Katy Pride organizers are relocating multiple events this week after the Texas Typhoon water park said it would no longer host the LGBTQ+ celebration, citing security concerns. The venue change comes after prominent conservative leaders in the Houston-area suburb criticized the event on social media, with one Katy ISD trustee encouraging the public to contact businesses that were involved. Katy Pride president Amanda Rose said the event organizers signed a contract with Typhoon Texas in April, but found out Wednesday afternoon that the water park planned to cancel its involvement a day before the Pride kickoff party. “There are some people online that were posting misinformation and hate and encouraging people to call Typhoon Texas or show up at Typhoon Texas,” Rose said. Katy Pride has received a refund from the water park. Pride event organizers said in a news release one group had planned a “peaceful, lawful protest” but that no credible threats had been made against the water park. A spokesperson for Typhoon Texas could not immediately be reached for comment Thursday. The water park told KHOU that people had made threatening remarks on phone calls and in person, but added it did not report any of those threats to law enforcement. Katy ISD board member Mary Ellen Cuzela criticized the event on Facebook and former school board president Victor Perez accused the event of “sexualizing” children. According to the Houston Chronicle, Katy ISD trustee Morgan Calhoun also called on members of the public to pressure the water park to cancel. Cuzela, Calhoun and Perez supported a controversial gender-related policy in Katy ISD that banned discussions of gender identity in the classroom and required teachers to notify parents if their children started using pronouns that differ from their gender at birth. Perez told Houston Public Media he had concerns about parts of the Pride event geared toward children but wasn’t aware of anyone making threats against the water park. “Different people in the community just were upset by it and just let their voices be heard,” he said. “That’s all this is all about.” Cuzela and Calhoun could not immediately be reached for comment. Katy Pride has moved its kickoff party to First Christian Church Katy on Morton Ranch Road. The event starts at 6: 30 p. m. Thursday and tickets cost $25. The organization’s celebration on Saturday will now be held from 11 a. m.-4 p. m. at the Bear Creek Rodeo Arena on Highway 6 in Houston. Admission is free. Harris County Commissioner Lesley Briones and the Greater Houston LGBTQ+ Chamber of Commerce helped organizers secure a new location. Rose said while some members of the community have spread “misinformation,” Pride is a time for celebration. “It’s a time for love and joy and being your authentic self,” they said. “There’s so much misinformation because people just want to believe what they want to believe, instead of actually taking the time to learn.”.
https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/lgbtq/2025/10/16/533561/katy-pride-typhoon-texas-lgbtq-events-school-board/?utm_source=rss-lgbtq-article&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=hpm-rss-link
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