In her second year running the event, Chastain already faced a growing anti-LGBTQ+ political environment nationally.Locally, Corbin Pride had also faced backlash from online harassment last year and a separate protest supporting LGBTQ+ rights in 2023 was targeted by alleged Ku Klux Klan (KKK) members.

The last straw for Chastain was when a community member told her they had heard rumors that white nationalists were already planning to target the Pride event whenever it was going to be held. 

The white nationalists, Chastain said, were supposedly going to “remind us who Corbin belongs to.”

Combined with organizing the event largely alone, the rumor pushed Chastain to consider canceling Corbin Pride altogether. “If I’m busy helping someone over here, I can’t deal with a threat by myself at the same time,” she said.

“It really is hearsay,” Chastain admitted. But because of Corbin’s history and her own experience, she decided she needed to take it seriously and made an announcement with her concerns on Corbin Pride’s Facebook Page. 

Corbin’s history of white nationalism

Corbin, Kentucky’s history is rife with the legacy of white nationalism. It has a reputation for being a sundown town — a locale that was once known to be dangerous for Black people at night. In 1919, an armed group of hundreds of white people racially cleansed more than 200 Black people from Corbin. Going home to home, the mob forced Black residents from their houses and into rail cars out of the city. 

It’s a legacy that many in Corbin still grapple with today. Some have organized racial justice events through a group called the Sunup Initiative since 2018. In 2019, Corbin officially recognized the 100th anniversary of the racial violence.

But clashes with white supremacists still occur.

In June 2023, several Corbin residents gathered at a local park to protest anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. It was disrupted when a couple of men approached some participants, hurled homophobic slurs and one flashed a Ku Klux Klan membership card before reaching for a gun. 

“They wanted to come there and bait us into fighting them so they could get away with murder,” one of the protesters told Queer Kentucky at the time.

The man told one of those protesting, “I’ll burn you and that sign,” referring to a Pride flag.

That recent history isn’t lost on Chastain. In a recent interview, Chastain told Queer Kentucky that she received death threats and harassing messages last year and had her and a fellow organizer’s social media accounts hacked.

“Corbin is a sundown town,” Chastain said, “so it’s not a surprise to get harassed online.”

The Pride, Chastain said, seems to be “ruffling some feathers.” 

This upcoming event will be the third Corbin Pride. “I think people want a change. That’s the response I’ve gotten from so many people, not just from Corbin, but from across the state,” she explained.

Corbin Pride usually brings in between 100 and 150 people. It’s a place where people can experience a safe space in an area where those are few and far between. The event hosts drag performances, has HIV screenings from a local health department, and features LGBTQ+ vendors selling their goods. 

“Every person that I’ve talked to in this area, they all feel the same way — that we don’t have any representation, there’s nowhere for us to be visible,” Chastain said.

“The price of community is inconvenience”

Thinking that people would be upset at her posts announcing her plans to scrap Corbin Pride this year, Chastain instead found a community looking to provide her the support to go on. 

She tells Queer Kentucky that people from Louisville and Lexington have offered their support and so have organizers from other Pride events across the state who are facing similar challenges. 

“I’m honestly at the point of burnout in year two. It’s exhausting to try to do this by yourself while dealing with threats and having your accounts hacked,” Chastain said. The offers of support have comforted her.

“Especially in rural areas, the demographic for queer focus is just so much smaller. If we can all kind of come together and help each other out whenever we’re putting on our events, I think that goes a long way,” Chastain said.

Chastain is hoping that those who have come forward will be able to push Corbin Pride to new heights.She said she’s found people who are sincere in wanting to help and that she’s helping to form a committee for future events. 

“The price of community is inconvenience,” she said. “Money will come. But we have to have the people.”

For Chastain, the answer to the targeting of Corbin Pride and the current anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment lies in queer organizing inspired by Marsha P. Johnson, a prominent queer liberation activist, and her fight on the frontlines of Stonewall. In places like Corbin where local ordinances and policies often don’t carve out protections for LGBTQ+ people, community members coming together and showing up is crucial, she says. 

“I think the first line of defense is building that mutual aid, is building that community,” Chastain said.

Corbin Pride 2026 is scheduled for September 26 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Those wanting to be involved can message the Corbin Pride Facebook page.