As DC welcomes the world for Pride, marchers spotlight rollbacks of LGBTQ rights in US

CNN

3 days ago

Even with a theme of reaching people around the world, US politics took center stage as Washington, DC, hosted World Pride 2025, an international festival celebrating the LGBTQ community.
The celebrations throughout the weekend, which included a parade, free concerts featuring artists Cynthia Erivo and Doechii plus a march on Sunday, marked the 50th anniversary of Pride celebrations in the nation's capital. Organizers described the event as a moment to 'celebrate, educate, support, and inspire' the global LGBTQ community.
'World Pride is occurring at a crucial time, bringing together voices from around the world to support the LGBTQ+ community's ongoing fight for equality, visibility, and justice,' the event's website notes, describing this year's festival as a 'historic moment.'
Attendees at Sunday's march, which traveled along the National Mall and ended steps from the US Capitol, said the stakes of protecting the LGBTQ community amid recent actions by the Trump administration hung over the celebrations. The Trump administration has broadly pressured companies to end diversity and inclusion programs, taken steps to ban transgender service members from serving in the military and restricted access to gender-affirming care for young people.
Liz Bauer, a first-grade teacher in DC, said she's 'really worried' about the message the administration is sending to transgender children, including those who she has taught in her classroom.
'It's really important that we continue to push back, even in small ways, to find inclusive things that we can do for students, including just giving them voices and giving them space,' Bauer said, 'and protecting every time that someone tries to change their ability to exist because they're still going to exist.'
Bauer said she hopes World Pride sends a message that 'even though, right now, decisions are being made that aren't supporting everyone and aren't inclusive of everyone, that we're still here.'
'We're not going anywhere. We're standing strong,' Bauer said. 'And even people who can't speak for themselves, we're going to speak for them.'
The White House did not issue a proclamation recognizing Pride month this year, a tradition first established by former President Bill Clinton, who designated June as 'Gay and Lesbian Pride Month' in 1999.
Jay Abbit, who traveled from Hollywood, Florida, told CNN on Sunday he's concerned about the broader implications of Trump not acknowledging Pride month.
'It's just a microaggression and a dog whistle to his supporters, and we need to push back against that,' Abbit said. 'It's not a big thing, but it is a microaggression, and we need to talk, have these conversations.'
Former Vice President Kamala Harris, meanwhile, appeared in a video at Sunday's rally, telling attendees Pride is a time to 'celebrate the progress we have made and recommit to the work still ahead.'
'In this moment, as you gather with friends and allies from across the world, let us be clear, no one should be made to fight alone,' Harris said. 'We are all in this together.'