On Saturday, June 22 there were two events with an interesting contrast: Johnstown Pride and Rumble thru the Valley. Rumble thru the Valley is an event intended to replace Rumble in the Valley, a weeklong motorcycle rally. You can see the video I took of the event below. There were mostly food vendors there with two advocacy groups: an advocacy group for police officers and the Humane Society. There were enough total vendors there for 9 minutes of video.
After checking out the Rumble, I went over to the Johnstown LGBTQ Pride event. The crowd was much larger at the event than last year’s event. In the photo above a Bible beater could only preach across the street because there was no room in the park for him. Below is a video of the same preacher in the lower corner of central park. The preacher was involved in an altercation with one of the activists. He kicked her and was arrested.
There were 76 vendors at the event that covered Central Park in totality. Last year there were between 20 and 30 vendors. The crowds came out in spite of the heat which was in the 90’s. The crowds at both events were about equal but those at the Rumble event had to pay $5 to get in. The Johnstown Pride event was free. There was also security at the Rumble where everyonewas checked with a metal detector before entering.
The Johnstown Pride and Rumble thru the Valley events were satisfying for those who attended. The heat did not deter anyone.