By John McLoone

Hastings will show its Pride Saturday, June 11.

The Hastings Pride celebrations starts with a parade at 11 a.m., which kicks off at McNamara Field. The parade will head north on Eddy Street, ending at Jaycee Park, where festivities will take place until 10 p.m.

Hastings Pride is organized by the Inclusion, Diversity & Equity Alliance (IDEA) of Hastings.

Familyfriendly events will be held from 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. According to IDEA, “Enjoy a parade of floats and people on foot start from McNamara Stadium and end at Jaycee Park, Pride Fest 2022 commences! Food trucks, music, drag performers, crafts, vendors, and games!!! All ages welcome! Come get your face painted, air brush tattoos, listen to someone’s coming out story, or eat some food while listening to music. Hastings Pride welcomes all!”

At 8 p.m., adults only festivities continue with a Pride Crawl at downtown establishments.

The week’s Pride festivities kick off Thursday night with an event at Spiral Brewery on Thursday, June 9 from 5 – 8 p.m. There will be a screening of the Rocky Horror Picture Show, and popcorn, cupcakes and, of course, Spiral Brewery’s finest taps will be served.

Pride Month Resolution

The Hastings City Council on Monday night read a resolution proclaiming June 22 as LGBTQ+ Pride Month in the city.

The resolution reads: “WHEREAS, we reaffirm our common beliefs, aspirations, and commitments to ensure that Hastings is a safe and caring community for all persons, and “WHEREAS, the City of Hastings is committed to fostering acceptance of all its residents and preventing discrimination, social stigma, and harassment based on sexual orientation or gender identity, and ““WHEREAS, the City Council has adopted a set of strategic priorities that includes ensuring diversity, equity, and inclusion in City processes and operations and helping to make Hastings a welcoming community for all, and “WHEREAS, the City of Hastings recognizes the importance of building protective factors for LGBTQ+ youth in our community, and “WHEREAS, the City of Hastings appreciates the work done by IDEA and by THRIVE to advocate for diversity and equity during this month and throughout the year, and “WHEREAS, we recognize there is still more work to be done to ensure our LGBTQ+ family members, friends, and neighbors are treated equitably and with dignity, “NOW, THEREFORE, Mayor Mary Fasbender and the Hastings City Council do hereby proclaim and recognize the month of June 2022 as LGBTQ+ Pride Month in the City of Hastings.”