This year we went back and forth about being involved in the pride parade. Our staff wasn’t enthusiastic about participating, we didn’t have the time nor the budget, and we felt like humans were missing from the event. The Boise Pride parade has become very commercial. Floats have become giant corporations riding on trucks covered in premade capitalist pride decorations. We were feeling very alone and defeated However we realized that this is how everyone is feeling right now, and the most important this right now is to show up.

When thinking about the design I knew I didn’t want to buy anything. I wanted our float to truly represent what polum bolum is all about, humans making things. So every part of the float was recycled, hand painted, and original.

We also wanted people to be interacting with this creature in every way possible. Not only could people give it a high five or a hug, but it took at least eight people to move the whole piece.

To me, puppets are inherently a protest art. The history of puppetry has been all protest and radical and I don’t think much has changed. I think that’s why I love them so much. They go against consumerist art (made typically of recycled materials), they defy “serious” art, It’s hard to market them or make a profit off of puppetry art alone, and (in my experience) they bring people together. Everyone loves puppets ;)