‘It’s wonderful to be accepted and valued and respected for who I am’: A look at the task force that created Alexandria Pride

WTOP is marking Pride Month by showcasing the people, places and important issues in the LGBTQ+ communities in the D.C. area. Check back all throughout June as we share these stories, on air and online.

It was eight years ago that Alexandria’s LGBTQ+ task force teamed up with Alexandria’s library to host the first Alexandria Pride in Virginia.

Erika Callaway Kleiner was part of the first meeting where the event was conceived, and the violence prevention project manager and staff liaison for the task force told WTOP that the first Alexandria Pride was quite different from the one on Saturday.

“We had the first Alexandria pride at Charles Beatley library, and it was a pretty small event, but local organizations came,” said Kleiner. “For the last three years, we’ve had it at Market Square, and it’s grown to thousands of people.”

No would call Alexandria Pride a small event now. Along with the crowds of people, some with their families and dogs, the event includes more than 90 vendors, food trucks, live music, dancing, an art lab, drag story hour and health services.

“It’s grown to a place that we couldn’t have imagined when we started it,” Kleiner said. “Being here at Pride and seeing all of these people with such joy is just worth millions of dollars,” she said.

The task force began in 2007, within Alexandria’s sexual and domestic violence programs.

Kleiner told WTOP that LGBTQ+ people and allies came together not only to improve services, but help bring access to services for the entire LGBTQ+ community.

“So the task force really focuses on training service providers on creating inclusive environments where people feel safe, feel like they belong,” said Kleiner. “Alexandria Pride came about because of that.”

Diana Maurer, chair of the Alexandria LGBTQ+ task force, told WTOP that Alexandria Pride grows every year.

“People bring their families, people coming from out of town. It’s just a way to celebrate what a wonderful city Alexandria is and how welcoming this city is to everyone,” said Maurer, who has lived in, or near, Alexandria her entire life.

“I have pride in a city that allows people to live their genuine lives,” said Maurer. “I’m a transgender woman. It’s wonderful to be accepted and valued and respected for who I am.”