TAMPA, Fla. — Thousands of people are expected to take part in the Tampa Pride Festival in historic Ybor City on Saturday.

The 9th annual celebration comes at state lawmakers are proposing new measures to limit discussion about sexual orientation and gender identity in schools.

What You Need To Know

  •  The 9th annual Tampa Pride Festival is taking place on Saturday

  •  This year's celebration comes as state lawmakers are proposing new measures to limit discussion of LGBTQ+ issues in schools

  •  As of now, discussion about sexual orientation and gender identity is banned in K-3 classrooms under the Parental Rights in Education Bill, signed into law last March

Some members of the LGBTQ+ community say because of that, this year's festival is more important than ever.

By day, Alex Kelly is a husband and a father to a middle schooler and 1-year-old.

As a parent, Kelly said he's concerned about Governor DeSantis' proposal to ban instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity in schools.

It's already prohibited in K-3 classrooms, but the governor now wants to expand it up to the last year of high school. 

“Starting at that age sometimes, is when students or just young kids are at the point where they don’t know who they are," Kelly said. "They’re lost at that age. So they’re finding their identity, finding their sexuality, so that is when it should be taught.”

By night, Kelly takes on a different persona: Amari Lavish, a national title-bearing drag performer.

“It’s just all about beads, feathers, rhinestones, just living in your truth, being yourself," he said.

The state is also looking at revoking a Miami hotel's liquor license for hosting a Christmas drag show. The complaint filed by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation alleges children were present for what it described as a "lewd, vulgar and indecent" display.

Kelly said he feels the LGBTQ+ community is being targeted and stigmatized by state lawmakers – and fears for what it could mean for the fate of his livelihood.

“This is 2023," he said. "We have evolved from the early 18, 1900s when this was just something that was unheard of - drag, same-sex couples. It’s time to open up your eyes and realize that we have a voice.”

Kelly said this year's Tampa Pride came at the right time and he's proud to celebrate the community he's part of.

“My daughter, she goes through it now at school because they ask her ‘you have two dads?’ So to them, that’s not normal. But if it’s taught in these schools, that wouldn’t seem so confusing."

As Amari Lavish takes the stage, his message to the crowd is to love and accept who you are.

Meanwhile, organizers of the pride festival said the celebration will continue, despite any new measures passed in Tallahassee.

The Parental Rights in Education Bill, which critics call the "Don't Say Gay" bill, was signed into law last March.

Governor DeSantis and supporters of the bill argue it should be parents, not teachers, who decide to approach subjects like sexual orientation and gender identity with their kids.

Next month, the state Board of Education is schedule to vote on the governor's recent proposal to expand the bill to all grades.