Long Beach Pride Festival kicks off the Pride season

This year’s Long Beach Pride Festival and Parade, known for being one of the premier LGBTQ+ celebrations in Southern California, will take place May 16-17 at Marina Green Park and Ocean Blvd.  

The annual celebration looks to bring thousands of attendees to the Downtown Long Beach waterfront, promising a massive, inclusive, three-day community celebration featuring live music across multiple stages, over 150 vendors, interactive activities and community resources.

Organizers say this year's theme is “Fearless and Free,” in direct response to the rising climate of hate and rhetoric against LGBTQ+ people throughout the state and nationwide. 

In 2025, it was reported that in the first month that the state launched California vs Hate, a non-emergency, confidential and voluntary reporting system to support victims and witnesses of hate incidents or crimes, the hotline received 180 reports of hate acts across the state. Of those reports, race and ethnicity were the most reported motivations for hate crimes, followed by religion and sexual orientation.

Similar to this, more locally, anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes in Los Angeles County have reached historic highs, with 2024 seeing the second-highest total in 44 years, including a 95% rate of violence in anti-trans incidents. 

Organizers of the festival said that the theme of “Fearless and Free” serves as a call to action for a community that has often been forced into the shadows. 

“It is times like these, surrounded by violence and political militants, that create fear within our community,” said Tonya Martin, president of Long Beach Pride. “We must remember that where our spirits join is the place of unbreakable fearlessness and the road to freedom. By living fearlessly and free, the LGBTQ+ community continues to lead the way for all vulnerable groups, proving that every voice matters.” 

Long Beach Pride was established in October 1983 and produced the first annual Long Beach Pride Festival and Parade months later in June 1984. The first Long Beach Pride parade and festival took place on the last weekend of June. 

In the first year, there were approximately 5,000 people in attendance at the then two-day celebration, which took place at Palm Island.

One of the main attractions of the festival is the Founder’s Stage, which is the main stage that every year features a lineup made up of hip-hop and Latino artists and performers. 

One of this year’s headliners includes Robin S., the house music singer from Queens, New York, best known for her 1993 worldwide smash hit “Show Me Love,” which became a staple of 90s dance music along with “Luv 4 Luv” and “It Must Be Love.”

Latino talent will also be present at this year's festival with Samba Los Angeles, a performance group merging the world of Samba rhythms and culture. Their mission is to bring the authentic spirit of Brazilian Carnaval, showcase the beauty of Samba and inspire others to embrace their dancing and physical movement. 

Another artist added to the festival's Founder’s Stage is Bamby Salcedo, the Mexican American transgender rights activist and founder of the Los Angeles-based TransLatin@ Coalition. 

The TransLatin@ Coalition will be a booth sponsor for the parade, but Salcedo will also debut her own music at the main stage, performing two of her original songs.

“I'm exploring my artistic talent,” she told CALÓ News. “I've been writing music and I'm really grateful that I get the opportunity to be one of the headliners.” 

She said that although she has always been a creative person, a writer and a creator, it was not until last year, during the rapidly increasing ICE raids, that she began to make music. 

“Last year, with the immigration raids and the new administration and everything that our communities are experiencing, as well as being a transgender person and feeling constantly attacked, in my moments of reflection, for me it was like, ‘What can I offer our people, right, like in these times?’ That's how it all started,” she said. 

Last August, she premiered “La Cumbia del Movimiento,” with talks about self-empowerment and being “in the movement” to denounce hate. 

“Cumbia reminds people that music is one of the things that are universal and that also uplifts spirits. Music has been part of movements historically and for me, it was like my gift to our people for us to continue to have joy in moments of despair,” she said.

Salcedo said that although Pride Month is also special, this year feels different, especially as an immigrant transgender woman in L.A. 

“It reminds me that despite the craziness that we're experiencing in the world and that we have an administration that is so oppressive and marginalizing towards our community that we get to choose, even if it's just one month or even if it's just during this event, to be free, that we get to be who we are and express ourselves as who we are and be fearless,” she said. 

Long Beach Pride is also one of the only celebrations in the nation to have a Teen Pride, which is a beacon of community support for LGBTQ+ teens. 

“We open up with our children and our kids to support them with what they are going through,” Martin told CBS in an interview. 

This year's Long Beach Pride Parade celebrity grand marshal is another Latina: XB Valentine, a Mexican American R&B singer, rapper and songwriter known for her queer anthem “Vibe With You.”

The Media Grand Marshal will be Enrique Chiabra from Telemundo, as well as Annabelle Sedano of NBC. 

The weekend kicks off with the following event dates:

• Long Beach Teen Pride, Friday, May 15, 2026

• Long Beach Pride Festival: May 16th and May 17th, 2026

• Long Beach Pride Parade: May 17th, 2026

For more information and tickets, visit https://longbeachpride.com/festival/.