Meet the 2023 Houston Pride grand marshals
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It's Pride Month, and the Houston Pride Parade is just weeks away.
Driving the news: Pride Houston 365 has selected its seven grand marshals who will lead the parade.
Details: It's Houston's 45th annual official celebration of Pride. This year's parade take place on Saturday, June 24, from 7pm to 11pm, starting at Houston City Hall.
Here are the Pride grand marshals, nominated and voted on by community members:
Gender nonbinary/nonconforming: Ethan Ganz
- Ganz has worked, volunteered or advocated with a number of organizations including Pure Justice, Texas Advocates for Justice, Houston Climate Movement, Equality Texas and more.
Female identifying: Margarita Pérez Frinsco
- In 2019, Frinsco co-founded Her Destination Unknown, a group that hosted weekly gatherings meant to foster connection amongst the local lesbian community.
Male identifying: Jeffrey Campbell
- Campbell is the CEO of Allies in Hope, formerly AIDS Foundation Houston. He has spent over two decades working in the field of HIV prevention and LGBTQ advocacy in Houston and around the country.
LGBTQ+ ally: Harris County Attorney Christian D. Menefee
- Menefee is the youngest person and first African American to be elected Harris County attorney. He joined in several cases involving protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ youth and publicly refused to follow Abbott's order to prosecute families who provide their trans kids gender-affirming care.
Honorary grand marshal trendsetter: Cameron Samuels
- Samuels, featured as one of Teen Vogue's 2022 21 under 21 list, started a movement against censorship in Katy after discovering an internet ban on community resources like The Trevor Project.
Honorary grand marshals: The Normal Anomaly Initiative and Andrew Edmonson
- The Normal Anomaly Initiative began in 2016 in Houston as a blog to tell the stories of people at the margins and continues to share stories with a focus on advocacy and direct services.
- Andrew Edmonson has fought for the civil rights of LBGTQ Texans, against anti-gay violence, and championed the rights of people living with HIV. He's reported for OutSmart Magazine and the Houston Chronicle, covering key issues impacting the LGBTQ community.