NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. — Pasco Pride is looking for a new location for its "Drag Queen Story Hour" after plans to hold the August 18 event at Peace Hall in Sims Park fell through.
- Group has held event every month since December 2018
- Event regularly draws protesters
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“It is very disappointing. It’s disheartening,” said Pasco Pride President Nina Borders.
The group has held a Drag Queen Story Hour every month since December. Borders said it’s a child-friendly event during which drag queen and Miss Pasco Pride 2019 Stephanie Stuart reads classic books, like “The Giving Tree”, to children.
The event is free, and families are also given a copy of that month’s book to take home.
The event also regularly attracts protesters. Borders said it was that outside pressure that forced story hour from its regular home, the Paperback Exchange in Port Richey.
Need for Special Events Permit?
Pasco Pride rented Peace Hall for August’s story hour at the end of July. Shortly after, Borders said a city official told her she may have to apply for a special events permit since it was advertised as a public event on Facebook.
Borders changed it to an invite-only event for no more than about 20 people. She said she was told she’d still need the special permit due to safety concerns related to potential protesters.
City Manager Debbie Manns said she evaluates the need for a special events permit on a case-by-case basis. She also pointed out that the application for use of Peace Hall notes that special fees and rules or regulations may apply, depending on the event.
When it comes to Drag Queen Story Hour, she said safety and making sure extra security is on hand is a top priority.
“That’s my first obligation to the residents of this community, and under my watch, no one’s going to get hurt,” Manns said.
“We want to be able to rent this hall as every other organization and individual has. There should be no difference. We shouldn’t be judged based on other people’s actions,” Borders said.
No permit application filed
Manns said the group never applied for the permit, so the city wasn’t given a chance to work out details of what kind of additional security would be needed or whether that permit would be granted.
“I still thought it was a form of discrimination and that it was not right,” said Borders when asked why she didn’t apply. “I wanted to give the city a chance to kind of own up to it and roll it back before we actually went to that next step.”
“I don’t believe anything that the city has done is discriminatory in nature. It’s actually just the result of the fact that we need to protect them,” Manns said.
Borders said Pasco Pride is still working to finalize details for an alternate location for August’s story hour. She said she does plan to apply for a special event permit to hold upcoming story hours at Peace Hall.
In addition to encouraging the group to do just that, Manns said city administration is open to talking with Pasco Pride representatives.
Borders said the group is looking into potential legal action against the city.