How Fayetteville, Arkansas, Celebrated Pride
Taylor Madison Monroe dipped her eye-shadow brush into a half-full cup of vodka Coke before lining her lids with black pigment. She normally uses water to darken her winged eyeliner, but this was closest at hand—and she figured the liquor made it sterile. She’s backstage at George’s Majestic Lounge in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Her makeup brushes and powder are on the folding table in front of her, a Hollywood mirror lights up her face, and “Starships” by Nicki Minaj is thumping from the stage behind her. She’s getting ready to perform at Glitterville, a celebration during Northwest Arkansas’s 21st annual Pride Weekend.
“It literally sells out in 24 hours,” Monroe said as she powdered her face. “It’s like a Dolly Parton ticket!”
The party included performances by Ivy Dripp, Shanel Sterling, Jorgeous, and Audacity Twinx, followed by a set by DJ Drew G. Guests came dressed in everything from hot pink wigs, go-go boots, and sequined leotards to Bass Pro hats, cowgirl boots, and Canadian tuxes. They were greeted with rainbow lights, a giant disco ball, and gay anthems that even security nodded their heads to.
Earlier that day, more than 40,000 people had attended Fayetteville’s Pride Parade—the largest turnout since the event’s inception in 2004, according to Northwest Arkansas Equality’s executive director, Joseph Porter.
“I’m very proud of what we have here,” Porter said. “The community here is a heartful community. It’s not without its drama, but we’re really tight-knit.”
The parade filled a mile-long stretch of downtown Fayetteville with music, dancing, and vibrant color. Chevrolet pickup trucks and old Ford Rangers, decked out with rainbow flowers and sparkly fringe, pulled trailers filled with bubble machines and people tossing beaded necklaces and friendship bracelets to the crowd.
Monroe was crowned Miss Gay United States in 2012, making her the first national titleholder in drag from Fayetteville. Miss Gay America 2025, Ivy Dripp, sat next to her in the dressing room. “This is the coolest Pride experience I’ve had,” Dripp said. “And I just came back from WorldPride, which was really, really cool.”
Dripp rolled through the parade earlier that afternoon on the back of a red ’89 Mercedes convertible. She sported a black-and-gold sequined dress, a red curly wig, big black sunglasses, and, of course, the crown from her national title. She said hearing her name announced during the parade as Miss Gay America 2025 was a special moment: “It’s crazy. It’s the coolest, most beautiful gift I think I have ever gotten.”
Northwest Arkansas’s Pride celebration involved six events across the weekend, including Glitterville and the parade. It started with a trans march and rally, followed by a two-day festival, a drag show brunch, and a teddy bear contest. There was even a high tea and pool party on Sunday.
The history of gay visibility in the area is steeped in protest. In 1977, the Arkansas legislature proposed a bill to declare all homosexual acts a misdemeanor punishable by a year in prison. The community reacted with a series of marches led by University of Arkansas students, residents, and local businesses—including George’s, which has been around since the ’60s.
Dripp, 35, who hails from Cut Off, Louisiana, is certainly familiar with the challenges of growing up queer in a southern state. “My roots are back home,” Dripp said. “My family is back home. I want to be around for my nephews and all of that. So to feel like I have to leave in order to be myself and miss out on that entire aspect of my life wasn’t an option.”
On the other side of the dressing room, Monroe said she remembered when Fayetteville Pride drew just a couple hundred people. (At 41, she is the oldest regularly performing drag queen in Arkansas.) “We preach tolerance and acceptance and love for our community so much here,” Monroe said. “And now we got it.”
Fayetteville Pride almost didn’t happen this year. NWA Equality struggled with a significant funding gap back in December, Porter noted, amid rollbacks to DEI efforts across the country under the Trump administration.
“Like a third of our budget could have been wiped out,” Porter said. So NWA Equality participated in a local fundraising weekend called NWA Gives. In years past they hadn’t raised more than $10,000; this year, they raised $36,000.
“We explained to the community, this is what has happened and we need you to step up,” Porter said. “They did, and it was amazing. A lot of people stepped up to make sure we were still able to do this.”
Before the drag queens made their way to the stage for Glitterville’s opener (an iconic riff on Wicked), blue lights and smoke poured over the crowd as Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” came over the speakers. The crowd fell silent in anticipation. Then, when the beat dropped and the queens appeared, the room erupted with cheers, whistles, fan clacks, and screams.
“We’re cherished here,” Monroe told me before stepping out. “We’re loved here. That’s what’s really special about this area.”
Photographed by Harlan Bozeman1/10
Photographed by Harlan Bozeman2/10