotional and physical safety here. I'm trying to avoid an escalation of that kind so that no one gets hurt."
While a new date is and venue are planned, she hopes to clear any misinformation around the event.
"It's a family-friendly event, we're reading developmentally-appropriate, age-appropriate books for children," says Leighton-Colburn. "And someone will be dressed up in costume like they would at like a princess story hour, which happens all the time as well."
Leighton-Colburn says she hopes to reschedule the event for early in July. For updates, she encourages people to check the Out On The Lakeshore Facebook page.
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