http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/10113620.htm

Group protests gay festival

Photos and comments at May event obscene, Charlotte council told

CRISTINA BOLLING
Staff Writer

A group of about 30 Charlotte-area Christians is asking the city to stop renting park space to the annual Charlotte Pride gay and lesbian festival, because they say aspects of the festival are lewd and obscene.

Seventeen festival opponents -- 15 of whom attended the festival last May in an attempt, they say, to spread the Gospel to attendees -- brought the issue to the Charlotte City Council on Monday.

Festival organizers said they bill the event as family-friendly, but that they'll take care to screen performers who may make inappropriate comments and ensure that lewd photos are not displayed out in the open.

One of the festival's protesters, Sheryl Chandler of Charlotte, brought City Council members photos she said she snapped in a Gay Naturists International booth. She said the photos show naked men, some apparently engaged in sex acts, and that the booth only had three sides so passers-by could peer in. One of the photos showed a uniformed Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police officer in the booth.

She also brought photos of a drag queen act and said an entertainer referred to little girls as "dykes on trikes," and a little boy was applauded for stuffing money into a drag queen's bra.

Chandler said she took some time to decide what action to take and that after contacting Mecklenburg County District Attorney Peter Gilchrist, it took a while to hear back from him. She added she was told Gilchrist decided not to take action. Gilchrist didn't immediately return a call Friday seeking comment.

"I would hope they don't have a festival at all,'' Chandler said. "Sodomy is still against the law in North Carolina, and I don't think they should be celebrating it in our public parks. I don't think they can clean up their act."

City officials say they're looking into the group's allegations before they can make any recommendations to the City Council.

The city leases public space to groups regardless of their affiliations or orientations, and city officials say they don't manage how groups handle their events.

City spokeswoman Julie Hill said she wasn't aware of any past complaints about Charlotte Pride.
Democratic City Council member Susan Burgess said she was "very offended" by the photographs, but said she needs to hear the other side of the story before making any decisions about what should happen next.

"I want to make sure we're getting a balanced view of what actually happened there," she said.
"Having said that, what I saw was absolutely inappropriate in a public park. If organizers allowed that to occur, I think we need to be more vigilant about what we allow in public parks."

Meanwhile, festival organizers say they understand the group's concerns and say they'll make sure graphic photos aren't visible to mere passers-by at future festivals. And they say they'll screen entertainers to be sure they don't "use lewd words," said Nathan Smith, vice president of the Charlotte Pride board.

"Mistakes are made and you learn from your mistakes. You learn what's good and what's bad and what to change," Smith said, adding that most of the event's organizers have left in the past year, with new leaders taking their place.

Charlotte Pride debuted in 2001 and draws thousands of people from across the region, organizers said. Normally, the Saturday portion of the weekend-long festival is held in Charlotte's Marshall Park.

Last year, it also included seminars on topics like workplace discrimination and gay parenting.
Chandler said group members plan to continue pressing the City Council until they get an answer to their request.

Monday's speakers included Flip Benham, director of the national organization Operation Save America, who speaks out publicly against abortion, homosexuality and Islam.

Cristina Bolling: (704) 358-5697; cbolling@charlotteobserver.com.