In recognition of LGBT Pride Month in June, Madison Public Library will celebrate with thoughtful discussion, inclusive events, and expanded sessions of last year’s popular Drag Queen Storytime.

Madison Public Library provides free and equitable access to cultural and educational experiences. The library celebrates ideas, promotes creativity, connects people, and enriches lives, with an emphasis on promoting literacy and equity in library collections, services, and programs.

Events in celebration of LGBT Pride month include:

First Friday Flicks: Call Me By Your Name Film Showing
June 1, 6:30pm – Pinney Library, 204 Cottage Grove Rd.
“In Northern Italy in 1983, seventeen year-old Elio begins a relationship with visiting Oliver, his father’s research assistant, with whom he bonds over his emerging sexuality, their Jewish heritage, and the beguiling Italian landscape.” (132mins|USA; excerpted from IMDB.com)  Seating is first come, first served with space for 50 attendees. Light refreshments provided by the Friends of the Pinney Library.

Libraries Are for Everyone Drop In Screenprinting
June 2, 10 am – Monroe Street Library, 1705 Monroe St.
Stop by for this drop-in workshop and create your own screenprint of an inclusive Libraries Are for Everyone image, with text available in English, Spanish, or Arabic. Bring your own t-shirt/tote/material to print on, or create a print on paper. All ages welcome, kids under 7 will need help from a grownup.

Show Your PRIDE! Music & Crafts for Everyone
June 9, 10:30am – Hawthorne Library, 2707 E. Washington Ave.
June 9, 1pm – Lakeview Library, 2845 N. Sherman Ave.
Performances by Common Chords, the LGBT a capella outreach ensemble of Perfect Harmony Men’s Chorus. Stay after to meet the singers and create crafts to celebrate Pride Month.

Drag Queen Storytime
Bring your fabulous self and celebrate diversity, differences, and imagination through fun, age-appropriate stories, songs, and activities with local drag performers. Crafts and facepainting at 10 am, storytime at 10:30. This program is intended for families with children of all ages, and grownups must be accompanied by a child. Space is limited, doors open at 10.
June 9, 10am – Sequoya Library, 4340 Tokay Blvd.
June 16, 10am – Pinney Library, 204 Cottage Grove Rd.
June 23, 10am – Central Library, 201 W. Mifflin St.

Take a Stand Performance by Perfect Harmony Men’s Chorus
June 16, 10:30am – Alicia Ashman Library, 733 N. High Point Rd.
Perfect Harmony Men’s Chorus wraps up its twenty-first season as Madison’s gay/bi/trans/ally Men’s chorus with a free community performance of music selections from its hit spring concert, “Take a Stand.” Their mission is to create, enrich, and transform community through music.

Book Discussion of I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson
June 26, 7pm – Pinney Library, 204 Cottage Grove Rd.
The Pinney Book Group hosts a discussion of I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson. New attendees always welcome. Synopsis: Jude and her twin brother, Noah, are incredibly close. But three years later, Jude and Noah are barely speaking. Something has happened to wreck the twins in different and dramatic ways . . . until Jude meets a cocky, broken, beautiful boy, as well as someone else; an even more unpredictable new force in her life (excerpted from publisher).

The Salad Days Book Club Reads We Are Okay by Nina Lacour
June 28, 6:30pm – at Daisy Café and Cupcakery, 2827 Atwood Ave.
Marin hasn’t spoken to anyone from her old life since the day she left everything behind. No one knows the truth about those final weeks. Not even her best friend Mabel. But even thousands of miles away from the California coast, at college in New York, Marin still feels the pull of the life and tragedy she’s tried to outrun. Now, months later, alone in an emptied dorm for winter break, Marin waits. Mabel is coming to visit and Marin will be forced to face everything that’s been left unsaid and finally confront the loneliness that has made a home in her heart. (Excerpted from the publisher.)

LIONHEART Photo Exhibit
June 1-30 during open hours – Pinney Library, 204 Cottage Grove Rd.
Local artist Charles Wetzel displays his five-photo portrait series of LGBTQ+ leaders from around the state.

​Discover other resources at madisonpubliclibrary.org/pride, or read library book recommendations in Our Lives Magazine. Some Madison libraries will also celebrate with in-house library material displays during part or all of the month of June. Madison Public Library’s Pride Month celebration is partially funded by a grant from Beyond the Page