Harriet Hancock, organiser of South Carolina’s first Pride march, dies aged 89

# Who Harriet Hancock was

Harriet Daniels Hancock was a longtime organiser and community activist in South Carolina's LGBTQ+ movement. She died at age 89, days before her 90th birthday, the Harriet Hancock Center announced on its Facebook page. Local reporting describes her as a central figure in the Midlands' queer community and a driving force behind several support organizations.

# What she organized and founded

Hancock helped organise and lead South Carolina's first Pride march in 1990. The march brought more than 2,000 people down Main Street to the State House in Columbia. That event is a major public milestone for the state's LGBTQ+ visibility and is why some people called her "the Mother of SC Pride."

Her community work began after a personal moment: her son Greg came out to her in 1980. She formed the Columbia chapter of Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) in 1982. In 1985 she cofounded Palmetto AIDS Life Support Services (PALSS), a local response created during the AIDS crisis of the 1980s.

# Center and ongoing work

Center is named in her honour. Local coverage describes it as the first LGBT+ resource centre in South Carolina and the only state-wide community centre that serves all ages. The centre's statement said Hancock witnessed significant change in South Carolina during her lifetime, while understanding that activism remained necessary.

The centre is directing supporters to a donation page to fund its ongoing services. That indicates the organisation remains active after Hancock's death and is positioning her name as part of its continuing work.

# Why her work mattered locally

# Immediate reaction and legacy

Facebook and framed her life in terms of both progress witnessed and unfinished work left behind. The centre has used the moment to call for donations that will support its continuing programs.

# What this means going forward

Hancock's passing is likely to draw attention to the local organisations she helped start and to the ongoing operations of the Harriet Hancock Center. The centre's fundraising appeal suggests its leaders want to sustain services and community spaces that trace back to Hancock's organizing.

# Quick facts

• Died at age 89, days before her 90th birthday.
• Helped lead the 1990 Pride march in Columbia with more than 2,000 participants.

• Carolina's first LGBT+ resource centre and serves all ages.