Celebrating Bethlehem's Southside Culture
On October 11th, the Kutztown Area Historical Society (KAHS) and Lehigh University’s South Side Initiative (SSI) unveiled a historical marker dedicated to Keith Haring, a renowned Neo-Pop artist and activist who grew up in Kutztown, PA. The historical marker program is sponsored by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, which approved a marker to honor…
Looking back at summer 2024, Southsider is reflecting on the events that offered the Lehigh Valley community the best opportunities for connection and celebration. Lehigh Valley Pride provided locals with this chance. On Sunday August 18th, the Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Center hosted Lehigh Valley Pride at SteelStacks. The event brought together locals in an effort to…
The Lehigh Valley LGBT Community Archive collects materials that document the contributions of LGBTQIA+ community members to the region. Since 2016, archivists have collected materials from regional LGBTQIA+ political organizations and leaders, publications, businesses like bars, and cultural events like Lehigh Valley Pride. In addition, archivists have begun to collect oral histories from LGBTQIA+ residents…
On Sunday June 23rd, Lehigh Valley locals celebrated Pride at the Sun Inn Courtyard in North Bethlehem. The celebration was the second annual Pride Party Palooza, an event founded by Scottie Prime with the goal of raising money for Project Silk Lehigh Valley. Project Silk is a part of the Valley Youth House organization and…