2025 was a year of bold joy and hard-fought resistance for Pittsburgh’s LGBTQ+ community. From City Council to the stage at Allegheny Commons Park West, queer Pittsburgh showed up and showed out. We celebrated chart-topping queer artists, built new Pride traditions, and faced aggressive legislative attacks, setbacks in historic preservation, and moments of institutional betrayal.
The top stories of 2025 are snapshots of our collective power: dance parties and die-ins, petitions and performances, rage, resilience, and the refusal to be erased.
As always, QBurgh was on the ground, in the rain, in the room, and on the record, documenting the moments that mattered most to our community. Whether you were marching in protest or dancing in the crowd, this list is for you.
Here are the top 5 stories that shook, shaped, and shined a light on queer life in Pittsburgh in 2025.
5. Republicans Pushed Bigotry
2025 was another year of aggressive political attacks on queer and trans Pennsylvanians and the community pushed back at every turn.
This year, Pennsylvania Republicans made it clear that targeting LGBTQ+ people remains a core part of their political playbook. In Harrisburg and on Capitol Hill, GOP lawmakers launched a coordinated assault on queer life, from drag bans and trans sports restrictions to lawsuits aimed at dismantling basic civil rights protections.
In Pennsylvania, Rep. Robert Leadbeter (R–Columbia County) set the tone early with a proposed bill that would criminalize drag performances in front of minors. A move that advocates warned would effectively ban Pride events statewide. The vague and sweeping language of the bill risked felony charges for families attending drag brunches, library story hours, or festivals featuring queer performers. It was part of a nationwide trend of anti-drag legislation echoing failed efforts in Tennessee and Florida, and designed to stoke fear and chill LGBTQ+ visibility.
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That was only the beginning. In an alarming legal escalation, two Pennsylvania school districts, backed by GOP lawmakers, filed a lawsuit aiming to undo the little state-level protections for sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression that Pennsylvania has. If successful, the suit would gut the authority of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission and open the door to unchecked discrimination in housing, employment, and education. Civil rights groups condemned the move as a dangerous attempt to erase legal recognition of queer existence.
On the Senate floor, trans youth became political pawns once again as Republicans advanced Senate Bill 9, banning transgender girls and women from participating in school sports. Despite a lack of evidence or local incidents justifying the bill, the GOP leaned on tired talking points about “fairness” and “biological sex.” The bill passed the Republican-controlled Senate but stalled in the Democratic House, a symbolic gesture with very real consequences for trans students already facing disproportionate bullying, isolation, and mental health crises.
Meanwhile, in Washington, extremist Republicans, led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, introduced what the ACLU called the most extreme anti-trans legislation ever considered by Congress. The bill would criminalize gender-affirming care for minors and subject doctors and even parents to felony charges. Though unlikely to pass the Senate, the bill was a chilling signal of how far some lawmakers are willing to go to attack trans youth and the families who love them.
If there was any silver lining, it was the fierce and immediate response from LGBTQ+ Pennsylvanians and their allies. Advocacy groups mobilized legal defenses, launched letter-writing campaigns, packed public hearings, and made it clear: queer and trans people are not going back in the closet, and they are certainly not going down without a fight.
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4. David Archuleta and Pittsburgh Pride Shined Bright in June
A summer of queer euphoria with chart-topping talent, fierce local drag, and a festival season we won’t forget.
Pittsburgh’s 2025 Pride season was nothing short of electric. Against a backdrop of political attacks and community organizing, the city’s LGBTQ+ community carved out space for celebration, affirmation, and pure queer joy. And at the heart of it all? A lineup that turned heads and lifted spirits, headlined by none other than David Archuleta.
The former American Idol finalist and now-out queer pop artist brought glitter and gospel to Allegheny Commons Park West for a free Pride concert that left the crowd swaying, screaming, and sobbing in the best way. Performing tracks like Crème Brûlée, a bold, Spanglish-flavored anthem of sensuality and self-love, Archuleta didn’t just sing; he testified. His message was clear: queer liberation includes pleasure, playfulness, and pop-star power.
But Pride 2025 didn’t stop at one show. The newly rebranded All Out Music Fest (formerly Pride on the Shore) brought dance-pop royalty Galantis to Stage AE, alongside a stacked lineup of queer and allied performers that spanned genres, generations, and gender identities. Pittsburgh’s own drag excellence took center stage on the Queertopia Stage, curated and hosted by QBurgh with local legends like Indica, Kaydence McQueen, and Belair Banks slaying the spotlight alongside RuPaul’s Drag Race stars.
From Nebby Nick and Joey Young’s backstage livestream interviews in the Queertopia Lounge, to dancing in the streets with chosen family, all weekend long, the vibes were unmatched. In a year where LGBTQ+ rights were debated in courtrooms and legislatures, Pittsburgh Pride reminded us that queer celebration is resistance.
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3. Push to Save Donny’s Place as First Pittsburgh LGBTQ Landmark Fails
A battle for queer history turned legal, personal, and political and sparked a citywide conversation about who gets remembered.
For nearly five decades, Donny’s Place in a modest building on Herron Avenue in Polish Hill offered sanctuary to LGBTQ+ people, particularly during eras of open hostility, police raids, and the devastating AIDS crisis. But in 2025, the fight to officially recognize its legacy as a historic landmark fell short and raised questions about how cities remember their queer past.
Community members launched the historic nomination in late 2024, supported by local historians and the nonprofit Preservation Pittsburgh. Their goal was to designate Donny’s Place as the first LGBTQ+ historic landmark in Western Pennsylvania, preserving it not only as a physical structure but as a symbol of survival, joy, and mutual care.
But the effort quickly met resistance. The estate of owner Donald Thinnes, along with developer Laurel Communities, sued the nominators in an attempt to block the designation, a move many described as a SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation). Despite receiving some support from the public, the City’s historic review commission declined to recommend the designation, and in April, Pittsburgh City Council voted it down.
The loss stung for those who knew Donny or found community inside the bar and for younger queer people searching for evidence that their lives matter in the historical record. The bar had hosted drag pageants, leather nights, HIV/AIDS fundraisers, and countless chosen-family holidays. It was also a site of collaboration between LGBTQ+ bar owners and public health researchers, particularly during the early years of the Pitt Men’s Study.
Supporters of the nomination proposed adaptive reuses of the space, including affordable housing for queer and trans elders. But the pressure of development won out.
The fight for Donny’s Place helped spark a broader conversation about the erasure of queer spaces, the need for historic preservation that reflects lived experiences, and the reality that progress can’t just look forward. It must also look back. The battle for Donny’s Place is over, but the call to preserve and honor queer history in Pittsburgh is louder than ever.
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Honorable Mentions!
QBurgh Turned 5!
From a spark in the darkness to a beacon of queer light, QBurgh celebrated five vibrant years of community-powered news, connection, and unapologetic pride.
2025 was the Year of the Butthole!
With her debut on RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 17, her immediate return for All Stars Season 10, her romance with Kori King that took the internet by storm, and Grand Marshaling the 2025 Pittsburgh Pride March and Parade, 2025 was definitely the year of Butthole rising! Did we mention she wrote a book with QBurgh photographer Ava Grace?!
2. Department Of Justice Subpoenas UPMC; UPMC Halts Gender-Affirming Care for Minors & adults under 19
A devastating rollback of care sparked protests, legal battles, and a fierce response from the community.
In 2025, Pittsburgh became a flashpoint in the national war on transgender healthcare. At the center of the storm was UPMC Children’s Hospital. After pressure from a Trump executive order and a sweeping Department of Justice subpoena, UPMC abruptly halted gender-affirming care for minors and adults under 19, leaving hundreds of families scrambling and the queer community reeling.
The shutdown was immediate and chilling. Trans teens were dropped from care. Appointments were canceled with just days’ notice. Providers were warned internally to prepare for a surge in suicidality among trans youth and yet UPMC remained silent.
What followed was one of the most forceful displays of queer resistance in Pittsburgh’s recent history. In April, Trans YOUniting, joined by city officials and community leaders, staged a rain-soaked rally outside UPMC’s headquarters. Community organizer Dena Stanley reminded the crowd that “this rally is about protecting our lives. We are not backing down.” Mayor Ed Gainey publicly joined the call for UPMC to reverse course and abide by Pittsburgh’s non-discrimination laws.
In September, grief turned into protest. ACT UP Pittsburgh, TransYOUniting, and Providers for Trans Justice held a funeral march and die-in outside UPMC’s U.S. Steel Tower headquarters, symbolizing the lives lost or endangered by medical abandonment. Cardboard coffins. Black attire. Beats of a funeral drum. The message: UPMC has blood on its hands.
Meanwhile, legal advocates pushed back. While Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia successfully quashed a similar federal subpoena seeking private patient records, UPMC took a softer stance, remaining “neutral” in court filings and only intervening once public pressure hit a boiling point. A federal judge finally blocked the subpoena in December, citing the DOJ’s “whiff of ill intent” and calling the request ideologically driven. Still, trust in UPMC was left completely shattered.
Throughout the ordeal, more than 450 UPMC providers signed an open letter rejecting the institution’s actions and affirming their duty to trans patients. Parents of trans youth spoke out. Community groups demanded real accountability.
And a question still echoes through the region: When push came to shove, who did UPMC, Pittsburgh’s largest healthcare provider, choose to protect?
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1. ‘Raid’ of P Town Bar Shakes Community
What was supposed to be a night of drag and queer celebration became a lightning rod.
The night Amanda Lepore came to Pittsburgh should’ve been legendary and it was, just not for the reasons anyone expected. On May 2, P Town Bar, a cherished LGBTQ+ nightlife space in Oakland, was “raided” mid-performance by a coordinated force of approximately 20 Pennsylvania State Police officers, undercover agents, and the Allegheny County Nuisance Bar Task Force. It happened during “Another Party Pittsburgh,” hosted by Indica, as drag artist Blade Matthews was mid-lip sync.
What was officially described as a “compliance check” quickly became one of the year’s most talked-about moments and a flashpoint for the community. Attendees were forced into the rainy streets while officers searched the bar. Some said it felt excessive, targeted, and deeply disrespectful. Others described it plainly as “a modern-day raid of a queer space.”
In the spirit of queer defiance, Indica led a spontaneous sidewalk performance of “Pink Pony Club”, turning the moment of fear into one of collective power. Drag queens sang. The crowd danced. And Amanda Lepore called it “iconic… in a darkly nostalgic way,” a callback to an era of queer nightlife under siege.
City and state officials scrambled to respond. Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Lee Schmidt bluntly told the community weeks later, “We messed this up.” State Rep. La’Tasha D. Mayes hosted a community conversation to demand accountability. Mayor Ed Gainey’s office opened an investigation into whether enforcement actions like this one are disproportionately targeting queer, Black, and Brown spaces.
In the months following the incident, a GoFundMe campaign was launched to help P Town cover legal fees, fines, and code-compliance costs. The fundraiser quickly gained traction, raising thousands in a show of solidarity that proved just how deeply loved and needed the space is.
Meanwhile, city officials responded by working with the bar to clarify and correct its permitted capacity. P Town received an updated occupancy permit, resolving the issue that the police initially cited as justification for the raid.
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Looking Back, Looking Forward
2025 reminded us that queer life in Pittsburgh is anything but quiet. From packed parks and dancefloors to courtrooms and council chambers, this year was a fierce reminder that visibility alone is not safety and that celebration and resistance often go hand in hand.
We saw what happens when institutions fail us. We watched as lawmakers, developers, and healthcare giants tried to legislate us out of existence, bulldoze our history, and withhold life-saving care. And we also saw what happens when community steps up. When drag queens take the mic in the rain. When parents raise their voices for trans kids. When neighbors fight to preserve a bar not because it was glamorous, but because it was theirs.
Even in the hardest moments, Pittsburgh’s LGBTQ+ community found ways to gather, protest, sing, and keep each other alive. That’s what makes this city special. We don’t just show up for each other, we hold each other up.
As we head into 2026, the work continues, but so does the joy. QBurgh will be right here with you, telling the stories that matter, amplifying the voices that too often go unheard, and refusing to let queer Pittsburgh be forgotten, erased, or ignored.
We’re not going anywhere.