Mike Pence’s Hometown To See First LGBT Pride Parade

The Indianapolis Star reports:

The face painting, rainbow S’mores on a stick and drag performances planned for Columbus, Indiana’s first gay pride festival are for fun.

But organizers hope the April 14 event also will send a message of inclusiveness from the hometown of Vice President Pence, who has a long record of being on the opposite side of issues important to the gay and lesbian community.

“Most people would think that all of us here are also anti-LGBT,” said Erin Bailey, the high school senior organizing the April 14 event. “But there are plenty of us who very much support the LGBT community and are members of the community.”

CNN reports:

A spokeswoman for the vice president says he support the young activists. “Vice President Pence commends Erin Bailey for her activism and engagement in the civic process. As a proud Hoosier and Columbus native, he’s heartened to see young people from his hometown getting involved in the political process,” press secretary Alyssa Farah told CNN.

It’s not the first time that the gay community has trolled Pence. A few days before the inauguration, around 200 protesters marched to Pence’s neighborhood in Chevy Chase, Maryland, for a pro-LGBT rights event. Protesters handed out rainbow flags and danced in the street outside his house.

Columbus, Indiana has a population of 44,000.