BERKELEY >> Queer joy will be the theme of Berkeley’s inaugural Pride Festival in August, an event organizers said will be both a “powerful celebration” and testament of commitment to the city’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer community.

Berkeley Pride, slated for Aug. 16 in downtown Berkeley, will be hosted by the Pacific Center for Human Growth, the oldest LGBTQIA+ center in the Bay Area and third-oldest in the nation. The street fest will “transform the heart of the city into a vibrant hub” focused on queer culture, activism and celebration, the organizers announced in a news release Monday.

“In 2025, we are overjoyed to launch Berkeley Pride as a vibrant street fair, creating a space that honors our history while building our future,” said Lasara Firefox Allen, Pacific Center for Human Growth CEO, in a statement Monday. “We’re building a Pride that reflects the spirit of Berkeley — radical, inclusive, and deeply community-driven.”

Pride events large and small have been a staple in the Bay Area. Thousands have attended parades and festivals focused on the LGBTQ community in San Francisco and Oakland for decades, taking in concerts and drag shows, learning about resources and raising funds for various causes.

Berkeley Pride continues a yearslong expansion of more local pride events.

CoastPride in San Mateo County launched inaugural pride events in Half Moon Bay and Pacifica in the past few years, building on the more than a decade of celebrations held in San Mateo by the San Mateo County Pride Center and county and city officials.

In the East Bay, Richmond Rainbow Pride held the city’s first Pride Parade in 2023, and Martinez held its first pride festival the same year. The following year also saw a boom in city-sponsored pride events in the area from Fremont and San Leandro to Pinole. And Berkeley Humane, a nonprofit animal shelter, has held a doggy pride parade since 2022, aiming to boost adoptions and raise funds for the shelter.

For Berkeley Mayor Adena Ishii, the trend is a welcomed one. Local and family-friendly pride events are important to ensure all ages can participate and see themselves reflected in their community, she said. Ishii’s Chief of Staff Cydney Chilimidos and Amy Johnson Rodas, a legislative aide in Councilmember Igro Tregub’s office, have been assisting with the planning, she said.

As a bisexual woman, Ishii said she’s surprised it’s taken so long for an event to come to Berkeley, a “city of progress and inclusivity” for decades, as the Pacific Center put it. Though not politically motivated, Ishii said she’s excited to see the Pride Festival come to the city at a time when queer people, particularly transgender individuals, are facing attacks from President Donald Trump’s administration and Republican state governments.

Trump has signed a number of executive orders attempting to remove transgender people from the military and historical record; end federal funding for gender-affirming care for youths and funding for educational programs that allow transgender women and girls to play in women’s sports; and declare that only two sexes, male and female, exist and the one assigned at birth will be recognized on legal documents.

The American Civil Liberties Union, a national civil rights organization, is also currently tracking 527 anti-LGBTQ bills proposed across the nation from bathroom bans and health care barriers to religious exemptions and school restrictions.

“We don’t want to take anything for granted, and being in a time when folks are feeling their rights are being threatened and their existence being erased from history books, it’s important we stand up and create pride, create places for folks to feel safe,” Ishii said. “Unfortunately, I think our existence is political, period. … That’s why it’s so important we continue to have celebrations and be open in protecting people’s rights, their ability to live the lives they want to live.”

Focusing on queer joy is particularly poignant, Ishii said, noting joy is a core value in her office.

“I really see joy as something that’s radical, it’s something people can’t take away,” Ishii said.

In addition to featuring live performance from Berkeley and East Bay artists and queer-owned groups, businesses and food vendors, the event will also center “the healing power of peer support,” mental health and wellness, Allen said in the news release.

Also supporting the event are the Downtown Berkeley Association and Visit Berkeley.

“Berkeley has been a beacon of inclusivity and acceptance for decades, with the Pacific Center supporting our LGBTQIA+ community since the early ’70s,” Visit Berkeley President and CEO Jeff Church said in a statement. “Visit Berkeley is proud to support and be a sponsor of Berkeley’s first pride celebration and will continue showcasing our city as a welcoming destination for all who visit.”