This morning, Nashville Pride announced it's intention to take a wait-and-see approach to rescheduling the annual event, while it explores alternative dates should rescheduling be necessary. The organization released the following statement:
The Nashville Pride Board of Directors along with our festival partners and Metro Government are carefully and closely monitoring the COVID-19 virus and its impact on this year’s Nashville Pride Festival and Parade. At this present time, the celebration is still scheduled for June 27 and 28 at Public Square Park and we have modified our schedule of events for the months and weeks preceding. The Nashville Pride Board has been working closely with Metro departments to secure alternative dates in late summer or early fall should they be needed.
Nashville Pride is dedicated to ensuring the safety of our community, partners, vendors, and artists and we will do everything possible to ensure a safe operating environment. Information provided by public officials, healthcare professionals, and industry experts will guide our final decision in the coming month.
Paula Foster, Nashville Pride’s current Board President, stated “Over the last month, Nashville and Middle Tennessee have experienced two events that dramatically have impacted our way of life. One event brought us together and the other is now causing us to become socially distant for a while. Our mission is to bring people together and celebrate the lives of the LGBTQIA+ community in our region. As such, it is important we come together as a community and we are striving to ensure that this year's festival takes place.“
Nashville Pride has made several changes to it’s operations over the last few weeks and will be engaging in efforts to provide connection for our community during this time.
• Nashville Pride Board and Committee meetings have moved to remote meetings to reinforce social distancing. (https://www.nashvillepride.org/board)
• Nashville Pride’s Community Visioning Project work has moved to virtual meetings and have reopened the task forces to allow for greater participation. (https://www.nashvillepride.org/cvp)
• Nashville Pride is planning a new virtual production of Nashville Pride Live to showcase the immense talents of our community on a streaming platform. (https://www.nashvillepride.org/pridelive)
• Our annual Martinis & Jazz fundraiser has been canceled for 2020 to ensure safe social distancing practices of our community during this time.
Nashville residents can call the Community Hotline if you believe to have COVID-19 symptoms at 615-862-7777. For more information on Metro Nashville’s response or for additional guidance please visit covid19.nashville.gov.
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