CCWF celebrates Pride Month
On June 28, 2025, the Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) the LGBTQIA+ Group hosted its second annual Pride Walk and Ball-athon. The event brought together incarcerated participants, outside advocates and volunteers for a day filled with music, speeches and connection. It took place in partnership with Pollen Initiative and the CCWF Paper Trail.
The event transformed CCWF’s gym and surrounding area into a festive, affirming space. Posters bearing the LGBTQIA+ flag were displayed across the gym walls. The doors were open to the yard, allowing participants to walk laps inside and out. Those with photo ducats were invited to take pictures with multiple backdrops highlighting the LGBTQIA+ community, capturing a moment of celebration and unity.
The morning started at 8 a.m. with outside guests and the decoration team arriving to get ready for the day’s events. The event was scheduled from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. for over 300 participants from all three facility yards. A schedule was in place including LGBTQIA+ history, skits, poetry, guest speakers and musical talent. With an hour and a half slated to walk, it would have given way for the full effect of the program. Being able to sit and enjoy lunch and snowcones with a friend or guest was the intention. A day to celebrate like any other Pride event throughout the country.
However, on the morning of the event modifications were made to the day’s entire program due to shortage of staff. Instead of the program running all day the truncated timeline had to encapsulate all the day’s activities for each yard into an hour and a half per yard. The LGBTQIA+ Group and sponsors quickly restructured the day’s events in order to accommodate the change in schedule.
Once the restructuring took place, the program for each yard began with a speech by incarcerated individual Sagal Sadiq, senior editor at Paper Trail, who emphasized the importance of pride and progress.
“Pride is about progress and it is a reminder we can lift each other up. It is a celebration of authenticity,” said Sadiq.
He also offered a brief but powerful history of the LGBTQIA+ movement, including the significance of the 1969 Stonewall protests in New York City, which ignited the modern fight for LGBTQIA+ rights.
Following Sadiq’s speech, incarcerated person Medeon Dean delivered an original rap performance titled “They Don’t Listen,” inspired by the Stonewall uprising and the ongoing struggle for recognition and justice. The lyrics resonated with the audience underscoring themes of protest, pride, and perseverance.
The event ran smoothly across multiple yards, starting with B yard at 9:00 a.m. and concluding with D yard at 2:00 p.m.
Throughout the day, participants shared space and food. Despite the scorching 90+ degree weather spirits were high as volunteers passed out snow cones, hamburgers and cold refreshments to all. Music, laughter and heartfelt conversations filled the air as individuals walked, balled and talked. Jesse Vasquez, Pollen Initiative Executive Director, was hands-on at the grill, serving food and talking with the participants.
The crowd expressed deep gratitude for the opportunity to come together, celebrate pride, and acknowledge the strength and diversity of the LGBTQIA+ community.
“I did more than 30 years behind these walls and I will continue to share my love and support for those on the inside. I am thrilled to be here,” Chryl Lamar, an advocate with UnApologetically HERS and the California Coalition for Women Prisoners shared.
Ellen Richardson, an incarcerated volunteer and long-standing member of the LGBTQIA+ community, shared, “I’ve been a part of the LGBTQIA+ community since the 1950s. I volunteered at bath houses when thousands were dying of AIDS. If I do anything of service, it will be for this community.”
Diana Jordan, attending in support of a loved one, stated, “I came to support my trans friend who is coming into himself. I am in solidarity with him.”
Outside guests share a similar sentiment. ”We love any opportunity to spend time with the community on the inside,” Emily Wonder from Sister Warriors Freedom Coalition said. “We must celebrate each other.”
More than just a Pride event, this celebration served as a meaningful reminder of visibility, resilience joy even in the face of systems designed to isolate. The second annual Pride Walk and Ball-a-Thon at CCWF was not just a success – it was a statement.
