Hugs and love from moms highlight MidSouth Pride Fest
Memphis rapper Tori WhoDat saw the sign and beamed. “Love and Mom Hugs,” it read. “Yes!” she said after wrapping her arms around Tammy Clifton.
“It was solid,” she said of the embrace. “It was heartfelt and sincere. And she said she loved me.”
The small gesture went a long way. The New Orleans native, who is a lesbian, said her parents don’t fully support her. Seeing the signs of moms who support their children, no matter their identity, was significant.
“That’s really how it should be,” she said.
A group of about two dozen mothers and a few fathers walked in the annual MidSouth Pride Fest parade through Downtown Memphis on Saturday carrying signs offering free hugs.
“So many people have been rejected by their families,” Memphis mom Chris Pepple said. “Everybody needs a mom hug.”
Dressed in jeans, boots, a leatherpatch-covered vest and a cowboy hat, Doc Steward wanted everyone at the parade to know how he felt about his gay son.
“I wish my son was here,” his sign read.
Steward, of Grand Junction, said a few people saw his sign and were worried his son had died.
In fact, he’s doing just fine. He’s 29 and living in Connecticut. His father just misses him.
“I’ve supported him from day one,” Steward said.
Vanessa Rodley, president of MidSouth Pride, said despite the increased support for the LGBT community, acceptance — especially by family members — is still no guarantee.
“You would think that you’ve heard all the stories,” she said.
But the organization’s email and voicemail inboxes still fill up with children expressing grief over a lack of acceptance by their peers or families.
That’s why the Pride parade, and the festivities that follow, are important, Rodley said.
“Pride is about loving and being accepting of who you are,” she said.
This year’s event was the largest to date, she said, with an estimated 20,000 people and more than 80 groups as parade participants. The parade started at Fourth Street and came down Beale Street and, for the first time, into Tom Lee Park.