By Mike Webb
Houston Splash, often referred to as Black Gay Pride, is an unapologetic celebration of Black and Latinx LGBTQ Pride. In a world where Black and Brown bodies, especially queer Black and Brown bodies, are blatantly targeted and demeaned, spaces like Houston Splash provide our community with the opportunity to embrace our holistic selves. Consequently, this challenges the oppressive norms prevalent in our everyday lives. Therefore, every year during the first week of May, generations of Black and Latinx LGBTQ community members come together for a week-long series of events that allow for us to live and love out loud.
Ironically, Houston Splash evolved from an annual one-day beach party called “Splash Beach Party,” that rose to popularity during the early 90s and was attended primarily by white gay men. As time went on, the white community became uncomfortable by the large number of Black people who attended the event. The white participants eventually moved their activities to another location, the enterprising queer people of color took ownership, and in 1995, what is now known as Houston Splash was officially launched by founders Derick Miles and the late Clifford Hunter. Splash has grown from a simple beach party to a week-long safe and empowering space of unadulterated fun powered by longtime community members Sean Dawson and John Humphries who have continued the founders’ tradition of extending the Splash family to all Black and Latinx LGBTQ folks.
Like other nationally–recognized Black Gay Pride celebrations—such as Miami’s Sizzle and Atlanta’s Black Pride Weekend—Houston Splash has proven itself to be a dynamic week of progressive exploration of the Black and Latinx queer identity, stemming from its unique blend of civic engagement and LGBTQ–centered urban entertainment. Kick off your Houston Splash experience with the first event, “Let’s Talk About It: Mental Health–Redefining Our Narrative,” which takes place on Wednesday, May 2, and is a partnership between Houston Splash and the T.R.U.T.H. Project, Inc. Attendees will experience a deep discussion on mental health within the African-American community, a topic that we rarely openly share with one another because of the disproportionate level of mental health stigma prevalent in queer communities of color. Through partnerships with providers like Houston Adult Psychiatry, Houston Splash prioritizes providing a refreshingly safe space where community members can gain new tools and strategies around how we can individually engage in mental healthcare that is appropriate for our own needs. This is vital for our community, as mental health has proven to be a determining contributor to the spread of HIV and HIV–related deaths, along with a host of other socio-economic challenges that disproportionately impact queer communities of color.
Splash’s commitment to empowering our communities continues through the annual Change Makers Conference. This year, the conference will take place on Thursday, May 3, at the Hilton Houston Post Oak Hotel and will include workshops on how to mobilize communities of color, ensure LGBTQ communities of color are politically empowered, and the latest developments in our fight against HIV.
Of course, Houston Splash wouldn’t be a proper Pride celebration without lots of affirming and sex-positive entertainment, emphasizing Splash’s commitment to celebrating all of who we are as individuals and as a community. In addition to the official night-time parties starting Thursday, May 3, Houston Splash also hosts the Super Social Day Party on Saturday, May 5. The Saturday event, which starts at 4 p.m. at Calhoun’s Rooftop, not only provides time to mix-and-mingle with out-of-towners during the daylight, but also provides opportunities for voter registration, HIV/AIDS testing and education, and additional resources that can help positively impact LGBTQ people of color. Plus, this year’s Houston Splash headliners include transgender TV, radio, and Internet personality T.S. Madison, local LGBTQ DJs of color, and more.
On a very personal note, the most inspiring outcome of Houston Splash is the devotion that a small group of Black gay men commit to entertaining and empowering a community that is often times ignored by our very own at-large mainstream LGBTQ community. I will keep their names anonymous since they value doing the work necessary to progress our communities more than the attention public recognition gains. However, the fact that over 7,500 thousand queer people of color get to celebrate all of who we are every year in Houston is only a testament to how much this small group of Black gay men love their fellow Black and Latinx LGBTQ communities.
Mike Webb is a gender-queer socio-political activist who serves their communities as a Community & Field Liaison for the Texas Freedom Network and is the current President of the Houston GLBT Political Caucus, the oldest LGBTQ civil rights organization in the South.
