On the hottest, most patriotic day of the year, the Fire Island Pines was celebrating something much closer to home — and much more sentimental. The Pines community celebrated the 50th annual Invasion of the Pines celebration on the Fourth of July, marking half a century of fighting for LGBTQ+ rights and preserving the safe space built into the Fire Island community.
In 1976, local drag queen Teri Warren was refused service in the then-straight community of the Pines. In retaliation, several friends in neighboring Cherry Grove — recognized as America’s first LGBTQ+ community — organized a water taxi filled with protesting queens to object to the unfair treatment of one of their own. A year later, when asked if the “invasion” would take place again, the long-running tradition was born.
“It’s an honor to be a part of the history to keep telling the story,” Julie James says of her co-leading the festivities with Seth Sikes and Luis Villabon. “It’s become part of the tradition. While you’re waiting for the big boat to come in you get all of this entertainment, it’s a way of setting the stage so that by the time they get here everybody is so ready.”
Fifty years after that first invasion, almost 100 drag queens donned their finest clothes and lined up for a ferry in Cherry Grove to carry them over to The Pines. In solidarity with the original eight queens who boarded that water taxi, they throw confetti in the air and chant as loudly as they possibly can, “Our queens are marching on.”
On the morning of, hundreds of locals, visitors, and amped-up attendees piled onto a ferry in Sayville that would take them to The Pines.
“I’m open-minded, I’m just excited to see what this is all about,” says Jordin, an off-duty drag queen who had never been to Fire Island before.
The invasion was in full swing as the pre-show festivities began early afternoon. James, Sikes, and Villabon kept the eager audience in high spirits as anticipation for the ferry’s arrival grew. Complete with a multitude of song and dance numbers, costume changes, and homages to long-running LGBTQ+ icons such as legendary drag queen Rose Levine, the pre-show gathered in a crowd of hundreds of locals and visitors.
As per tradition, a red carpet stretching the length of the ferry dock is rolled out to greet the drag queens piled onto one ferry boat. Drag performers stack themselves onto the ferry boat in their most elaborate clothing pieces. Sequined dressed, multi-colored wigs, and high-heeled go-go boots were only a few of the items most commonly donned by the queens.
With each drag queen being thoroughly introduced by Panzi, the first-ever Cherry Grove homecoming queen and attendee of the first invasion, everyone has a chance to dance, perform, and join the crowd as the celebration continued.
It’s a tradition steeped in history, solidarity, bravery, and flamboyance. While the rest of the country celebrated 250 years of independence, the Fire Island Pines celebrated 50 years of fighting for liberation.
