Braunwyn Windham-Burke hopes to make a change in her hometown.
The openly gay “Real Housewives of Orange County” alum, 44, plans to do so as the grand marshal of the OC Pride Parade and Festival. Her role was announced Wednesday.
The event is set to take place June 25 in a region of Southern California that Windham-Burke considers “very conservative” and “small-minded,” she told Instinct Magazine.
However, she is more than willing to advocate for its resident LGBTQIA+ community of which she is a part.
“Historically, the OC is a very conservative and small-minded place,” she explained to the outlet.
“As you can tell from the ‘Housewives’ show, I was met with a lot of homophobia from my castmates. Having people stand up and say, ‘This is our town, too. We will not be marginalized nor minimized,’ is important.”
Windham-Burke continued, “Being the first gay ‘Housewife’ wasn’t easy, but it’s already opened the doors for others, and that’s what counts. Hopefully having representation in OC Pride will sound the alarm to the community that queer folks live here and are not going anywhere.”
The former Bravolebrity previously detailed the alleged “homophobia” she encountered from her “RHOC” co-stars during an exclusive interview with Page Six in February.
“Making off-color jokes about me being intimate with a woman, that’s not OK. Those are microaggressions,” said Windham-Burke, who came out as a lesbian in December 2020 as her two-season stint on the show came to a close.
For instance, Kelly Dodd — who, like Windham-Burke, exited the show after Season 15 in 2021 — frequently mocked her over speculation that she had been romantically involved with a woman throughout filming.
Emily Simpson even called Windham-Burke “selfish” for exploring her gay identity while still married to husband and “best friend” Sean Burke, with whom she’s maintained a close relationship with as they co-parent their seven children. The two currently have no plans to divorce, though they are seeing other people.
“It’s so nice to be able to live life authentically and openly,” Windham-Burke told Instinct of coming out.
“There’s also been some really hard things about it — having to redefine my marriage and the idea of what my future looks like. You know, having to break out of what was such a white picket fence, comfortable life. There’s been some low moments, but at the end of the day, being able to love who I love openly and experience life as a gay woman has been so tremendous.”
Today, Windham-Burke is dating model and dancer Victoria Brito. The couple debuted their relationship on the beaches of Miami in late 2021 after meeting on a blind date.
“It was six dates and I looked at her and thought, ‘I could spend the rest of my life with this woman,’” Windham-Burke told us last month at the GLAAD Media Awards.
“I would say about a week before I met her, I kind of put down in my brain what I want in a woman and she appeared. She’s everything I want in a woman.”