Queer spaces have never just been about gathering. They have been sanctuaries, lifelines, places where our bodies, stories, and joy could exist without apology. But today, those spaces are under attack. From drag bans and Pride event restrictions to bomb threats at queer libraries and community centers, the backlash is real. It is targeted. And it is escalating. These assaults aim to punish our visibility and fracture our sense of safety. They are not new, but they are intensifying, and they demand a response rooted in both courage and care.

We cannot afford to treat safety and welcome as opposites. We must create spaces that are prepared and protective without replicating the same exclusion we are resisting. That means security that doesn’t criminalize our own. It means gathering without leaving behind the most vulnerable in our communities. A queer space that is not accessible, not racially just, not trans-affirming, not open to disabled and neurodivergent folks, is not truly safe. It may be protected, but it is not whole.

This Pride, we recommit to holding both our joy and our vigilance. We remember that protecting queer and trans spaces includes standing up to those who threaten us from outside, but also examining how we include and care for each other within. Safety is not something we inherit. It is something we build together, intentionally and intersectionally. That is what makes Pride sacred. Not just that we gather, but that we gather with purpose, with justice, and with each other fully in view.