PALM SPRINGS, Calif. - Leather Pride, a festive four-day event filled with vendors, leather education seminars, dance parties and the annual Mr. Palm Springs Leather Contest, will take place Nov. 6-9. The event is organized annually by the Palm Springs Leather Order of the Desert, a pansexual organization of like-minded individuals combining an interest in the leather/SM/fetish lifestyle with an interest in fund-raising for the local community.
Leather Pride kicks off with a mixer scheduled to last from 9 p.m. to midnight Thursday at Hunters. A formal leather cocktail reception follows on Friday from 7-10 p.m. at Hotel Zoso.
Things begin early on Saturday with a breakfast get-together followed by the opening of the Sunny Dunes Street Fair open-air market at noon. The second annual market will run for a full 21 hours this year, organizers said, lasting until midnight on Saturday and reopening Sunday from noon until 9 p.m. The market will include fetish and leather merchandise and art, food vendors, full bar service and a disc jockey.
The Mr. Palm Springs Leather Contest begins at 7 p.m. Saturday. A victory dance will be hosted by the newly crowned leather king immediately following the contest. A silent auction will run concurrently with the Mr. Leather contest, and proceeds will benefit the leather community.
The official Leather Pride closing party is scheduled for 4-8 p.m. Sunday.
Gay-owned and -operated companies Pacific Sun Entertainment and Taboo Leather plan to participate in Leather Pride.
"The gay community of Palm Springs has always been wise enough to celebrate pride during the cooler months, and full leather is not a comfortable option in June," said Pacific Sun manager Pritam Sinha. "With the holiday shopping season fast approaching, now is the time to do some pre-holiday shopping at the Sunny Dunes Street Fair. After all, who doesn't want leather and porn under their tree?"
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