Arlington Pride 2026 is suspended until the City Council reinstates anti-discrimination policies that provide local protections for LGBTQ people, event organizers announced Friday.
DeeJay Johannessen, CEO of the HELP Center for LGBTQ+ Health, said he did not want to invite attendees to a city without local protections.
鈥淧ride is about safety, celebration, and community. Without local anti-discrimination safeguards, we cannot guarantee those values for our attendees, performers, or partners,鈥� Johannessen said in a news release.
Mayor Jim Ross said he was disappointed about the event鈥檚 suspension while city leaders discuss options for LGBTQ protections. He said he has planned meetings with council members, HELP Center leadership and city attorney Molly Shortall to discuss the ordinance.
鈥淚鈥檓 hoping that we work through our issues here, that they reinstate it and go from there,鈥� Ross said. 鈥淟et鈥檚 not make a difficult situation more difficult by doing this type of thing.鈥�
Arlington City Council voted 5-4 Tuesday night the city鈥檚 anti-discrimination ordinance, which included protections for those identifying as part of the LGBTQ community. Ross was one of the four who voted to reinstate.
The ordinance was suspended in September and allowed the city to investigate reports of discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodations.
The ordinance builds upon protected classes under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, extending those protections to sexual orientation and gender identity.
Some council members who voted to not reinstate the ordinance said they feared the city could lose $65 million in federal funding. On the first day of President Donald Trump鈥檚 second term, he issued an saying cities will lose their federal grants if they have 鈥渞adical and wasteful government programs.鈥�
Johannessen鈥檚 organization launched Arlington Pride in 2021. This year鈥檚 event in June to the Levitt Pavilion, organizers previously told the Arlington Report.
Johannessen said the event would not return until the protections are brought back.
鈥淥nce those protections are reinstated, we look forward to hosting what has become one of Arlington鈥檚 favorite events,鈥� Johannessen said.
He said that it鈥檚 too early to talk about other options for pride events in Arlington, should the HELP Center鈥檚 position remain the same.
During this summer鈥檚 event, Ross made a proclamation recognizing June as Pride Month. However, the event is not held in partnership with the city.
鈥淚f somebody else wanted to come in and do it, that鈥檚 something between them and the Levitt Pavilion,鈥� Ross said. 鈥淎nd I would continue to support all communities here in Arlington the way I have been doing for the last nearly five years.鈥�
This is a developing story and will be frequently updated.
Chris Moss is a reporting fellow for the Arlington Report. Contact him at chris.moss@fortworthreport.org.
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