{"id":2404,"date":"2025-06-08T00:15:53","date_gmt":"2025-06-08T00:15:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/world-pride-parade-2025-washingtondc-renee-rapp-laverne-cox-1235992409\/"},"modified":"2025-06-08T00:15:53","modified_gmt":"2025-06-08T00:15:53","slug":"world-pride-parade-2025-washingtondc-renee-rapp-laverne-cox-1235992409","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/world-pride-parade-2025-washingtondc-renee-rapp-laverne-cox-1235992409\/","title":{"rendered":"Thousands Fill Nation\u2019s Capital for WorldPride Parade With Rene\u00e9 Rapp, Laverne Cox, Gay Men\u2019s Chorus\u00a0&\u00a0More"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\tGray skies and drizzle gave way to sunshine, multicolored flags and celebrations as the nation\u2019s capital held the\u00a0WorldPride<\/a>\u00a0parade Saturday (June 7).<\/p>\n

\n\tTens of thousands of people participated in parades and other festivities, in defiance of what activists say is\u00a0an unprecedented assault\u00a0on the LGBTQ+ community that challenges the rights for which many have fought over the years.<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\tRene\u00e9 Rapp Encourages Her Queer Fans to \u2018Find Your Community\u2019 During\u2026\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n

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\n\tA rainbow flag the length of three football fields flowed through the streets, carried by 500 members of the Gay Men\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n

\n\tSinger-songwriter and actor Rene\u00e9 Rapp<\/a> 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\u2019s Orange is the New Black<\/em>, waved from an open convertible.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cPride means us looking out for each other no matter what,\u201d she declared to the crowd as the convertible rolled to a stop. \u201cWe know how to be there for each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMany LGBTQ+ travelers have expressed concerns<\/a>\u00a0or decided to skip WorldPride due to anxieties about safety, border policies and a hostile political climate that they say hearkens\u00a0back to another time<\/a>. But that did not keep international travelers and other participants away, with groups visible from Iran, Namibia, Kenya and Russia.<\/p>\n

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\u2019s \u201cI Wanna Dance with Somebody\u201d blared from loudspeakers.<\/p>\n

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\t\t\t\t\tCynthia Erivo Opens Up About Her Queerness: \u2018The More Yourself You Are, The Better Understanding\u2026\t\t<\/p>\n<\/h3><\/div>\n

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\n\t\u201cD.C. is already one of the biggest cities in the country for celebrating Pride,\u201d said Cheo White, 33, from Annapolis, Maryland, \u201cBut we are all collectively more united and turning out more because of what\u2019s happening in the White House.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tMany have said the\u00a0gathering has taken on a new meaning<\/a>\u00a0amid the Trump administration\u2019s aggressive policies against protections for transgender Americans and diversity, equity and inclusion programs.<\/p>\n

\n\tWhite\u2019s partner, Nick Kerver, 26, who was visiting from Toledo, Ohio, said Pride has \u201calways been a political tool\u201d but has taken on more importance this year amid mounting threats to the LGBTQ+ community, especially transgender and nonbinary Americans.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt feels more important than ever,\u201d Kerver said while wearing a rainbow hat, sunglasses and a T-shirt. \u201cBut we also have to get involved in our local communities too.\u201c<\/p>\n

\n\tDavid Begler, a 58-year-old gay man from Philadelphia, expressed disappointment that many international travelers felt unsafe visiting D.C. for WorldPride but said he appreciates its presence in the city during this political climate.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s the perfect time to have WorldPride in D.C.,\u201d Begler said. \u201cWe need it right now. I want us to send a message to the White House to focus on uplifting each other instead of dividing.\u201c<\/p>\n

\n\tStay 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. \u201cThis is a really big year,\u201d Stay DeRoux said. \u201cThere\u2019s been a lot of turmoil. So it\u2019s an amazing thing to be among allies, among people who love because we\u2019ve experienced so much hate on a daily basis.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tFor 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. Cynthia Erivo was set to perform on the Capitol Stag following the parade.<\/p>\n

\n\tJohnny 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\u2019s Beach Bar and Restaurant in Arlington, Virginia.<\/p>\n

\n\tEvents culminate Sunday with a\u00a0rally and protest\u00a0march and a\u00a0giant street party and concert\u00a0<\/a>(<\/a>headlined by Doechii)<\/a> covering a multi-block stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cThis is WorldPride in the best city in the world,\u201d Mayor Muriel Bowser declared as she walked the parade hand-in-hand with her daughter, Miranda.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Gray skies and drizzle gave way to sunshine, multicolored flags and celebrations as the nation\u2019s capital held the\u00a0WorldPride\u00a0parade Saturday (June 7). Tens of thousands of people participated in parades and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[91,274,94,6,1444],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2404","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-culture","category-genre-pop","category-music-news","category-news","category-pride"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2404","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2404"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2404\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2404"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2404"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/musictechohio.online\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2404"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}