Time Out New York features LGBAC as leaders in Queens Pride Parade

Syndicated from: Time Out New York, http://newyork.timeout.com/articles/features/29961/queens-for-a-day

By Billie Cohen, Photographs by Tim Soter

Meet the proud marchers who kick off Pride Month on Sunday 1 at the Jackson Heights parade.

1. Leslie Becker, percussion, the Lesbian & Gay Big Apple Corps marching band
“If New York City is the melting pot, then Jackson Heights has got to be the flame. You’ve got every kind of culture imaginable right there within a few blocks, and then you get the Gay Pride Parade going right down the middle of it.”

2. Marita Begley, artistic director, the Lesbian & Gay Big Apple Corps marching band
“Parades have a chemistry, and we’ve always had a really positive chemistry with Queens. I get a kick out of seeing people who are maybe elderly or who look kind of puzzled by the whole thing, and then you’ll see the wheels turn. They look at the person next to them and see them clapping, and they start to clap along. I feel like I’m watching people’s minds open, watching them have a change of heart.”

3. Dan Perry, sousaphone, the Lesbian & Gay Big Apple Corps marching band
“Queens was my first parade with the group last year. I got there early, so I was kind of hanging around, and it was obvious that there were some people who were very excited, and some that were kind of wondering what the hell was going on, and some that were not very pleased that this was happening. I was actually called ‘faggot’ that day. [Laughs] So it was kind of interesting to have that experience thrown at you on Pride Day.”