In the summer of 1976, Los Angeles hosted the Lavender World’s Fair — a bold, joyful gathering that brought thousands of LGBTQ people together to celebrate identity, visibility, and pride on their own terms. Held at the Shrine Auditorium, it mixed activism and carnival energy: drag shows, political panels, disco nights, and booths from every corner of queer life.
It was liberation as spectacle — a declaration that queer culture wasn’t underground anymore, it was center stage.
