Pride brings us together in times of protest, mourning, victory, and celebration. Pride helps connect us to community and our found family. Pride gives us access to life-saving direct services and provides grant funding to our local and global LGBTQ community. This work is made possible through the collective strength of our community in the face of oppression, discrimination, and violence. During the ongoing global HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 pandemics, our resilience and determination have allowed our movement to continue on and grow.
In San Diego, we are privileged to have a community-led Pride organization that does meaningful education, organizing, advocacy, and philanthropic work all year long, not just one weekend a year. As a result, our programs were able to continue on in virtual spaces. As vaccines became available, we brought our community together in venues and neighborhoods all across the region once thought hostile to our community that now welcomed us in with open arms. This year we hosted more Pride events and reached more people with our message than ever in our organization’s history.
I never could have imagined a world where we would have to sustain our organization without our two tentpole events and funding streams, but you all kept our mission, vision, and work alive. You, our inspiring board, staff, volunteer team, sponsors, donors, partners, and community, stepped up and leaned in like never before to ensure that San Diego Pride’s work would not fade. Each of you kept us Resilient.
Record levels of hate and violence against the LGBTQ community have underscored for us that our work is far from over. That is why we still have Pride. That is why we are here. Pride provides us all a uniquely beautiful opportunity to lay down our differences and lift up our diversity as we strive to cast aside the shackles of shame and unapologetically embrace our ability to be radically authentic to ourselves.
While COVID-19 and its variants are a moving target, we are excited to announce that plans are underway to bring back our full-scale Pride Parade, Festival, and other traditional events in July of 2022 with additional avenues for virtual participation. I’m inspired by the thought of our community coming together again. Together we will continue to pursue Justice with Joy.
With Hope, Gratitude, and Pride,
Fernando Zweifach López
Pronouns: They/Them/Theirs
Executive Director
San Diego Pride
She Fest – July 9, 2022
Light Up the Cathedral – July 13, 2022
Spirit of Stonewall Rally – July 15, 2022
Pride 5K Walk & Run – July 16, 2022
San Diego Pride Parade – July 16, 2022
San Diego Pride Festival – July 16 – 17, 2022
Fernando Lopez is the Executive Director of San Diego Pride. Lopez’s years of LGBT advocacy, nonprofit management, public education, diversity consulting, media relations, guest lectures, and organizing have made them a consistent presence ensuring the struggles of the LGBT community are ever visible.
