Naples Pride Sues City Over Drag Show Ban
The lawsuit argues that the First Amendment protects family-friendly drag at outdoor festival.
Naples Pride, the LGBTQ organization for Naples, Florida, was denied a permit by the city to hold its annual festival in Cambier Park. It is suing the city and has asked a federal judge to issue a preliminary injunction that would allow it to host a drag performance at the park on June 7.
The lawsuit argues that the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution forbids the city from infringing on Naples Pride’s freedom of speech, and the ability of its audience to receive that message, simply because city officials disapprove of the content of their speech, reports Fort Myers-based CBS affiliate WINK News.
In 2023, the city of Naples, responding to a wave of anti-drag sentiment, as well as legislation passed by Florida lawmakers, threatened to reject Naples Pride’s permit application if they sought to host a drag performance in an outdoor public space, citing both the anti-drag law — which has since been blocked by the courts — and public opposition to drag in the conservative Southwest Florida city.
Subsequently, Naples Pride held the 2023 and 2024 drag performances indoors, which the lawsuit says undermined the Pride festival’s message of acceptance and living authentically without fear. It impeded Naples Pride’s ability to fundraise and attract “top-tier performing talent” due to reduced ticket sales.
When Naples Pride attempted to apply for its permit for the 2025 celebration, it notified the city it wanted to hold the drag performances on Cambier Park’s main stage. But the city rejected that request and imposed restrictions on the performances, demanding that they only be held inside, that only adults be admitted, and that Naples Pride pay a fee of $36,000 to the city in exchange for security.
That price tag is nearly six-and-a-half times the amount that Naples Pride was required to pay for security in 2023, and more than what’s been charged to other organizations for similarly-sized events.
It’s also more than two-thirds of the proceeds that Naples Pride typically raises to fund the festival. Just last week, Naples Pride held a gala raising $50,000, with the intent of using that money to fund the Pride festival.
According to the Advocate, the city based that cost on the number of anti-transgender and anti-drag commenters who spoke in opposition to issuing the Pride festival a permit during a two-day city hearing.
Additionally, the city said that the $36,000 price tag for security was only for indoor performances. Any outdoor performances would incur a cost of $44,160.
Organizers allege that the security fees are being raised significantly to discourage the Pride festival from taking place.
They also note that all of the drag performances will be “family-friendly,” meaning they will not contain sexually explicit content, eliminating the need for an age restriction for admission.
“We make entertainment for everybody in every age range,” Carrie Soldavini, an attorney for Naples Pride, told the Advocate. “We have a children’s zone with face painting and games and a ball pit, and then we have tons and tons and tons of vendors.”
Soldavini said the high estimates for security costs don’t align with the risk posed to the festival, as only a dozen non-violent protesters showed up to last year’s event, primarily praying and silently picketing outside the venue.
“A lot of times we feel that City Council and the Naples Police Department are looking at us with annoyance,” Soldavini told the Advocate, noting that some politicians and community members blame Pride organizers and LGBTQ people for the actions of anti-LGBTQ groups, including Christian nationalists and vigilante groups who feel the need to protest any time there’s an LGBTQ event.
“All we’re doing is asking to celebrate our celebration, as we have done since 2017, in a manner that we have the constitutional right to,” Soldavini said. “[W]e’re only asking for those [rights] to be respected and enforced. Instead, we do feel that so many members of City Council are looking at us like we’re the problem, and that’s not the case.”
The city of Naples declined to comment, telling WINK News in a statement, “As a matter of policy, the City does not provide comments on active or imminent litigation, especially in instances where the allegations have not yet been fully reviewed.”
Lawyers for Naples Pride believe their case alleging violations of constitutional rights is strong.
“The First Amendment ensures that viewpoint and content-based discrimination cannot infringe on freedom of speech and expression,” Samantha Past, an LGBTQ rights attorney with the ACLU of Florida, said in a statement. “Drag is an art form that holds great significance to the LGBTQ+ community both as a form of social commentary and celebration. Drag is constitutionally protected, even if someone doesn’t like it.”
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