Maryville College Refuses to Hold Blount County Pride Event

A gay pride group in Blount County said on its Facebook page that it was denied rental space at Maryville College to host an event during “Pride Month.”

“In hopes of replicating the joy and success of our 2023 event at Clayton Center for the Arts, we once again submitted an application to Maryville College for Blount Pride 2024,” Blount Pride said. “Our application was considered for several months, after which we were asked to exclude drag from the festival. We asked the college several questions, including asking them to define drag performance. They did not answer our questions, but instead, two weeks later, denied our application.”

Maryville College is a private liberal arts school with about 1,000 undergraduate students.

According to the school, it does not want to be on the hook for legal expenses.

Last year, Blount County District Attorney General Ryan Desmond threatened legal action over a drag performance that was part of the event under Tennessee’s law banning adult cabarets – including drag performances – in public.

The constitutionality of that law is currently being argued in federal court, and the law is not being enforced.

“The September 2023 Blount Pride event, while successful by many measures, also resulted in extensive legal wrangling, media attention, and protests,” the college said in a statement. “The District Attorney’s actions led to the College incurring tens of thousands of dollars in legal expenses and other costs.”

The college also said that campus safety was jeopardized.

“The College experienced safety concerns prior to the event, with strangers wandering campus and through buildings, looking for College leaders,” the statement said. “Numerous students left campus for the weekend, concerned about planned protests and likely disruption, and in the preceding days, many campus offices and staff members were taken away from normal duties.”

Blount Pride is searching for another location to host its events.

“Following this application denial, we submitted an application for the same venue where Blount Pride 2022 was held, Jack Greene Park,” the group said. “Our application is currently still pending approval from the City of Maryville.”

The group vows to “continue to host events, share local resources, and build connections.”

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Pete D’Abrosca is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Pete on Twitter/X.