Pride flags flying atop Freddie’s Beach Bar in Arlington, Virginia – Photo: TJ Flavell.
Even though the bulk of the D.C.-area Pride celebrations has passed, the nearby suburbs of Alexandria and Arlington aren’t finished, with two events scheduled for Sunday, June 27 and Monday, June 28.
On Sunday, The Garden ALX, Alexandria Makers Market, and Safe Space NOVA will be hosting “Growing Pride at The Garden,” a family-friendly Pride event featuring 15 local LGBTQ “makers” offering various crafts, art, and other goods available for sale.
“I define a maker as anybody who has an original idea and makes it into a product,” says Alyssa Kovach, founder of Alexandria Makers Market. “I represent the people that are usually working from home. They don’t usually have a storefront, but it will be, to give an analogy, like a holiday market, a pop-up, and so they’ll have the things that they make. There is a huge range of products, from stained glass to jewelry to T-shirts to bags and more.”
In addition to serving as an open market to showcase the work of makers, the event will feature yoga activities, courtesy of YogaSix and abellaYoga; live music; kid-friendly crafting activities, led by Kids Create Alexandria; a rock-climbing experience, courtesy of Sport Rock climbing gym; and a bevy of food trucks offering various fare. Admission is technically free, but attendees are encouraged to donate at least $5, with proceeds going to benefit Safe Space NOVA, a Northern Virginia organization serving LGBTQ youth.
“We’re really hoping this is just like a really fun family event,” explains Kovach. “The Garden and I were the ones that kind of put out heads together and said, ‘Who do we want to have involved?’ And so our first step was contacting Safe Space NOVA. We wanted them involved, and thought they could give us some guidance in terms of like what would be really a fun and successful event. So we’re glad to have them on board, and we’ll be accepting donations and trying to kind of drum up some money for them.”
On Monday, June 28, marking the anniversary of the Stonewall Inn uprising, Go Gay DC will host a free-to-attend Pride Month social at Freddie’s Beach Bar in Arlington.
“This is an opportunity to mingle and to celebrate pride in a fabulous environment and basically a chance to connect with the community,” says Go Gay DC leader TJ Flavell, who is the chief organizer. “It’s come as you are, but you should definitely feel free to express yourself and feel free to come decked out in ‘Prideful’ attire.”
As with Go Gay DC’s regularly held happy hours at Freddie’s, which occur each month, organizers will be collecting cans of food or nonperishable food items for the Arlington Food Assistance Center, which is the county’s chief food bank, serving over 2,300 local families each week.
Those wishing to dine at Freddie’s following the social can reserve a table by calling the restaurant at (703) 685-0555, or can choose to purchase food at the bar. For a full menu, visit www.freddiesbeachbar.com/menu.
As people begin emerging from their homes as the COVID-19 pandemic subsides, Go Gay DC will begin resuming its monthly socials and happy hours, beginning with its “First Friday Social” at Commentary, in Arlington’s Ballston neighborhood, on July 2 from 7-9 p.m. There will also be a “First Tuesday Social” on July 6 from 7-9 p.m. at Hi-Tide Lounge in Alexandria.
“These ongoing social events bring a wide-range of fascinating people together for professional networking and friendship. As past president of three local community organizations, hosting these socials is a way to continue to make a positive impact for the social good,” says Flavell.
“Growing Pride at the Garden” is on Sunday, June 27, from 2-7 p.m. at The Garden ALX, 5380 Eisenhower Ave., Suite C, Alexandria, Virginia. Attendees are asked to pre-register. To register, or for more information, visit www.eventbrite.com.
Go Gay DC’s Pride Month Social, Stonewall Edition, is on Monday, June 28, from 6-9 p.m. at Freddie’s Beach Bar, 555 23rd St. S., Arlington, Virginia. Attendees are asked to register beforehand to get an accurate head count. For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page.
Put on your ruby slippers to strut down the red carpet as we ask what queerness means for Academy Awards voters past and present.
By Paul Klein
March 1, 2025
On March 2, Hollywood's elite will gather at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles for the glitziest night of the year -- The 97th Academy Awards. When the Oscar-cast goes live on ABC Sunday evening -- and, for the first time ever, simultaneously streams on Hulu -- seven LGBTQ individuals will sit in hushed anticipation at the possibility of winning Hollywood's highest honors.
For a body often criticized for its lack of diversity and inclusivity, and with the arts under a prolonged political attack from far-right politicians, Sunday night offers a number of potentially groundbreaking moments for queer representation in front of and behind the screen.
Booz Allen Hamilton, a longtime sponsor of Capital Pride and one of the sponsors of the upcoming WorldPride 2025 celebration, has dropped its sponsorship.
The decision comes after the prominent defense contractor scuttled its diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in response to an executive order from Donald Trump that seeks to compel government contractors to drop pro-diversity initiatives and programs.
Those found in violation risk being rejected for opportunities to contract with the government on the grounds that, in the Trump administration's eyes, pro-diversity policies constitute a form of illegal discrimination incompatible with the country's civil rights laws.
Putting the v-a-i-n in vanity project, writer-director Steve Balderson's Sex Love Venice might set records for solipsism in a queer indie protagonist, a category with an epic list of contenders.
But the film's hero Michael (David Bateman), lovelorn in L.A., takes the cake among gay movie leads whose entire world is presented as a series of interactions centered solely around him and his search for romance.
To friends Liza (Suzanna Akins) and Dave (Zaramok Bachok), Michael expresses his frustration with his life of casual hookups, revealed in flash-cuts to frank nude scenes, usually depicting a lack of enjoyment in one party or the other.
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