Pride in Practice: Mariah Paris Balenciaga, Civic Duty, and Asbury Park

We were genuinely moved when Mariah Paris Balenciaga (@mug4dayz) shared a story of herself voting while wearing our Asbury Park Iconic Tank. A moment of civic participation paired with a quiet expression of queer pride rooted in place.

Why This Moment Meant So Much

Queer visibility is often framed around nightlife, performance, or spectacle. But some of the most meaningful moments happen outside those spaces — when queer people show up fully as themselves in everyday life.

This moment connected two things that matter deeply to us: showing up for democracy, and honoring the queer spaces that made it possible for us to grow up visible, supported, and unafraid in New Jersey. It was pride in practice — lived, not declared.

The Meaning Behind the Asbury Park Iconic Tank

The Asbury Park Iconic Tank isn’t about a single venue or moment. It represents the cornerstones of a gayborhood that shaped us — the bars, streets, dance floors, and community spaces that made it possible to grow up queer in New Jersey with a real sense of belonging.

It honors places like Paradise (Club Paradise), the Empress Hotel, Georgies Bar, and The Stone Pony — venues that weren’t just places to go out, but places where queer life happened.

These were spaces where friendships formed, identities solidified, and chosen family found one another. They weren’t just nightlife destinations; they were landmarks of survival, joy, and becoming.

The design carries that history forward — not as nostalgia, but as recognition.

When Queer Place Travels With You

What made this moment especially powerful was seeing those symbols worn far from home, in a context that had nothing to do with performance or nightlife.

It was a reminder that queer spaces don’t stay behind when we leave them. They travel with us — shaping how we move through the world, how we show up, and how we participate as citizens.

That kind of visibility matters.

Why We’re Proud

This wasn’t a campaign or a collaboration. It was an organic moment where civic responsibility, queer pride, and lived history intersected — and we were honestly honored to witness it.

Sticky Sweet Bears exists to celebrate that kind of authenticity. We make pieces meant to be worn through real life, carrying memory, pride, and community forward wherever people go.