Hi, everybody, and welcome to Outward Slate's LGBTQ podcast.

I'm Ryan Louder, an editor at Slate.

And well, my fellow queers and allies, we have made it one more trip around the sun together.

It is summer, it is June, and it is pride.

And given all we've been dealing with in the past year,

I hope you are taking some time to celebrate in whatever way makes you

happy, whether that is partying all night or volunteering all day, or watching the birdcage

for the 57th time at home, which is my own personal sacred tradition.

Speaking of celebrations, on this week's show, we're going to be taking a look not at the

big city periods and festivals that tend to

dominate pride in the public imagination, but at pride as it blooms more quietly and also maybe

a little more bravely in conservative small towns around the U.S., especially in this incredibly

hostile political climate that we are living in. To get some on the ground color about what that really

looks like, we'll be talking to an organizer from Nampa, Idaho in the second half of the show. But before

that, we're going to be taken on a tour of small town pride by our very own Christina Carterucci,

who just published a fantastic piece on the subject and Slate. Hi, thanks so much for having me on the show.

It's an honor to be here.

I know.

You have to do it this way.

I know.

It feels great to be on this side of things.

Speaking of Pride celebrations, I know that D.C. pride slash world pride just happened this past weekend.

...