Gilbert Baker Foundation
at World Pride D.C.
In a powerful statement against pride flag bans nationwide, the Gilbert Baker Foundation leads WorldPride 2025 Parade with a historic 1,000-Foot Rainbow Flag.Β
– Washington Post, June 7th, 2025
Resisting Erasure
In 2022 Washington D.C. was named host city for WorldPride 2025.
The 2024 election ofΒ Donald Trump for a second term as presidentΒ led to some organizations re-evaluating their participation in WorldPride 2025 due to his stances on the LGBTQ+ community, includingΒ executive orders targeting the transgender community
The Gilbert Baker Foundation had planned on a smaller presence, mounting our Anthem Award-winning βFlag In The Mapβ exhibit at the WorldPride welcome center.As more organizations withdrew from taking part in the event, we decided to make a big splash and send a defiant message to the world β and to the Trump administration: We will not be silent in the face of ongoing attacks.
We participated in WorldPride 2025 in four significant ways:
Gilbert Bakerβs 1,000-foot Rainbow Flag Led the Β ParadeΒ
In a vivid act of LGBTQ+ resistance against mounting legislative attacks, the Gilbert Baker Foundation led the June 7 WorldPride parade, displaying a massive 1,000-foot rainbow flag.Β This powerful statement was reminiscent of the direct actions during the darkest days of the AIDS epidemic, like the 1993 March on Washington.
The flag was made from segments of Bakerβs historic 2003 mile-and-a-quarter-long “Sea to Sea” flag. After theΒ Kennedy CenterΒ canceled their concert, we invitedΒ 500Β members of the Gay Menβs Chorus of Washington D.C. to carry the flag. The epic spectacle of visibility and power dominated news media around the world. See our Instagram posts below.
βSave the Rainbow Flagβ Booth at the World Pride Street Festival
The Foundation was among hundreds of vibrant exhibitors and skilled artisans at the WorldPride Street Festival and Concert. Our Β booth was created to educate people about the escalating attacks the Rainbow Flag is facing across America. Our message: Fight back to safeguard this powerful LGBTQ+ symbol of love, unity, and resilience and keep it flying for future generations.
By partnering with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Foundation is fighting back against this wave of hate.The flag has already been banned from public display in over 60 towns and school districts. Β Our presence at WorldPride 2025 shows the importance of standing up against hate and resisting those who want to erase us.
Human Rights Conference Panel
We hosted on June 4 “Rainbow Pride Flags: Past, Present and Future.” The vigorous panel discussion explored the history of LGBTQ+ flags, including their role in an increasingly hostile society.
The panelists included veteran activists Monica Helms (Trans flag creator and Gilbert Baker Foundation board member), A.J.Β Hikes (More Colors flag creator), and Charley Beal (Gilbert Baker Foundation president), and was moderated by Foundation board member Cathy Marino-Thomas.
“Flag in the Map” Exhibit
Our Anthem Award-winning “Flag in the Map” exhibit was featured at the WorldPride Welcome Center.Β
The exhibition showcases the global reach of the Rainbow Flag through personal photos and stories of people. It was previously mounted at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
World Pride 2025 Highlights
Press Coverage
Thousand-foot-long flag to lead the WorldPride parade in DC Saturday
WASHINGTON, D.C. The foundation that made the LGBTQ+ Rainbow flag will lead the WorldPride Parade in D.C. on Saturday with a 1,000-foot-long rainbow flag.
The Gilbert Baker Foundation leaders said this shows a vivid act of defiance and a powerful declaration of LGBTQ+ visibility amid mounting legislative attacks.
The LGBT community shows up for WorldPride in D.C., despite some worries about Trump
…..Twenty-five years later, WorldPride continues β this year in Washington, D.C.But so does the queer community’s fight to be seen, said Charley Beal (President of the Gilbert Baker Foundation) Members of the queer community have expressed fear, hesitation and fortitude as Pride festivities kicked off in D.C., Β where President Trump signed several executive orders limiting the rights of transgender people, including banning them from the military, banning transgender women from women’s sports and ending gender-affirming care for those under age 19.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment on this story.
But make no mistake β Beal will still be at D.C. Pride. He is appearing on a panel hosted by the Human Rights Conference and will be carrying a 1,000-foot rainbow flag in the parade (with hundreds of volunteers Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington
The Gilbert Baker Foundation and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Are Fighting Back. Weβre tracking the flight bans on our live map and we’ve already overturned many. Unfortunately, our ability to continue to help fund some of the legal defenses is becoming strained. We need your help to continue this fight.
The rainbow flag has never been more vulnerable. Take a stand and help us make sure this iconic symbol continues to fly.