As World Pride begins in Washington, some foreigners stay away 5 hours ago Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu & Brandon Drenon BBC News Reporting from Washington DC Across Washington, large rainbow flags are flying next to the stars and stripes as the city plays host to World Pride, a global celebration of LGBTQ culture and identity.
The US capital won the bid to host World Pride years before Trump’s re-election.
Egale Canada has previously participated in World Pride events in London, Sydney and at home in Toronto.
Ms Kennedy said the organisation wasn’t boycotting World Pride itself, but protesting against Trump’s policies on LGBTQ issues.
Capital Pride Alliance, the organisation running this year’s World Pride in DC, told the BBC it has recieved “an unordinary amount of questions and concerns”.
Some foreigners avoid Washington as World Pride gets underway.
five hours before.
Both Brandon Drenon and Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu.
the BBC News.
from Washington, DC, reporting.
As the city hosts World Pride, a worldwide celebration of LGBTQ culture and identity, big rainbow flags are flying alongside the stars and stripes all over Washington.
This year, however, it has been difficult to get the world to come. While some foreign visitors are boycotting the biennial event due to travel concerns, others are demonstrating against the policies of President Donald Trump.
Transgender data analyst Alice Siregar, who lives in Montreal, had been scheduled to attend. She told the BBC, however, that it was currently impossible to travel to the United States.
She said, “Coming over now is risky, especially as a trans woman.”.
A few years prior to Trump’s reelection, the US capital was chosen to host World Pride. The celebration, which falls on the 50th anniversary of the first Pride march in Washington, is expected to draw three million visitors and boost the local economy by almost $800 million, according to projections made by the event’s organizers in January.
However, they now only have about a third of what they had anticipated. In addition, hotel occupancy rates are lower than they were the previous year.
The Trump administration’s new regulations prohibiting transgender Americans from changing their gender on official documents have prevented Ms. Siregar, 30, who is both Canadian and US, from renewing her US passport.
According to the White House, “the biological reality of sex” is being in defense.
She fears that border officials might not accept her gender, which is listed as female on her Canadian documents, even though she could use her passport to travel south. “I’m concerned about reports of other foreign travelers being arrested and detained,” she said.
“It’s too dangerous to risk it,” she declared.
According to a US Customs and Border Protection spokesperson, a person’s gender identity does not render them ineligible.
“The gender listed on a foreign traveler’s passport and their personal sexual orientation do not make them inadmissible,” the spokesperson told the BBC in a statement. “Answers to the contrary are not true. “.”.
Ms. Siregar’s worries, however, are not unique. Travel advisories have been issued by a number of European governments, including those in Germany, Finland, and Denmark, for transgender and non-binary individuals visiting the United States. A travel warning for individuals who identify as gender non-conforming or have a history of LGBTQ activism was also released by the advocacy group Equality Australia.
The safety of their transgender and non-binary employees is the reason why Egale Canada, one of the biggest LGBTQ charities in the nation, announced that it would not be taking part in World Pride. Egale Canada has previously taken part in World Pride celebrations in Toronto, London, and Sydney.
“The general tone and hostility towards LGBTI people in the US, as well as those who may be visiting the US from other jurisdictions, is a serious concern,” stated Helen Kennedy, the organization’s executive director.
Additionally, she said, Trump’s repeated remarks about Canada becoming the 51st US state played a role. Ms. Kennedy stated that the group was protesting Trump’s LGBTQ policies rather than boycotting World Pride per se.
Trump has repealed an executive order from Biden that prohibited discrimination “on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation” and has rolled back other LGBTQ protections since taking office. Additionally, he outlawed DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) policies in federal agencies. While proponents claim that those policies aid in redressing injustices, others—including Trump—claim that they are discriminatory in and of themselves.
In addition, his administration has prohibited federal funding for gender care for transgender youth and prohibited transgender individuals from joining the military. Funding for states that permit transgender athletes to compete has also been threatened.
Trump has defended his actions by claiming that it is “demeaning for women and very bad for our country” for trans women to participate in sports.
There are currently legal challenges to some of these policies.
According to US media this week, the navy intends to rename a ship that was christened in Harvey Milk’s honor. The first openly gay man elected to public office in California was the activist and former Navy sailor, who did so in 1977.
Although former President Joe Biden hosted a Pride month celebration on the White House lawn in 2023 and last year issued a proclamation supporting the community, Mr. Trump has not mentioned the celebration in recent days. A White House spokesperson told the BBC that Trump was “fostering a sense of national pride that should be celebrated daily” and that he was “honoured to serve all Americans” in response to a question about the president’s stance on World Pride. “,”.
The group in charge of organizing this year’s World Pride in Washington, DC, Capital Pride Alliance, told the BBC that it has received “an unordinary amount of questions and concerns.”.
According to Sahand Miraminy, director of operations for the Capital Pride Alliance, “many people are aware that our celebration is literally in the footsteps of the Capitol Building and a block away from the White House.”.
He said that because Pride in DC is expected to attract larger crowds than previous years, it will have an enclosed perimeter and weapons detectors for the first time. The Metropolitan Police Department’s LGBTQ+ liaison unit will also have a greater presence at World Pride events and be given “first priority” when it comes to responding to crises, Mr. Miraminy stated.
Visitors “feel scared that an environment is developing that is anti-LGBTQ,” according to Democrat Mayor Muriel Bowser of Washington.
According to her, however, “we can’t live in fear, we have to live our lives [and] be as best prepared as we can,”.
Co-owner of Her Diner in DuPont Circle, one of the liveliest LGBTQ neighborhoods in Washington, DC, Kelly Laczko, said she has also raised security for the weekend.
She remarked, “I think we are usually prepared for the celebration with Pride.”. “And it’s clear that the current government has seriously hampered that. “..”.
