Gay Pride Goes Well and Without Violence in Wausau

 About 300 people walked Saturday afternoon in a March for Equality from Marathon Park to downtown Wausau to demonstrate their support of equal treatment for those in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

The peaceful march had a festive atmosphere, with the diverse group laughing and joking, carrying flags, balloons and signs with sayings such as “Love is Love, Stop the Hate” and “All my children deserve equal rights! Gay or Straight!”

Dwaine Packard, 53, and his partner of 28 years, Chet Haatvedt, 51, of Antigo led the procession, carrying colorful gay pride flags. “We just want equality,” Packard said. “We’re tired of standing on the sidelines, and it’s time to make a stand.”

Considering the drama and controversy that gave rise to the organization of the march, the event itself was almost anti-climatic. Saturday afternoon was chosen for a Gay Pride Parade by an organizer named Daxx Bouvier. That parade drew comments from City Council member David Nutting, who said earlier this month that people should boycott the parade, or, if they went, turn their backs on “deviant-behaving individuals.”

Bouvier canceled his parade a week ago because, he said, participants became worried about their safety after comments in the media and from Nutting.

Meanwhile, after people of the local LGBTQ community could not reach Bouvier, and he hadn’t provided the city with proof of insurance, Shannon Thomas, 35, of Wausau decided to organize the March for Equality. “I felt the parade was going to be canceled,” Thomas said. “And I wanted something in case people showed up. It got really confusing, with people second-guessing my motives.”

All the confusion and controversy may have worked in the March for Equality’s favor in the end, Thomas said. The event was indicative of the support the Wausau area really has for the LGBTQ community, she said.

“We still have a long way to go,” she said. “But I’m so incredibly proud of the support today. The more people who can be who they are and not ashamed of their sexual orientation, the better it will be for all of us.”

There was no evidence of counter-protestors or anyone turning their backs on the marchers. Several people, including Keith Beck, 56, of Wausau, Jeremiah Zeiset, 30 of Abbotsford and Warren Yutzy, 18, of Unity handed out Christian pamphlets and asked marchers to repent their sins.

“God loves you. ... Are you serving God?” Yutzy told the marchers, as he held a sign that read, “Where Will You Spend Eternity?”

“We’re not here to condemn anybody,” Beck said. “We’re here to seek and save the lost. We love people and want everybody to know the truth about God.”

Jeb Holt, 24, of Sheboygan, who is gay and wore a shirt that read “NO H8,” said the march showcased the broad support for equal rights for the gay community. “One in 10 people are gay,” Holt said. “Nearly everyone has a gay family member or knows someone who is gay. ... A lot of people were talking about how this is showing support for teens, who have higher suicide rates. They often feel alone. This shows they’re not.”

Thomas said she intends to organize a parade next year. “I think it’ll be a lot bigger,” she said. “This was after only a week of organization.”

Daily Herald Media

Keith Ulig