By CHRISTINE FERNANDO, JACQUELYN MARTIN and GARY FIELDS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Gray skies and drizzle gave way to sunshine, multicolored flags and celebrations as the nation’s capital held the World Pride parade Saturday.
Tens of thousands of people participated in parades and other festivities, in defiance of what activists say is an unprecedented assault on the LGBTQ+ community that challenges the rights many have fought for over the years.
A rainbow flag the length of three football fields flowed through the streets, carried by 500 members of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, D.C., to kick off the parade. Behind them, people waved Pride flags and flags representing the transgender, asexual and bisexual communities from atop a bus.
Singer-songwriter and actor Reneé Rapp laughed and blew kisses from the back of a pickup truck draped with a transgender flag while Laverne Cox, a transgender actress and activist known for her role in Netflix’s “Orange is the New Black,” waved from an open convertible.
“Pride means us looking out for each other no matter what,” she declared to the crowd as the convertible rolled to a stop. “We know how to be there for each other.”
Many LGBTQ+ travelers have expressed concerns or decided to skip World Pride due to anxieties about safety, border policies and a hostile political climate that they say hearkens back to another time. But that did not keep international travelers and other participants away, with groups visible from Iran, Namibia, Kenya and Russia.
Along the parade route, hundreds gathered outside the National City Christian Church as rainbow flags and balloons lined its steps and columns. A child with rainbow face paint blew bubbles at the base of the steps while Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” blared from loudspeakers.”
“D.C. is already one of the biggest cities in the country for celebrating Pride,” said Cheo White, 33, from Annapolis, Maryland, “But we are all collectively more united and turning out more because of what’s happening in the White House.”
Many have said the gathering has taken on a new meaning amid the Trump administration’s aggressive policies against protections for transgender Americans and diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
White’s partner, Nick Kerver, 26, who was visiting from Toledo, Ohio, said Pride has “always been a political tool” but has taken on more importance this year amid mounting threats to the LGBTQ+ community, especially transgender and nonbinary Americans.“
“It feels more important than ever,” Kerver said while wearing a rainbow hat, sunglasses and a T-shirt. “But we also have to get involved in our local communities too.“
David Begler, a 58-year-old gay man from Philadelphia, expressed disappointment that many international travelers felt unsafe visiting D.C. for World Pride but said he appreciates its presence in the city during this political climate.
“It’s the perfect time to have World Pride in D.C.,” Begler said. “We need it right now. I want us to send a message to the White House to focus on uplifting each other instead of dividing.“
Stay DeRoux, 36, usually plans a day trip to D.C. Pride from her home in Fredericksburg, Virginia. But this year, she and her wife, Deenie DeRoux, planned a full weekend. ““This is a really big year,” Stay DeRoux said. “There’s been a lot of turmoil. So it’s an amazing thing to be among allies, among people who love because we’ve experienced so much hate on a daily basis.”
For the day, the idea of threats and opposition took a backseat to the celebration. Streets were closed, but filled with floats, and impromptu parties broke out with music and food in streets adjoining the parade route.
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Johnny Cervantes Jr., dressed in a black suit and top hat, headed to a grandstand at a church themed float to marry his partner of 28 years, Freddie Lutz, owner of Freddie’s Beach Bar and Restaurant in Arlington, Virginia.
Events culminate tomorrow with a rally and protest March Sunday and a giant street party and concert covering a multi-block stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue.
“This is World Pride in the best city in the world,” Mayor Muriel Bowser declared as she walked the parade hand-in-hand with her daughter, Miranda.
