Wyoming

‘Pride Lives Here’: Belonging, visibility, identity in Casper’s queer community

Published

6 days ago

June 13, 2026

‘Pride Lives Here’: Belonging, visibility, identity in Casper’s queer community

CASPER, Wyo. — The month of June marks a time of celebration, marches and events for LGBTQ+ communities internationally. In Casper, Pride Fest brings the queer community together through a series of events designed to reflect visibility, connection and local identity.

This year’s theme, “Pride Lives Here,” sits at the center of that effort, grounding the festival in the people and community already rooted in Wyoming.

The kickoff event on June 11 at ART 321 brought painting, food and conversation into a shared space where attendees gathered to mark the start of the four-day festival.

Tree community painting, Art 321, Casper pride kickoff 2026 (Kailee Robinson)

Mallory Pollock, executive director of Casper Pride, said the theme reflects how the queer community exists in the city beyond June. Pollock said it speaks to how people “live and work together not just in June, but year round.”

Among those attending the kickoff event was Casper native Lindsay Scott, who said the theme reflects that “there are queer people in Casper who deserve a voice too because we live here.”

“It felt like it reflected me,” they added.

For Scott, visibility is still a challenge across Wyoming, especially in rural areas.

“There needs to be this kind of presence everywhere,” they said. “If there’s not a central hub for any community, it’s hard to find people at all.”

“The lack of specialized resources for especially Indigenous queer people is completely astounding,” they added.

Scott added that Wyoming culture shapes how people live and express identity, describing residents as “high-desert mountain people” with distinct ways of living.

That connection between place and identity emerged throughout the evening, though not all community members see Pride in the same way.

Gina Douglas, who has attended Pride events across the country, said Pride in larger cities often consists of large crowds attending large parades. She said that in Wyoming, many people are more cautious about visibility.

“All the people that I met, they’re kind of like, ‘Keep your head down, don’t draw fire,’” she said.

Douglas said she believes visibility is still essential for change, though. “All of us need to be more visible,” she said.

She also pointed to Wyoming’s identity as the “Equality State,” arguing that the reality does not always match the ideal. She said that while Wyoming is often framed as equal on paper, it hasn’t extended to everyone in practice, especially LGBTQ+ people.

Despite differing perspectives, community members agreed that Wyoming shapes a unique queer identity. Scott again pointed to the “cowboy queer” identity, saying it felt “very Wyoming and very queer at the same time.”

Together, those perspectives reflect a community navigating what Pride means in practice, not just during celebration. For some, it is community-building and year-round support. For others, it is visibility and protest.

However, participants described a shared reality of being queer in Wyoming, shaped by geography, culture and the balance between safety and visibility.

Ultimately, “Pride Lives Here” is less a statement and more a question the community is still exploring.

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Wyoming

June 18 recap: Wyoming news you may have missed today

Published

45 minutes ago

June 19, 2026

Press Room

June 18 recap: Wyoming news you may have missed today

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Wyoming

250 Portraits self-portrait exhibition now on display throughout downtown Jackson

Published

11 hours ago

June 18, 2026

Press Room

250 Portraits self-portrait exhibition now on display throughout downtown Jackson

JACKSON, Wyo. – Jackson Hole Public Art (JHPA) is proud to announce the
public installation of 250 Portraits, a community art project featuring self-portraits created and submitted by Wyoming residents from across the state. Launched in honor of the nation’s 250th anniversary, the project invited Wyomingites of all ages and backgrounds to submit portraits of themselves or other Wyoming residents, resulting in a vibrant and deeply personal collection of artwork.

Portraits were submitted by artists ranging in age from 5 to over 80, representing residents from 16 of Wyoming’s 23 counties. Participants included individuals, families, school groups, and educators who worked with their students to take part. The result is a wide-ranging snapshot of the people who call Wyoming home, from young children just beginning to express themselves through art to lifelong residents reflecting on decades of experience and identity.

The portraits are now on display in five large-scale grid installations located throughout downtown Jackson. They can be found at the Center for the Arts, JH Book Trader, the Antler Inn, the alley at Pinky G’s, and the Jackson Hole Elks Lodge. The exhibition will remain on view throughout the summer, giving locals and visitors alike the opportunity to take in the full collection at their own pace.

The exhibit, 250 Portraits, was designed to highlight both individual identity and collective belonging, weaving together faces from communities large and small into a single, statewide visual portrait of Wyoming’s people. By placing the work in accessible, high-traffic locations in downtown Jackson, JHPA hopes to spark conversation among residents and visitors about what it means to be part of a community that spans such a wide and varied landscape.

A self-guided walking map is available to help visitors navigate between the five sites and experience other public art projects throughout Jackson. For more information and to access the 2026 Public Art Map, visit https://www.jhpublicart.org/art/2026map.

Pair your portrait with an audio story! Please consider adding your voice to another state-wide project celebrating the stories of everyday Wyomingites: Re-Storying the West.

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Wyoming

The Flybrary Connects Fly Fishers With Shared Resources

Published

21 hours ago

June 18, 2026

Press Room

The Flybrary Connects Fly Fishers With Shared Resources

All over Wyoming, there are little free libraries in neighborhoods for those who are looking for a new book. The process is simple. Take a book and leave one for others to experience.

Drew Kirby, Townsquare Media

READ MORE: Wyoming’s Little Libraries

We also have neighborhood food pantries for families in a pinch who need a little help. Again, the process is easy. Take a meal, and when you’re able, leave one for another family in need.

READ MORE: A New Local Neighborhood Food Pantry System in Wyoming

Several of the North Platte River’s access points have loaner life jackets. Once again, it’s simple. If you need a life jacket, take one, then return it to another access point for others who need it.

READ MORE: Return The Loaner Life Jackets After You Use Them

These are fantastic programs across the state that show how much communities care about others. I found another program that I think would really fly here, and it’s already going strong in some places around the country, like Montana.

The process, just like these other programs, is simple but very effective. With Wyoming fisheries being so popular, these could help make it an even bigger global sensation.

Flybrary – Take a fly, leave a fly.

I saw this article on FlyLordsMag.com and thought it was fantastic.

Montana artist Brandi Massey is passionate about fly fishing, and she used her own experience of leaving her fly box at home when leaving for a fly fishing trip. After that experience, she remembered seeing a “Flybrary” on her social media timeline and decided to jump into action and do her own version of the “Flybrary” to ensure other fly fishing trips don’t get ruined because of not having any flies.

She had her dad build the box, got her permits, and put up her first “Flybrary” on the Blackfoot River, and has more in the works.

In the article, Brandi explained why she decided to do it.

I’ve been fly fishing since I could hold a fly pole in my hand. Always trying to catch more fish than my dad. I love the fly fishing community and this is a great way to stay connected to the community. I’m an artist and this is an amazing way to show a piece of myself to the world.

Have you ever seen a “Flybrary” out in the wild? LET ME KNOW HERE