Michael Van Sickler asked Bill Foster for his impression of the St. Pete Pride parade on Saturday:
Alas, as he did four years ago, Foster said he saw much of the same adult-themed behavior.
“Nothing was really different,” Foster said. “The organizers can’t control the revelers, who are along the parade route, but they can control the parade participants and the vendors. I’m not going to go into specifics, but it was tailored to an adult audience.”
Asked what he saw that was targeted for mature viewers, Foster said he wouldn’t go into specifics.
Organizers, who said the parade and festival drew about 80,000, said they were puzzled about what Foster saw.
“I’m kind of surprised by this response,” said Chris Rudisill, executive director for St. Pete Pride. “We worked hard to make sure that people behaved appropriately and made sure that everyone felt welcome. Overall, we had a lot of people who enjoyed the festival with their families.”
Dave Shower, a former St. Pete Pride chair, said he believes Foster still isn’t comfortable with gay culture.
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