In recent years, federal agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI have released safety advisories ahead of Pride Month, citing threats to LGBTQ+ events and spaces. While no formal bulletin has yet been issued this year, we choose to lead with proactive intention rather than reactive concern.
As communities across the country finalize plans to celebrate Pride Month 2025 Stonewall Columbus is honoring the month under the theme “United in Power,” and we’re issuing this call for heightened collective safety and public solidarity. In a time marked by increasing visibility and vulnerability, our shared responsibility is clear: we must protect the spaces we’ve fought to create, together.
We cannot allow silence or delay to become complicity. We believe our communities deserve clarity, collaboration, and care—especially in moments of celebration.
Our Commitments
- We actively coordinate with local officials, safety teams, and community partners to ensure the well-being of event attendees.
- We are committed to transparent communication and timely updates regarding safety planning.
- We work center community voices in decisions and ask that community recognize that safety is not one-size-fits-all.
LGBTQ+ Community’s History of Community Safety
The LGBTQ+ community has always forged its own pathways to safety. From the early days of the AIDS crisis, when chosen families created networks of care, to community-led patrols protecting queer nightlife spaces, we have a long and proud history of looking out for one another when institutional support failed to show up. Pride itself was born from protest—an act of resistance against brutality, and an assertion of our right to exist freely, publicly, and joyfully.
That legacy must continue today. Community safety is not new to us; it is inherited, intentional, and essential.
A Community Call to Action
- Be there for each other, not against each other.
- Be aware of your surroundings and report suspicious behavior to safety teams or authorities.
- Follow Stonewall Columbus for real-time local event updates and resources.
- Remember that your presence is powerful—showing up is a form of resistance, and safety is a shared practice.
A Call to Our Public Safety Partners
We also call upon our local, state, and federal public safety partners to remain vigilant and responsive to the ongoing rise in hostility toward LGBTQ+ individuals across the country. We urge you to protect our right to gather, to celebrate, and to honor our community’s history safely and without fear.
Public safety must be proactive, affirming, and rooted in equity. We welcome your partnership—and expect your presence—as we work to ensure that Pride remains a space of belonging, not burden.
Pride is our protest and our joy. It is rooted in resistance and steeped in community care. This year, let our pride be deliberate, our actions intentional, and our solidarity unshakable.
Let’s show what it means to be United in Power—through vigilance, compassion, and collective courage.
With strength and pride,
Densil Porteous (he/they)
Executive Director
Stonewall Columbus
