City of Coachella Raises Transgender Flag Honoring International Transgender Day of Visibility

March 31st was International Transgender Day of Visibility, and to honor this, the City of Coachella raised a Transgender Flag in the center of City Hall. "It means to never be afraid to be who you are. It’s basically just you know, living your life authentically." says Paulina Angel, a founding member of the East Coachella Valley Pride Organization. Angel says this flag alone shows how much the cities in the Coachella Valley are embracing the LGBTQ+ community. "It’s been like a long time that we’ve been working towards this. So to see the city especially like Coachella, hanging our flag, it’s a really amazing thing to see." This is not the beginning of the relationship between the organization and the City of Coachella. "We’ve been hosting our Prides out here since 2017, so it’s great to see that our partnership with them is continuing to go strong." Angel says. With help from the City of Coachella, the LGBTQ Community Center of the Desert was able to expand, adding another location to the city of Coachella, right next to city hall. "We usually use our Prides as more of a resource, and not only that, but also to highlight the intersectionality’s between the LGBT community as well as the Latino community, so it really allows us to, you know, really bring some community together." With the focus on bringing inclusivity here in the Coachella Valley. "For me, personally, I feel like it’s a way to show that you’re accepted here, and so it’s not like you have to go move away just to find a community that will accept you. It’s all inclusive out here in the East Valley, and you could totally be yourself."