The 18th annual NWA Pride Parade and Festival Weekend, the largest LGBTQ+ Pride celebration in Arkansas, returns to Fayetteville in full force on Saturday, June 18.
Although Northwest Arkansas Pride is one week earlier than usual this year, we have a feeling we’ll be in for more prideful celebration than ever as the weekend returns to full capacity after two COVID-affected years!
The 2022 edition of NWA Pride will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Miss Gay Arkansas and Miss Gay America pageants, heavily rooted in Arkansas’ Queer history. Norman Jones, and his stage personality Norma Kristie, will serve as this year’s Grand Marshal. Jones has touched the lives of thousands of LGBTQ+ Arkansans and countless others across the country as Miss Gay Arkansas 1972, Miss Gay America 1973, and as owner of one of the largest and longest-running LGBTQ+ nightclubs in Arkansas and the south.
The NWA Pride Festival featuring vendors, mainstage entertainment, and the Equality Crew Youth Zone, will run from 11am-5pm. This year, the parade will follow the festival rather than precede it, starting its route on Dickson Street at 5pm. Organizers have also announced that NWA Trans March will return in 2022 as part of NWA Pride Weekend in an effort to lift visibility and advocate for the trans community. The second annual Trans March, honoring Arkansas' trans and gender non-conforming youth, will begin at noon and end with a rally at the Festival Main Stage in the Walton Art Center parking lot. The highly anticipated return of Glitterville has already made a splash, selling out all premium tickets within 24 hours! Glitterville, the official party of Northwest Arkansas Pride, will be staged at one of Fayetteville's most legendary establishments, George's Majestic Lounge. The 18+ event begins at 8:30pm on Saturday, June 18 featuring headliners Symone, Conway superstar and winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 13, and Maddy Morphosis, Fayetteville’s own, of RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 14. Internationally known circuit DJ Joe Pacheco will also be joining the party along with a slew of local performers and Miss Gay Arkansas America, Athena Sinclair. Tickets are available here, with proceeds funding the production of NWA Pride.
Northwest Arkansas Pride 2022 Schedule of Events:
- Trans March: Saturday, June 18, 2022 / 12pm / Dickson Street, Fayetteville AR
- NWA Pride Festival: Saturday, June 18, 2022 / 11am-5pm / Dickson Street & West Avenue, Fayetteville AR
- NWA Pride Parade: Saturday, June 18, 2022 / 5pm / Dickson Street, Fayetteville AR
- Glitterville: Saturday, June 18, 2022 / 8:30pm / George's Majestic Lounge, Fayetteville AR
For those traveling into town to celebrate Pride with us, The Graduate Hotel at 70 N. East Ave. in downtown Fayetteville is offering special room rates as the official hotel of Northwest Arkansas Pride.
Experience Fayetteville is proud to support NWA Pride and we fully promote acceptance and equality for residents and visitors alike. We hope you will join us at NWA Pride and continue to celebrate one of the most colorful displays of diversity and inclusion in Arkansas!
Parade and festival registration, event schedules, maps, and additional information will be available in the coming weeks.
Follow the Facebook event or visit nwapride.org for updates and more information about the event organizer, the NWA Center for Equality.
