Indy Pride History

The Early Years

Before the 1980s, GLBT Pride as we know it today did not exist in Indiana. There were no gay bars or other safe spaces for those in the GLBT community. The largest hotel in Indianapolis, the Atkinson, had a bar which was known as a cruising spot.  The bar got so “cruisy” that the management hung up a small sign by the door which said “NO’ and then had a picture of a pansy. 

Stan Berg, founder of The Works, and Chuck Avery were Indianapolis’ gay activists.  Chuck had a paper called The Mirror and Stan started The New Works News as a competing paper.  Both papers lasted until the early to mid-1990s.

Stan was known for showing his pride more as “acts of defiance.”  Perhaps his most blatant act occurred when he chained himself to the fence by the Monument on the Circle and waited for the police to cut him loose and take him to jail.  The event was covered on the news since Chuck himself had notified the media before his arrest.

The first Pride event in Indianapolis was a dinner which was held in 1981 at the old Essex House Hotel.  The hotel, now torn down, was located on Pennsylvania Street where today’s Indy Pride Parade turns the corner onto Pennsylvania from Vermont Street.  Justice, Inc. was one of the early Pride organizers.  Justice held a variety of indoor events (banquets, brunches, etc.) through the mid-1980s.  These events featured out-of-town guest speakers and were held at the Essex, Atkinson (where the Hyatt is today), and the Hilton On The Circle (now the downtown Sheraton Hotel).

During this same period, a “second pride” event was held.  This event was a late-summer picnic which was held in a park on the west side of town.  This event was hosted by Johnny Martin and Paul Eckart who owned The Unicorn Club.  The picnic lasted well into the 1990s although it was never “officially” part of Pride.

In 1987, Pride was observed by Justice, Inc. at Riley’s Pub which was located at 650 N. Alabama.  The following year, Pride “came out of the closet” and Celebration On The Circle was held at Monument Circle.  Pride was held on Monument Circle until 1991.  Because of a lack of shade and a request from the City of Indianapolis to have fewer events block the center of town, Pride was moved to University Park.  University Park was the venue for 1992, 1993 and 1994.