In 1991, Dallas Tavern Guild officers dedicated to honor Alan Ross, the tavern guild’s executive director and the man who – since the early days – had shouldered the lion’s share of the responsibilities of organizing the parade. His death focused and unprecedented national spotlight on AIDS and spurring the Tavern Guild to begin dedicating the parade each year to those Tavern Guild members who had died of AIDS during the preceding 12 months. 2 – actor Rock Hudson died, shortly after coming out as a gay man and as a person with AIDS. Just weeks after the parade in 1983 – on Oct. The first grand marshals were Rita Mae Brown and Howie Daire. The Tavern Guild first began presenting awards to outstanding parade entries in 1985 and instituted the policy of choosing grand marshals.
The judge’s decision was overturned later by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, but the parade remained a fall event in Dallas. Buchmeyer’s ruling that first negated the Texas sodomy law. In 1983, the Tavern Guild moved the parade from the usual June date to the third Sunday in September and renamed it the Texas Freedom Parade to commemorate Judge Jerry L. In 1982, however, the newly-established Dallas Tavern Guild took over, and the parade began to grow. But still, the next one didn’t happen until 1980.Īt first, the Parade was rather haphazard, spearheaded by ad hoc committees of Oak Lawn merchants and community leaders.
The first parade made news when it happened.
