WorldPride begins
May. 22 —WorldPride events are already underway in Washington, D.C. and continuing through June. There is so much going on at this year’s festival that our colleagues at the Washington Blade have come up with a list of key events. If you’re going, send me some pics!
💵 Closer to home, Atlanta Pride announced the recipients of the 2025 Pride Across the Peach State grants with $50,000 divided between 13 vital organizations.
🥂 Mark your calendars for June 3 to attend a community gathering hosted by the committee of the Atlanta LGBTQ+ Community Center Feasibility Study. The event is from 6-8 p.m. at Truth Midtown. RSVP is required.
🤝 Following the murder of Savannah Pride Center volunteer Chris Allen Vilegas Fentress in March, the Center announced a partnership with the city’s police department to conduct officer training on how to better identify and respond to hate crimes against LGBTQ+ people.
⚖️ A federal judge has struck down guidelines by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission designed to protect against workplace harassment for LGBTQ+ people. Expect a Supreme Court challenge soon.
Our clique is the world, the world is our clique…
Collin
GLAAD Down South brings Black LGBTQ+ storytellers together
📣 On May 16, Black queer Atlantans gathered at MODEx Studio for GLAAD Down South, an event celebrating LGBTQ+ Southerners, storytellers, and people living with HIV.
The event, produced in partnership with GILEAD Sciences, was designed to amplify GLAAD’s mission of amplifying LGBTQ+ and HIV narratives across the South as effective strategies in the fight against HIV and anti-LGBTQ+ attacks.
“We listen to trans women, queer youth, Latinx leaders, faith-based advocates, because they’ve always known what true care looks like, and we’re here to follow their lead,” Marcus Wilson, the Director of GILEAD Sciences, said. “So, as we connect tonight, let this gathering be a reminder that the South is not a problem to be solved, it’s a power to be respected. Our stories are not side notes, they are strategy.”
➡ Read more from Katie Burkholder here.
Enjoy ASO’s Season Finale with IN UNISON
SPONSORED BY ATLANTA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
🏳️🌈 Come symphony with IN UNISON, where the LGBTQ+ community comes together to experience symphony concerts.
🎹 Saturday, June 7, kick off the summer with our season finale, when Peter Oundjian conducts Mahler’s romantic Seventh Symphony, a rich masterpiece with a “bright-as-day” Virtuosic pianist Inon Barnatan sets the stage in Shostakovich’s rapid-fire Concerto No. 1 for Piano, Trumpet and Strings. Afterward, gather with ASO artists and friends for food, drinks, and a meet & greet with Peter Oundjian.
🎟️ Bring a friend! Tickets include a premium seat at the 8 pm symphony concert plus a post-concert reception. Details here!
Craig Washington donates archive to Auburn Avenue Library
📚 Black gay writer and activist Craig Washington has donated papers, writing, and ephemera from his archive to the collection at the Auburn Avenue Research Library.
“This collection means so much to me in two big and connected ways,” Washington told Georgia Voice. “One, because it’s a representation of, a record of, my life and my work. But more so, it’s something I can offer to the community to which I’m most connected, the Black LGBTQ+ community. I want this to also be the impetus for us to develop more resources [for Black LGBTQ+ people].”
A significant figure in Atlanta’s Black queer history, Washington’s collection includes journalism; materials from LGBTQ+ organizations like AID Atlanta; ephemera from past Pride events, and his collection of now-defunct Black gay magazines like Arise, CLIK, and Venus.
➡ Find out more about Washington and his archive here.
Lavender Fest tickets on sale today
🎭 Tickets for the second annual Lavender Performing Arts Festival are on sale today, May 21.
This showcase for queer artists will take place over five days from July 16-20 at Out Front Theatre Company and will feature 11 performances.
Festival Director Ty Autry said that the success of last year’s event proved that Atlanta is excited to support queer artists. According to Autry, the festival hosted 650 people in total and was able to pay out over $4,000 to the artists who performed.
➡ Find out more about Lavender Fest.
MORE A&E
📺 Jim Farmer spoke with actor and comedian Benito Skinner about his new gay-themed series “Overcompensating,” which is streaming on Prime.
Best Bets
🎷 The Atlanta Jazz Festival returns to Piedmont Park over Memorial Day weekend, May 24-26, with Derrick Hodge, Russell Gunn & Blackhawk Quartet, Dianne Reeves, Joe Gransden and more.
💃 Join D.J. Pat Scott at The Atlanta Eagle for a summer kickoff dance party and the return of Britney Bash. Music starts at 11 p.m., and Pat Scott spins Britney Spears tunes from midnight to 3 a.m.
📖 Charis Books & More in Decatur welcomes Sarah Schulman in conversation with Dr. Moon Charania for a discussion of “The Fantasy and Necessity of Solidarity,” an examination of the inherent psychological and social challenges to solidarity movements, and what that means for the future. The in-person event is May 30 at 7:30 p.m.
Social Follow of the Week
📸 If you’re a fan of the books and the hit Netflix series “Heartstopper,” then be sure to follow author Alice Oseman. She’s just completed the script for a film that will conclude the story of Nick and Charlie.
