Attendance expected to double; trans mayor to appear
DAVID TAFFET | Senior Staff Writer
taffet@dallasvoice.com
Texas Latino Pride begins at 2 p.m. on Oct. 14 in Reverchon Park, but the fun begins earlier.
Jess Herbst, the transgender woman who is mayor of the Collin County city of New Hope, will appear from noon to 1:30 p.m.
Herbst made history earlier this year when she became the first transgender elected official in Texas. What’s been even more heartening about the story is that the people of New Hope are fine with it, because, well, Herbst does a good job and that’s all they’re concerned with.
Herbst will be on hand before the Pride celebration to sign “rebirth certificates.”
Joshua Patron, who’s organizing the rebirth certificate event, said the stereotype is that narrow-minded people come from small towns. But in Herbst’s case, “That’s just not true,” he said. “She’s the perfect ambassador.”
So Patron is making up a special rebirth certificate that transgender individuals can get Herbst along with their family members and friends to sign, as an affirmation of their identity. And as Patron points out, while it may not be official, it will be signed by an elected Texas official.
Texas Latino Pride runs until 9 p.m. Tickets are $5, and funds raised will support AIDS Interfaith Network’s Manos Unidas, a program that works to prevent the spread of HIV in the Latino community. This is the first time Latino Pride is charging an admission fee, but indications are that more than twice as many people plan to attend this year, compared to last year, organizers said.
Headlining the festival are La Sonora Dinamita, a cumbia band well-loved in the Latino community that’s been performing since 1960, and Stefani Montiel, a powerful vocalist who sings everything from heart-wrenching ballads to salsa-infused cumbias to her signature mix of
Latin and R&B. Additional musical guests are Armada, Mariachi Magnifico and Aliaza Rumbera.
DJs are DJ Level and DJ Mateo.
Chris Sapphire and Krista De La Rosa return as this year’s hosts.
An afterparty follows the festival at Kaliente on Maple Avenue at Hondo Street.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition October 13, 2017.