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ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Alexandria's LGBTQIA+ community and its allies gathered Saturday afternoon at John Carlyle Square Park for the 9th Annual Alexandria Pride, a free, all-ages event hosted by the Alexandria LGBTQIA+ Task Force that ran from 2 to 6 p.m.
Despite humid conditions and a forecast that carried a chance of afternoon showers and storms, the rain held off through the fair's four-hour program. The event featured more than 100 exhibitors, food trucks, live music, a mobile art lab, health services and a Kids' Corner — drawing participants from across the city and region for an afternoon spanning advocacy, wellness, faith and entertainment.
The event came less than two years after the Alexandria City Council adopted Resolution No. 3246 in September 2024, declaring the city a safe haven for the LGBTQ+ community.
Opening ceremony
Emcee Rayceen Pendarvis — who introduced herself to the crowd as "the High Priestess of Love" and "the Empress of Pride" — opened the celebration before handing the stage to Diana Maurer, chair of the Alexandria LGBTQIA+ Task Force.
"I am so proud to be able to say that I live in a city where everyone, whether you are lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, straight, intersex, queer — you are welcome here," Maurer told the crowd. "You are free to work, you are free to visit, you are free to live here as your genuine self. And that is nothing to be taken for granted."
Maurer acknowledged the broader national climate. "Right now in this country, there are a lot of divisions and differences," she said. "But there's one thing we agree on today — we are here together in a spirit of community."
Proclamation and city officials
Vice Mayor Sarah Bagley, standing in for Mayor Alyia Gaskins — who she noted was in Philadelphia cheering on Croatia — delivered the city's official Pride Month proclamation. She was joined on stage by Councilwoman Sandy Marks, Councilman Canek Aguirre, and Del. Kirk McPike.
The proclamation commemorated the June 28, 1969 Stonewall uprising, honored the Alexandria LGBTQIA+ Task Force for its community-building work, and noted that for the sixth consecutive year, Alexandria earned a perfect score of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign's Municipal Equality Index — one of only 132 cities nationwide to receive that distinction in 2025.
Councilwoman Marks drew on a children's philosophy book to frame her remarks. "The most important people are the ones you're with," she said. "The right thing to do is to be good to those people. And the time to do it is now — because you, we, all of us, we deserve it now."
Del. McPike highlighted Alexandria's role as a pioneer in LGBTQ+ rights in Virginia, citing a 1991 restaurant lawsuit that overturned the state's ban on gay bars, the city's 1997 adoption of the first local LGBTQ+ nondiscrimination ordinances, and the 2003 election of Adam Ebbin as the first openly gay member of the Virginia General Assembly. McPike also pointed to a November ballot measure to codify marriage equality in the Virginia Constitution, urging attendees to vote.
Councilman Aguirre closed the official remarks. "Alexandria takes so much pride in being a welcoming community for all people," he said. "We don't just say that out loud. We live that — through our policies, through our actions, through our events."
A wide cross-section of the community
The exhibitor list reflected the breadth of Alexandria's civic, nonprofit, religious and commercial life. City agencies, health providers, faith congregations, advocacy groups, local businesses and state and federal representatives were all present among the more than 100 booths.
Health and wellness organizations included Inova Pride, VEG ER for Pets, the Alexandria YMCA, Shady Grove Fertility, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and Kindred Tree Healing Center. Faith communities represented included Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Commonwealth Baptist Church, Christ Church Alexandria and several others. Advocacy groups ranged from Equality Virginia and the Transgender Education Association to Moms Demand Action Alexandria and the Fund for Queer Causes. Sen. Mark Warner's election campaign and Pride in Federal Service were also on hand.
The event's three sponsors were VEG ER for Pets, Inova and Kindred Tree Healing Center. The Del Ray Community Partnership also provided support.
For more information and resources, visit alexandriava.gov/LGBTQ.
