Celebrate Alexandria Pride Workshops

June is Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (LGBTQ) Pride Month, and the Alexandria LGBTQ Task Force and Alexandria Library is hosting Celebrate Alexandria Pride Workshops online June 3-5.  Twelve workshops will be offered over three days. Some workshops are creative and some are educational, but they all celebrate the resiliency and beauty of the LGBTQ+ community in Alexandria. Presenters and facilitators include members of the Alexandria LGBTQ Task Force and other local and state partners, including Alexandria Library, Safe Space NOVA, Center for Black Equity, Heard Program, Virginia Anti-Violence Project, Drag Queen Story Hour, Equality Virginia, Impacto LGBT, promotional partners Visit Alexandria and more. Also, don’t miss the Progress Pride flags that will fly in June around Alexandria City Hall.

Thursday, June 3

Register using this link for any workshop(s) on June 3.

10 A.M. - PREVENTING VIOLENCE WITHIN AND AGAINST THE LGBTQ+ COMMUNITIES

Natasha Smith, Virginia Anti-Violence Project (VAVP)

Learn about anti-violence work in Virginia and advocacy from an intersectional, multicultural lens. Leave with resources for LGBTQ+ survivors and loved ones in Virginia.

12 P.M. | SUN’S OUT, BUNS OUT! 

Tina Kantiano, Heard Program

Take a dance break (with your camera on or off)!  If you’re vaccinated and you know it, clap your hands! And stomp your feet! And werk, werk, werk that arm! Join us as we shake it from our mask-free faces, to the tips of our safely pedicured toes. We are here, Ms. Summer! And we’re coming to slay.

2 P.M. | LIVING AUTHENTICALLY: STORIES FROM TRANSGENDER VIRGINIANS

Sara and Dani

Join transgender advocates for a time of community and learning as they share their stories as transgender people living in Northern Virginia, followed by time for dialogue and questions.

4 P.M. | TOWARDS RACIAL EQUITY AND SHARED HUMANITY: REFLECTING ON WHITE PRIVILEGE IN LGBTQ COMMUNITIES

This workshop aims to stimulate white participants to reflect on their experiences of being both LGBTQ and white and consider the impact of those experiences on their motivation to support the cause of racial justice in America.

6 P.M. | THE CHANGING LEGAL LANDSCAPE FOR LGBTQ VIRGINIANS

Legal Services of Northern Virginia, Alexandria Office of Human Rights, and Virginia Equality Bar Association

It’s been a big year for LGBTQ Virginians at the state and federal levels. Learn about city and state legislation that affects the community. Alexandria City Council members will kick off this session by reading the Alexandria 2021 Pride Proclamation. 

Friday, June 4

Register using this link for any workshop(s) on June 4.

12 P.M. | HISTORY OF BLACK LGBTQ+ ACTIVISM IN THE DMV AND DC BLACK PRIDE 

Kenya Hutton and Earl Fowlkes, Jr., the Center for Black Equity

Beginning in 1991, DC Black Pride began as a way to provide Black LGBTQ+ people an alternative to the largely white mainstream LGBTQ+ movement. Learn about those beginnings from one of the founders of the movement and leaders from the Center for Black Equity.

2 P.M. | OLDER LGBTQ ADULTS - WE’RE IN THIS TOGETHER!

Ray Biegun, Alan Dinsmore, Bob Eiffert, Terri Lynch, Babs Waters - Alexandria Commission on Aging and Aging and Adult Services

What are some of the challenges facing older LGBTQ members of our community? We may not have a partner. We may not have close relatives or children. We may be alone. Do we have a support circle? Join a conversation about how we are part of a supportive, compassionate and understanding community.  We promise that attending this workshop won’t make you older, and it might even make getting older seem less intimidating knowing we live in a community that cares.

4 P.M. | AND THE CATEGORY IS!  SPOKEN WORD WITH C. THOMAS

Heard Program

Using the TV show Pose as a backdrop, participants will listen to original poetry (and create their own) and identify the importance and relevance of LGBTQ artists and how their work has inspired others to live their truth.

6 P.M. | QUEERING THE MEDIA: LGBTQ REPRESENTATION IN BOOKS, TV, AND FILM

Isaiah West, Librarian and Bookstagrammer: @thequeerbrarian

Are you looking for a good, queer character to fall in love with? Join Isaiah West to discuss LGBTQ+ representation in books, television and film.

Saturday, June 5

Register using this link for workshops on June 5 except for Drag Queen Story Hour at 10 a.m., which has a separate registration link.

10 A.M. | DRAG QUEEN STORY HOUR WITH CITRINE

Register using this link for Story Hour.

What do drag queens and children have in common? They love dressing up and all things sparkly and fancy! Drag Queen Story Hour (DQSH) is just what it sounds like—drag queens reading stories to children in libraries, schools and bookstores. Enjoy songs and stories for kids ages 3-8.

12 P.M. | HOW TO SPOT MENTAL HEALTH CONCERNS IN LGBTQ+ YOUTH

Safe Space NOVA Executive Director, Jordan L. Costen-Sumpter and Denisha Johnson, LCSW

Register using this link for this workshop.

Mental health concerns plague the LGBTQ+ community at an exceedingly high rate. Even worse, symptoms--the early signs that there are mental health concerns--are overlooked, ignored or misdiagnosed. The purpose of this training is to provide parents and caretakers with signs of mental health concerns so that they are better equipped to identify them in children and provide helpful resources.

2 P.M. | HELPFUL HINTS FOR THE COMING OUT PROCESS - GUIDANCE FOR FAMILIES, PARENTS/CAREGIVERS, AND SERVICE PROVIDERS

Safe Space NOVA Executive Director, Jordan L. Costen-Sumpter 

Register using this link for this workshop.

The coming out process of understanding and accepting a sexual orientation and/or gender identity can be difficult with the response of close family members and friends playing a huge role. With this training, parents and caretakers will be provided with the information and resources needed to properly navigate the process.

More Pride Month Activities and Events

In addition to the workshops, residents are invited to attend other City events during Pride Month, including:

• Lecture: Mapping the Gay Guides: Understanding Queer Spaces in Pre- & Post-Stonewall America | June 10, 7-9 p.m.

Dr. Eric Gonzaba will discuss his digital project, which aims to understand the often-ignored queer geographies through an interactive web application and digital public history project. Drawing on and making accessible the Damron Guides, an early but longstanding travel guide aimed at gay men since the early 1960s, this online mapping project explores different dimensions of American gay life through time, from bars and nightlife, bookstores, cinemas and churches. Fee: $6.

• Celebrate LGBTQ Pride Month With Alexandria Library

Throughout the month, the Alexandria Library is hosting a variety of events for all ages, including craft workshops, story times, book clubs, writing workshops and more. View or download a full list. Also, visit alexlibraryva.org/lgbtq for books, audiobooks, resources and more.