You’ve probably already heard the news: queer and trans people are under heightened scrutiny. In recent months, members of the LGBTQ+ community experienced book challenges and a renewed prohibition on transgender folks serving in the military. On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order declaring that the U.S. government recognizes only two genders: male and female.
But LGBTQ+ people in this region, across the country and around the planet will persevere with the parades, tours, exhibits, discussions and theatrical happenings that mark Pride Month each June.
It’s been 55 years since the inaugural Pride parades wound through New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago to mark the first anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riots, a flashpoint in LGBTQ+ liberation.
But activists were readying the ground for years, including in Philadelphia, where queer people marched in annual July 4 “Reminder Day Pickets” from 1965-69, hoisting signs with slogans such as, “Homosexuals Picket for American Freedoms and Rights.”
Here’s what’s on the local docket for Pride 2025:
First Friday Pride Party, June 6, 5 to 8 p.m.
Chestnut Hill’s third annual Pride party carries the tagline, “No Limits. No Labels. Just Pride!” It’s happening at NoName Gallery, 8127 Germantown Ave., during Arts & Eats, Chestnut Hill’s monthly first Friday event. Sponsored by the Chestnut Hill Community Association (CHCA), the Chestnut Hill Business District and NoName, the gathering promises to celebrate “diversity and inclusion in the neighborhood we call home.”
“It clearly is more important than ever to have these kinds of events and make people feel welcome and safe,” said Anne McNiff, CHCA’s executive director.
The event will feature mocktails from Dirty Gertie’s, a non-alcoholic pop-up bar, along with higher-proof drinks; local author Kay Synclaire will share her book, “The House of Frank,” about a grieving, lonely witch who discovers found-family in a magical arboretum.
Free and open to the public. For more info, visit chestnuthill.org/pride_party.php
Upper Dublin Pride Celebration, June 6, 6 to 8 p.m.
The string of letters says it all: 2SLGBTQQIA+. Jenny Anderson, Upper Dublin parent and cochair of the school district’s queer equity committee, explains the acronym: two-spirit, (a specifically Indigenous American term referring to people who fulfill a traditional third-gender role in tribal communities) lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, plus.
“We’re trying these days, given the attempts to erase [queer] people, to hold space for as many people under the umbrella as we can,” Anderson said. That’s the aim of the group’s fifth annual family-friendly Pride celebration in the Upper Dublin High School cafeteria, 800 Loch Alsh Ave. in Fort Washington.
The event includes storytime and face painting for the youngest set, along with dancing and food, vendors of art, apparel, crafts and books, and performances by a 19-year-old drag queen, Venus Ultraviolet, along with School of Rock (a music education and performance program), and Voices Rising Philly, a group that sings at rallies for progressive causes. Philly author Diane Billas will be there with her new queer Young Adult superhero novel, “Superficial.”
While the party is for everyone, it’s designed with queer youth in mind, Anderson said, “to provide space for our queer kids to come as they are, a space where they can safely celebrate Pride in a family-friendly environment surrounded by a neighbors, family, and staff from the district who are all there to support them.”
Free and open to all.
Family Pride and Drag Queen Storytime
The “free” in Philadelphia’s Free Library doesn’t only mean that patrons can check out materials without charge; it also refers to the liberty to read, hear, share and discuss an exuberant range of ideas.
Chestnut Hill Library (8711 Germantown Ave.) will host a series of events including a June 9 seminar on LGBTQ+ identities and experiences, with discussion topics including gender neutral language and best pronoun practices. On June 23, the Claymobile pop-up ceramics studio will visit for a workshop inviting participants to create works to express their unique identities, and, on June 26, Ants on a Log, which plays music for “children and other childlike people” will present a family Pride concert performed by trans and nonbinary musicians featuring songs about inclusion, self-expression, and allyship.
Bring the kids — or family members of any age — to hear drag queen Brittany Lynn share stories of love, diversity, and acceptance at the Falls of Schuylkill branch, 3501 Midvale Ave. Storytime will be in the downstairs meeting room; use the Midvale entrance through the garden.
For more information, visit libwww.freelibrary.org or call 215-685-2093.
‘Giovanni’s Room,’ through June 22
Mt. Airy’s Quintessence Theatre Group, 7137 Germantown Ave., presents a world premiere theatrical adaptation of James Baldwin’s groundbreaking 1956 novel. The play, adapted for the stage by Benjamin Sprunger and Paul Oakley Stovall, with the blessing of the Baldwin estate, tells a story of self-discovery, shame, passion, and tragedy as David, a young American, travels to Paris with his girlfriend, only to enter a vibrant queer community and fall in love with Giovanni, an Italian bartender.
For showtimes and tickets, visit quintessencetheatre.org or call 215-987-4450.
Sweet Juice Fest, June 28, 1:30 to 9 p.m.
This daylong arts and music festival centers the voices of queer, trans, and BIPOC local artists, activists, and creators. It’s happening at the Farm at Awbury Arboretum, 6336 Ardleigh St., Germantown.
Sweet Juice, a collective of artists and changemakers, says they aim to spark “immersive musical experiences, radical creativity, and joyful connection.” Headlined by rock band Speedy Ortiz, the festival also features Little Hag, a female-led punk band from central New Jersey; Kai Davis, a Black, queer, multidisciplinary artist and educator; and an eclectic handful of others.
“We’ve created installations around the forestry of the farm. We want it to be a really immersive experience,” said Sweet Juice co-creator Katie Hackett. “We’re trying to envision a world, even for just one day, where queer artists are at the center. Where it’s our world.”
Tickets are on a sliding scale from $0-45. Info and tickets at sweetjuicefest.com.
Bucks-Mont Pride Festival, June 29, Noon to 5 p.m.
The Welcome Project PA hosts the fifth annual Bucks-Mont Pride Festival at Abington Art Center, 515 Meetinghouse Road, Jenkintown — an indoor/outdoor event featuring community resources, family-friendly activities and performances by Jakeya Limitless, Yari, Positive Movement Entertainment Drumline and Philly Cheer Elite, an all-volunteer cheer team that promotes equality and LGBTQ+ awareness. Try yoga with Invert Your World Studio; groove to tunes by DJ Triiish; snack from local food and beverage trucks.
Free and open to all. Details at bucksmontpride.com.
