ABOUT US

Baltimore Safe Haven was founded in 2018 by Iya Dammons, a passionate Black trans woman activist with lived experience of homelessness, survival sex work, and incarceration. Iya recognized the pressing need for safe and supportive spaces for TLGBQIA+ individuals in Baltimore City who were living in survival mode. With a deep commitment to uplifting and empowering the community, she established BSH to provide opportunities for TLGBQIA+ individuals to thrive and overcome the challenges they faced.

Baltimore Trans Pride began in 2022 out of the spirit of the origins of Pride as we know it today. The Pride movement started because of the labor and resistance of Black and Brown transgender and gender-expansive people. However, many of today’s Pride festivals are not places where trans people are centered or represented. Baltimore Trans Pride offers a special, intentional space during the month of June to celebrate trans community, trans history, trans culture, trans leadership and trans resistance.

This year’s celebration features an entire week of events and activities for our community to celebrate Pride. Families, youth, seniors, people with disabilities and allies are all welcome at our events. We hope to see you at Baltimore Trans Pride 2026!

Our 2026 Theme:
Existence is Resistance

During a time when trans lives are under assault — politically, legislatively, and culturally — Baltimore shows up. Baltimore speaks up. Baltimore does not back down.

Existence is Resistance is the theme of Baltimore Trans Pride 2026, and it says everything that needs to be said.

To live openly and fully as a trans person today is an act of courage. To gather in community is an act of power. To celebrate, to dance, to march, to ball, to heal together — that is resistance in its purest form. Not in spite of the moment we're in, but because of it.

This year, Baltimore Safe Haven brings Baltimore Trans Pride back to the streets, the park, the waterfront, and the ballroom floor — honoring the trans leaders who came before us, holding space for those who are here now, and building the future for those who come next.

We walk in the footsteps of legendary Black and Brown trans women who laid the foundation of this movement. We carry forth the strength and impact of the Black and Brown trans men, nonbinary people and gender expansive people who came before us. We conjure harmony, safety, pleasure and wellness for all trans people, in Baltimore and around the world. Baltimore Trans Pride 2026 celebrates our collective legacy — with joy, with art, with community, and with an unshakeable refusal to be erased.

We are here. We have always been here. We will always be here.

Our existence is our resistance.