HOUSTON — Did you know Houston's first pride parade dates back to 1979?
The person who spearheaded the effort to get it all off the ground was a Black activist named Larry Bagneris. He was a leader in Houston's gay community back when times were extremely different.
"I wanted the community to see this," he said. "I wanted them to see the idea that being gay was OK. Back then, we're either going to jail or to hell. That's it."
Bagneris said back in the 1970s, transforming the parade idea into a reality started with getting permits from the Houston Police Department.
"Actually, it was extremely hard as a person of color dealing with the Houston Police Department and being gay," he said. "To get the permit was quite a challenge."
With some major effort, he was finally able to convince HPD and was granted the permit. But on the day of the parade, police underestimated the crowd and sent only two patrol cars for a crowd of around 10,000.
"But we had a wholesome crowd that had a wholesome time that displayed love and affection for each other in a proper manner in a public sphere," Bagneris said.
Bagneris grew up in New Orleans and wanted to give the Houston parade a touch of NOLA by mixing Houston creativity with a Mardi Gras vibe.
To this day, Houston's pride parade continues to mean so much to so many.
"We need a parade to continue to put the community on display, so people can know what type of community they have," he said.
Bagneris plans on coming back to Houston for the 2023 pride parade, celebrating the event he fought hard to create.