San Diego leather men and women are in the midst of Leather Pride festivities, an annual series of events that is part celebration and part community outreach.
“It is the leather community’s chance for a local celebration of what we are all about, and to do outreach to the rest of the community,” said Adam S. Latham, one of the Leather Pride producers.
Throughout the two weeks, the local community gathers together to hosts parties, celebrations, Olympic-style leather contests, workshops, fund-raisers, outreaches, meet and greets and more. The two highlights of Leather Pride are the Ms. San Diego Leather and Mr. San Diego Leather contests.
“Leather Pride is a time to pull out those chaps, harness and grab that leather flag,” said Anthony Rollar, the 2010 Mr. San Diego Leather. “It is a time for the leather community all over the state to come together, meet new people and experience new things.”
“For people in the community, it’s a kind of family reunion and homecoming event,” Latham said. With the popularity of the Internet, which makes networking and connecting much easier, he says leather folk are not out as much. “You can go to events throughout the year, and not see everyone. During Leather Pride, you pretty much will. It’s a chance for everybody to see each other, catch up and celebrate our community, from the community outreach, to kinks and fetishes, to the most important thing in our community, which is the brotherhood.”
In addition to the camaraderie the leather brothers and sisters share, Leather Pride is also a time for anyone in the community to learn about the leather world.
“Some come and just look,” Latham explains. “There are many others that come that are interested and want to learn. It’s a good way for them to learn about whom we are, what we are, and that we are not as scary as you would think.”
Scary? Yes, Latham admits there is a certain amount of fear associated with the leather community.
“Visually, the leather community may be kind of scary. The reason why a lot of us look that way is because it’s quite erotic,” he explained, adding, “There is the domination and submission of it, which is something that scares a lot of people.”
He continued, “Submission is always given willingly and domination is always accepted willingly. There is nothing ever forced. The safe, sane, risk-aware, consensual kink aspect, and trust, honor and respect are all very highly regarded in the leather community. Even though it may look dangerous and chaotic, it is the complete opposite, and that is what attracts a lot of people to it.”
Anyone interested in learning more about the community can attend any of the events during Leather Pride. If you want to know more, Latham says just ask a title holder.
“You’ll have a significant number of people who are willing to talk to you. The obvious ones are the title holders; they will have sashes on or patches on,” said Latham, a title holder himself. He was Mr. San Diego Leather 2004. “These are people that are representatives of the community and are very used to talking to new people and to people who are not familiar with leather in general.”
Even with the leather focus, Latham said not to be surprised if you see a diverse collection of people at the events. Leather crosses over into the gay rodeo, bears, drag queens and more.
“The leather community spans further than just the gay community. It is in itself its own community and very similar to any other where there are gay, straight and transgendered,” he said.
Each Leather Pride has a theme, and this year’s event celebrates and honors the U.S. military.
“Military is something close to leather men and women’s hearts,” Latham said. “We have the opportunity to celebrate them, to salute them for what they have given … and celebrate the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell repeal. And it’s fun to dress up.”
San Diego Leather Pride Schedule
VIP tickets are $75 and are available online. Online costs for just the contests are $10 each. For more information, log on to mrsandiegoleather.org.
March 17
Titleholder Night at Numbers (3811 Park Blvd., in Hillcrest), 7:30 p.m., $5 (free with VIP ticket)
March 18
Mr. San Diego Leather Meet and Greet at The Hole (2820 Lytton Street, in Point Loma); 8 p.m., free.
March 19
Mr. San Diego Leather Contest at Rich’s (1051 University Ave., in Hillcrest); 5:30 p.m. with VIP ticket, or 6:30 p.m. general admission, $15; includes LLBear Dance after.
March 20
Mr. Victory Brunch at Urban Mo’s (308 University Ave., in Hillcrest), 11 a.m., $20 (free with VIP ticket).
Afterglow at Redwing Bar and Grill (4012 30th Street, in North Park), 4 p.m., free.
