\n Jim Ross Says Arlington Pride Could Return After Cancellation | AI-assisted image created by DX <\/p>\n
Arlington Mayor Jim Ross says he is optimistic that the city\u2019s Pride event could return despite tensions surrounding Arlington\u2019s recent debate over sexual orientation and \u201cgender identity\u201d language.<\/p>\n
Ordinance Fight Preceded Cancellation<\/strong><\/p>\n As previously reported<\/a> by The Dallas Express, the Arlington City Council voted 5-4 on December 9 to keep suspended sections of a city ordinance dealing with sexual orientation and \u201cgender identity\u201d off the books. City officials had warned that restoring the language could threaten more than $60 million in federal funding used for services such as public safety, parks, and road work.<\/p>\n Ross voted in favor of restoring the suspended sections, along with Council Members Nikkie Hunter, Andrew Piel, and Barbara Odom-Wesley. Council Members Mauricio Galante, Raul Gonzalez, Rebecca Boxall, Long Pham, and Bowie Hogg voted to continue the suspension.<\/p>\n Arlington Pride organizers later announced<\/a> the suspension of the city\u2019s 2026 Pride event after the council\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n Ross Floats Another Path For Pride<\/strong><\/p>\n Ross discussed the possibility of bringing the event back in a June interview, even if another group organizes it.<\/p>\n \u201cI love what the HELP Center has done for this city, but I\u2019ll tell you, the HELP Center and DeeJay don\u2019t represent the entire LGBTQ+ community,\u201d Ross said, according<\/a> to the Fort Worth Report.<\/p>\n Ross was referring to DeeJay Johannessen, CEO of the HELP Center for LGBTQ+ Health, which sponsors Arlington Pride.<\/p>\n \u201cI have a lot of friends who will say, \u2018Listen, we wish Pride was still here,\u2019 and I\u2019m hoping we can bring it back. If it\u2019s not through the HELP Center, maybe it\u2019s another way, but I\u2019m optimistic. We have some people who are excited about it, and I think it\u2019s an important part of who we are.\u201d<\/p>\n HELP Center Programming Draws Scrutiny<\/strong><\/p>\n The HELP Center\u2019s programming has become part of the broader local debate over LGBTQ+ advocacy, public health, and city recognition. The organization<\/a> provides HIV prevention and treatment services and also promotes support resources for people who identify as \u201ctransgender.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSupport groups offer individuals a chance to connect with those who have similar life experiences and discuss the challenges they face,\u201d the organization states.<\/p>\n \u201cIt can be helpful to talk to people who will understand those unique parts of your life without needing an explanation.\u201d<\/p>\n Ross Defends Inclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n Ross also defended his broader philosophy of inclusion during the discussion.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t hide or try to suppress my desire to be inclusive of all people \u2014 Black, Latinos, Muslims, Asians, gays, straights, Christians, Buddhists,\u201d Ross said.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t care. I\u2019m not ashamed of the fact that I believe we\u2019re all God\u2019s creatures, and I think I\u2019m very confident that the majority of Arlington feels the same way.\u201d<\/p>\n As previously reported<\/a> by The Dallas Express, Arlington City Councilmember Bowie Hogg criticized Ross last year after DX resurfaced<\/a> 2018 footage showing Ross making vulgar and explicit remarks toward a Christian street preacher.<\/p>\n The Dallas Express reached out to Ross for additional comment, but did not receive a response by publication time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jim Ross Says Arlington Pride Could Return After Cancellation | AI-assisted image created by DX Arlington Mayor Jim…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":896932,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5138],"tags":[5229,7948,17991,362602,363419,110695,7371,7372,14544,362528,9421,228127,7375,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":["post-896931","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fort-worth","tag-america","tag-arlington","tag-arlington-city-council","tag-arlington-pride","tag-bowie-hogg","tag-deejay-johannessen","tag-fort-worth","tag-fortworth","tag-gender-identity","tag-help-center","tag-jim-ross","tag-lgbtq-health","tag-tarrant-county","tag-texas","tag-tx","tag-united-states","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-unitedstates","tag-unitedstatesofamerica","tag-us","tag-usa"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/116823353837944381","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/896931","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=896931"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/896931\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/896932"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=896931"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=896931"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=896931"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}