Discover CharlestonPride Week in Charleston SC – Everything Is Coming Up Rainbows

By Terry Bell-Aby, Realtor, CNE, Luxury Simplified Real Estate

In the 1930’s when Harold Arlen wrote “I love a parade” who would have envisioned families, church congregations, drag queens, and rugby players parading one and all down King Street with as many as 10,000 people waving rainbow flags during Charleston’s Pride Parade? Indeed, who could have imagined there would be a week dedicated to Charleston Pride, but that is exactly what is in store for the week of September 15-22, 2018.

So – what is the Charleston SC Pride Parade? In a seemingly “love fest ” bursting with colors, sequins, and glitter, members of the LGTBQ community, as well as their straight friends, family and allies all dance and sing, roller skate and dog walk, and celebrate their pride for the diversity & support within the greater Charleston SC community.  Balloons and face paint abound, as the “fabulous ” strut their stuff calling out to friends and family along the way. This is a parade rich with color, quirkiness and an air of over-the-top fun.

The Charleston Pride parade route starts on Wragg Square in the Mazyck Wraggborough neighborhood and routes down King Street past the shops and restaurants filled with the diversity that makes Charleston a great city. When the floats, dancers, and marchers reach Broad Street, a right turn takes the parade past iconic South of Broad and Harleston Village homes and culminates in an impromptu party under the shade trees at Colonial Lake. Where the shops and cafes on King can be found bursting at their doors and packing the sidewalks along the route with tourists and locals alike, the elegant homes along Broad may have elaborate spreads of food and drinks set out on the porches as children decorate the sidewalks with chalk and a lemonade stand or two. The formal “Pride Celebration ” party however, continues at Brittlebank Park for the Pride Festival, complete with vendors, entertainment, food trucks,  and adult beverages if the lemonade doesn’t quench your thirst.

What was once just a parade, is now a week-long celebration (actually 8 days) full of events. The parade however, remains the “rainbow icing on the cake. ”  Here’s a quick list of the events for pride week in Charleston SC – more details about all of these can be found at charlestonpride.org.

• Harbor Cruise
• Drag Brunch
• Pride Interfaith Service
• An Evening with Sarah McBride
• OUT SPOKEN: An Evening of Poetry and Spoken Word
• Alliance For Full Acceptance (AFFA) Guest Speaker, Senator Marlon Kimpson
• LGBTLOL: A Night of Comedy
• Takeover Charleston
• Charleston Pride Parade
• Charleston Pride Festival
• Charleston Pride Prism Party

Note: Our office at 95 Broad Street, located at Broad & King Streets, is just a hair off the parade route, but close enough to the fun for us to decorate our storefront and show our support for equality and diversity … in true rainbow luxury style! You’re invited to stop by … after all, who doesn’t love a parade?