When an Arch Isn’t Enough, We Need a Rainbow Circle

Pride isn’t something queer people should only get to enjoy once a year, and Twin Cities Pride is working to make year-round Pride a reality with their new community programming division, The Rainbow Circle. Director of Programming at Twin Cities Pride, Kelsey Alto (she/her), describes The Rainbow Circle’s goal, which is “to partner with local LGBTQ+ people and organizations to provide funding for programming, a place for community to gather, and year-round education and community service programs.” Alto adds, “We are committed to creating safe and inclusive spaces where the beautifully diverse LGBTQ+ community of the Twin Cities will feel welcomed and experience belonging.”

The Rainbow Circle plans to launch its first programs at the Twin Cities Pride festival this year, which runs from June 23^rd-June 25^th in Loring Park. The first program will be a space, according to Alto, dedicated to “honoring the legacy and history of the Twin Cities LGBTQ+ community and providing programming for our senior community members.” Here you will find a shaded area, kept cool with a large tent, fans and free water, that is full of displays from the Twin Cities LGBTQ+ History Tour. Alto says, “Activities in the space include opportunities to share your journey/stories, bingo, mobility yoga, Saturday morning breakfast meet-ups, and more!”

Having a resource for older LGBTQ people will help create a sense of community and have significant health benefits for participants. Alto shares that, “59 % of LGBTQ+ older people report feeling a lack of companionship and 53 % report feeling isolated from others. Research has shown that loneliness and isolation are associated with poor physical health. Some experts have equated the health risks of prolonged isolation to those of smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Our mission is to create community and connection for our aging population.”

The Rainbow Circle isn’t stopping there, however. There will be many programs for all queer people in all walks of life to enjoy and participate in! Alto says, “We are hoping that there will be something for everyone!” And it seems like The Rainbow Circle already has “something for everyone” in the works! In addition to the Silver Circle, The Rainbow Circle will be launching Elevate & Amplify Artist in Residence Program, Community Education, Community Belonging, Minnesota Regional Prides Support Group, and Youth Circle.

Elevate & Amplify Artist in Residence Program is one of the additions to Minneapolis’ booming art scene. Alto says that the program will, “assist artists and culture bearers at all career stages in growing and strengthening their creative practice. Selected artists will work with Twin Cities Pride for a 1-year term.” Creating a space for queer artists to expand their artistic reach and hone their craft is so important. Alto adds, “The first year of artists will be featured at this year’s festival. You can find them over on the newly expanded sculpture garden side!”

Alto explains that The Rainbow Circle will also focus on community education, featuring “workshops, panels, lectures, and more from organizations and individuals in the community. Future sessions will include the following: Navigating the home buying experience as a queer person, family Planning, [and the] business of Being a Drag (How to navigate the business side of being a Drag performer)!” It’s so exciting to live in a time that allows for community education geared towards teaching about queer culture and the queer experience. The work Twin Cities Pride is doing to educate the community—both queer and ally alike—is incredibly essential to the lives of queer people, and helps us not only survive, but thrive. Not only is The Rainbow Circle focused on education, but also on a community belonging series, which Alto says is a “continued partnership with businesses around the Twin Cities… committed to programs and activities that create safe, well-rounded, and enriching spaces and experiences for our communities throughout the entire year.”

Alto also says that “Minnesota has over 33 regional Pride celebrations and the surrounding states are growing their numbers as well,” so introducing the Minnesota Regional Pride Support Group will create an environment that “help[s] smaller Pride organizations as they work to build up their events” during monthly meetings. Twin Cities’ dedication to expanding Pride and ensuring that it is something everyone can enjoy safely is extremely laudable. With the help of The Rainbow Circle, other towns can start experiencing more reach with their Pride events as well.

Very vitally, The Rainbow Circle will also be creating a space for queer youth in a program called Youth Circle. In an already vulnerable community, queer youth are a highly at-risk group. Alto shares, “The Trevor Project estimates that more than 1.8 million LGBTQ youth (13-24) seriously consider suicide each year in the U.S. — and at least one attempts suicide every 45 seconds.” The Rainbow Circle plans on changing these dismal statistics by providing support to queer kids. Alto says, “The Youth Circle aims to accomplish this through partnerships with organizations already doing this great work and through various programs [within The Rainbow Circle].”

The Everyone Can Program is a prime example of a new Youth Circle program which provides, “LGBTQ+ youth the ability to participate in athletics, performing arts, camp and other extra-curricular activities as their true selves,” according to Alto. The Youth Circle will also provide connections and scholarships for queer kids who cannot afford to join, and ensure that participation by LGBTQ youth in the foster care system will have their costs completely covered. The Rainbow Circle is also introducing the New Youth Hideaway, which Alto describes as a “space designed to be a safe place for youth at Pride and give them access to resources that they need, including Safe Programing, Mental Health Professionals, gender affirming clothing, etc.”

Alto sums it up best, “Twin Cities Pride has wanted to expand into year-round community programming for years and we are so excited to finally be making this leap. Because of our platform and the relationships we have in the Twin Cities, we have the opportunity to do more to help the community and that is so important to us. With the anti-LQBTQ+ rhetoric and bills in our country it is more important than ever that we work to create space and opportunities in the Twin Cities for our community to feel safe and welcome.”

If you’re interested in learning more, visit The Rainbow Circle’s website at www.tcpride.org/programs/ !