Equality Weekend greets Human Rights Bus in Eureka Springs

Sept. 8, 2011 - PRLog -- (EUREKA SPRINGS, AR)-The town of Eureka Springs was not on the original schedule for the Human Rights Campaign’s (HRC) “On the Road to Equality” bus tour, but after activists from the city made a heart-felt request to be included, the HRC tour organizers agreed to stop by for a few hours.

The bus will be in Eureka Springs for four hours on September 18 as part of its travels through 11 Southern States. Eureka Springs is the only town in Arkansas with a Domestic Partner Registry and a Family Leave Law allowing city workers time off to care for domestic partners or children, and health insurance for partners of municipal workers.

A weekend festival to honor equality is set for Sept. 17-18.

Beginning Sept. 12, Eureka Springs Carnegie Library will provide free Equality bookmarks and display a selection of books addressing the struggle for equal rights over the course of American history, all of which may be checked out by patrons. This display ends Sept. 18.

Sept. 17, two documentaries will be presented by Social Justice Committee of the Unitarian Universalist Church 17 Elk St. beginning at 2 p.m. with For My Wife, the story of how Charlene Strong transforms herself from an office manager into a full-fledged civil rights activist after terrible treatment during and after the death of her longtime life partner.  At 3:30 p.m., the story of Sage College grad student Erin Davies is presented in Fag Bug. Davies’s VW Beetle was defaced with an ugly slur, and she turned that into a badge of honor, hitting the road to raise awareness of LGBT civil rights.

An Equality Pub Crawl, 4:30 p.m. starts at Pied Piper Cathouse Lounge at 4:30 p.m. and ends at Chelsea’s, after numerous stops along the way at other clubs.
A Drumming for Equality begins at 6 p.m. at the Drum Attic at the Art Colony, 185 North Main.

At 9 p.m, a Drag and Dance for Equality benefit kicks off at Henri's Just One More, featuring Miranda Ray and DJ Deb. Suggested $2 donation at the door will benefit Marriage Equality and the National Leather Association of NW Arkansas.
Saturday, Sept. 18, an Equality Walking Park rolls at 12:15 p.m. downtown.

American flags, rainbow flags and equality flags are encouraged.  The parade gathers at the Eureka Springs post office and marches to the Carroll County Courthouse, 44 S. Main to welcome the "Equality Bus."

The Court House is also the location for the On the Road to Equality Open House, featuring the Human Rights Campaign's Equality Bus, and exhibits, photos and video booths, 1-5 p.m.

From 6-8 p.m. Saturday, The Space, 2 1/2 Pine, presents an Equality Art Show featuring the works of some of Eureka Springs' finest artists, designers, potters, photographers and sculptors. For more information on the show, contact Raven Derge, Practical Magic Art Supply, (479) 363-6395 or basinspringart@gmail.com

At dusk in Basin Spring Park, the Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis and Marylin Monroe 1959 comedy classic, Some Like it Hot, adds a little “reel” equality to the weekend.