Orange County’s first rainbow-colored Pride lifeguard tower now stands at West Street Beach, an area of Laguna Beach’s shoreline known for its history as a haven for the LGBTQ community.
The picturesque stretch with towering cliffs, interesting rock formations and pristine tidepools wedged between Aliso Beach and Thousand Steps Beach was known as a “party all the time” among the gay community. Areas were regularly roped off for dancing and volleyball competitions, and a low-power radio station KWER FM 104.7 (Queer FM) kept everyone in the party spirit.
On the Fourth of July any given year, the celebration hit an even bigger note, with hundreds of people gathering on the beach for fun in the sun and activities that lasted long into the evening, ending with a great view of the city’s fireworks show shot off from Heisler Park.
So, it’s fitting that on this Fourth of July, the new tower will be christened with a fun day of activities hosted by Laguna Beach Pride 365, including a 1 p.m. ribbon cutting. Hundreds are expected to attend.
A plaque celebrating the beach’s history and proclaiming it a safe place for all to gather is still being crafted and will be installed in August during the community’s Pride Festival.
“It’s a fairly simple message that we accept diversity,” Craig Cooley, president of Laguna Beach Pride 365, said about the tower’s installation. “What’s impacted me the most, and brought me to tears, is the number of positive responses we’ve gotten on social media since it went up on June 26.”
While there’s “been so much pushback nationally and in the state legislature” and following the Supreme Court ruling last week that a website designer could refuse to design websites for same-sex weddings, the new tower “has sparked a lot of support,” Cooley said. “The response was overwhelming.”
The timing of the Pride tower’s debut with the Fourth of July is “very significant” because of the importance of…
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