The Arlington Pride Block Party, billed as the suburban county’s “signature event” for Pride Month, has been canceled less than three weeks before it was scheduled to take place.
The event, scheduled for Saturday, June 6, was expected to draw hundreds of attendees to Crystal City’s Restaurant Row, a row of eateries, bars and pubs lining 23rd Street South.
The LGBTQ nonprofit Equality Arlington, which is the event’s lead organizer, announced in a May 18 press release that organizers are postponing the block party. The group has partnered with Arlington County government, the National Landing Business Improvement District, Freddy’s Beach Bar, and more than a dozen LGBTQ nonprofits, businesses, civic groups, and faith communities to host the event.
“Given the scale of the plans for live music and performances, community-centered programming and storytelling, and local food vendors, nonprofits, government, and corporate exhibitors, the coalition organizing the event has decided to postpone the block party until Pride 2027,” Equality Arlington said in a press release.
“It was a little disappointing that it didn’t work,” said Tony Rivenbark, general manager of Freddy’s Beach Bar. Metro Weekly. “It’s not easy to put everything together.”
He said more than 20 community organizations have participated in discussions about the event, with several area churches and all three civic groups in the Restaurant Row area expressing support for the event.
“I think the main challenge we had with the Arlington Pride Block Party was that there was so much to do and not enough time to get it done,” said Equality Arlington President Kellen McBeth. metro weekly.
“Around January, we approached the county about hosting a block party this year,” McBeth continued. “We asked the county to help convene a variety of nonprofits, businesses, faith communities, and other groups interested in participating in the planning process and making this happen.”
Equality Arlington held its first organizational meeting in mid-March, bringing together various groups to brainstorm plans for an event proposed by Arlington’s LGBTQIA+ Advisory Committee.
On April 28, the county’s LGBTQIA+ Advisory Committee voted to request $9,100 from Arlington County to offset the estimated $35,000 cost of police staffing, parking and block party permits. But the request “never really got that far” with county officials because organizers were unable to finalize plans, McBeth said.
“From the beginning, we had a very limited amount of time to pull off an event that was fairly large in size,” McBeth said, adding that with more advance planning and community input, organizers are hopeful they will be able to hold the block party next June.
In lieu of block party, Equality Arlington and National Landing BID will host free screening of 1995 LGBTQ comedy Thank you as always, Mr. Wong Foo! julie newmar. The screening will be held at 3 p.m. at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Arlington, which will accommodate approximately 100 invited guests.
A Pride party will be held at National Landing Water Park after the screening. National Landing Water Park is a city park along Crystal Drive that features fountains, picnic areas, a stage area for live entertainment, two full-service restaurants, and a variety of food vendors. Mr McBeth said details were still being worked out.
In addition to the film screening, several other Arlington Pride events will be held throughout June, all free of charge. These include the Outstanding Pride Event on June 4th from 12pm to 1:30pm at Courthouse Plaza, the Pride Senior Prom on June 12th from 7pm to 12am at the Arlington Central Library, and Drag Queen Bingo on June 23rd from 6pm to 7:30pm at the Walter Reed Community Center.
Other notable events include the Pride Story and Rainbow Scavenger Hunt at Shirlington Library on June 25th from 4:30-5:30pm and the 6th Annual Penrose Pride Parade at Butler Homes Park on June 28th from 1-2pm.
McBeth said he expects the number of Pride Month events to increase as June approaches.
Equality Arlington’s LGBTQ+ Film Screening will be held on Saturday, June 6th at 3pm at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, 1660 Crystal Drive, Arlington, VA. A Pride party will follow the film at National Landing Water Park, 1601 Crystal Drive. For more information and a schedule of other Pride Month events, please visit: equalityarlington.org/events.
Source: Metro Weekly – www.metroweekly.com
