Freedom to Empower
WorldPride Human Rights Conference
The WorldPride 2025 Human Rights Conference is a powerful gathering set to ignite change and inspire global action. From June 4th to 6th, we will bring together changemakers, advocates, and allies from all corners of the world, united by a shared vision: a world where human rights are universally respected, and the rights of every individual are upheld.
This event is not just a conference—it is a catalyst for change. With each conversation, workshop, and collaboration, we will amplify the voices of those who have been silenced for too long, offering a platform for the stories that must be heard. The purpose of this conference is clear: to ignite action and empower every participant with the tools, the knowledge, and the inspiration to create meaningful change.
Wednesday, June 4 – Friday, June 6
JW Marriott
1331 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Through powerful calls to action, we will encourage each attendee to recognize their unique power to influence the world around them—whether on a global stage or within their own community. No effort is too small, and every voice matters. Together, we will explore practical, actionable ways to advocate for human rights and equality, fueling the momentum for a more just and inclusive future.
This is your opportunity to be a part of something bigger than yourself. As we confront the challenges of today, we will also work toward the solutions of tomorrow—together. Whether you’re an activist, a leader, or simply someone who believes in the power of human dignity, the WorldPride 2025 Human Rights Conference is where your voice can make a difference.
Join us for three days of inspiration, collaboration, and action. Let’s create lasting change and build a world where everyone can live with dignity, equality, and respect.
Together, we can turn hope into action.
Participate
Register to participate in the WorldPride Human Rights Conference. Coming together to learn, activate, and strategize to ensure we maintain and expand freedom for the LGBTQ+ community is more important than ever.
- All individuals planning to participate in workshops must register.
- Registration provides full access to the scheduled conference workshops and speakers.
- Registration includes two lunches and morning and afternoon snacks.
- A confirmation will be sent after the successful submission of this registration form.
- Form fields marked with a star (*) are required, while others are voluntary.
- Corporate and non-profit organization recognition available for group registrations.
- Registration for the WorldPride Human Rights Conference is non-refundable. (It may be transferred to another person.) Any canceled/forfeited fees will be considered a donation to the ongoing work of the Capital Pride Alliance and it’s Pride365 Fund.
DISCLAIMER: While we strive to accommodate the needs and requests of all attendees, please be advised that due to logistical and/or resources, we may not be able to fulfill every request. Our team is dedicated to making this Human Rights Conference an inclusive and accessible experience, and we appreciate your understanding and flexibility.
Accommodations
Discount hotel rates within Washington, DC, plus outside the District in beautiful Maryland and Virginia, have been secured for Human Rights Conference participants.
If you have any additional questions please contact, [email protected].
Featured Speakers
Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde
Bishop Budde serves as spiritual leader for 86 Episcopal congregations and ten Episcopal schools in the District of Columbia and four Maryland counties.
Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde serves as spiritual leader for 86 Episcopal congregations and ten Episcopal schools in the District of Columbia and four Maryland counties. The first woman elected to this position, she also serves as the chair of the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral Foundation, which oversees the ministries of the Washington National Cathedral and Cathedral schools.
A passionate believer in the gospel of Jesus and the Episcopal Church’s particular witness, Bishop Budde is committed to the spiritual and numerical growth of congregations and developing new expressions of Christian community. She believes that Jesus calls all who follow him to strive for justice and peace, and to respect the dignity of every human being. To that end, Bishop Budde is an advocate and organizer in support of justice concerns, including racial equity, gun violence prevention, immigration reform, the full inclusion of LGBTQ+ persons, and the care of creation. Bishop Budde was consecrated as the ninth bishop of Washington in November 2011. Prior to her election, she served for 18 years as rector of St. John’s Episcopal Church in Minneapolis. She earned a B.A. in history at the University of Rochester, graduating magna cum laude. She earned both a Masters in Divinity (1989) and Doctor of Ministry (2008) from Virginia Theological Seminary.
Her sermons have been published in several books and journals and she is the author of three books, How We Learn to Be Brave: Decisive Moments in Life and Faith (2023); Receiving Jesus: The Way of Love (2019) and Gathering Up the Fragments: Preaching as Spiritual Practice (2007).
When not working, you’ll often find her riding her bicycle, spending time with family, or cooking dinner for friends. Bishop Budde and her husband are proud parents and doting grandparents.
Dr. Lady Phyll
Dr. Phyll Opoku-Gyimah is the nucleus of the award-winning celebration and protest that is UK Black Pride.
Widely known as Lady Phyll – partly due to her decision to reject an MBE in the New Year’s Honours’ list to protest Britain’s role in formulating anti-LGBTQI+ penal codes across its empire.
She was also the executive director of Kaleidoscope Trust, an organisation working to uphold the human rights of LGBTQI+ people around the world; a community builder and organiser; an Albert Kennedy Trust patron, and a public speaker focusing on race, gender, sexuality and class. With an honorary doctorate recognising her exceptional contributions, Lady Phyll’s over two decades of dedication to human rights advocacy have left an indelible mark. She’s regularly called upon to advise nascent LGBTQI+ organisations around the world to help leaders create cogent organising strategies, establish robust partnership networks and work effectively in service of the LGBTQI+ community and inspire all who strive for equality and justice.
She is also the co-founder and CEO of UK Black Pride, Europe’s largest pride celebration for LGBT+ people of colour. Phyll is an experienced community builder and organiser; an Micro Rainbow and Kaleidoscope Trust patron, Lesbian Visibility Ambassador, a writer and public speaker focusing on race, gender, sexuality and class. Lady Phyll was also the Secretary for TCEN – The Commonwealth Equality Network; a network of organisations challenging inequality based on sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, and sex characteristics. The Network was set up to give a global voice to LGBTI+ communities across the Commonwealth and to support joint advocacy to provide an answer to the colonial legacy of homophobia – a Commonwealth solution to a Commonwealth problem.
Professor Paula Gerber
Professor Paula Gerber combines a razor-sharp legal intellect with passionate activism, to fight for the dismantling of discriminatory systems around the globe.
She is a law professor at Monash University, which is not only the largest university in Australia, but also has a significant global presence, including campuses in Italy, Indonesia, India and Malaysia. She is an internationally recognised expert in the international human rights laws relating to LGBTIQA+ people.
Prior to entering academia, Paula worked as an attorney in London, Los Angeles and Melbourne, Australia, but then decided to swap her business suits for academic robes.
She is an award-winning teacher, the author of numerous books and articles and is a highly sought after media commentator and public speaker. Beyond her academic pursuits, Paula is the President of Kaleidoscope Human Rights Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that advocates for better protection of the rights of LGBTIQA+ people in the Asia Pacific, a region where 15 countries still criminalise same-sex sexual conduct. From developing www.antigaylaws.org (basically the Google Maps of global LGBTQ+ legal landscapes) to leading Kaleidoscope Human Rights Foundation, Paula is on a global mission to overturn archaic laws and create pathways for equality and dignity for LGBTIQA+ people in every part of the world. For further information see, https://paulagerber.com/.
Her Excellency Hanna Katrín Friðriksson
Minister of Industries in Iceland
M. V. Lee Badgett, Ph.D.
M. V. Lee Badgett, PhD, is a pioneering researcher of the global cost of homophobia and transphobia, economic empowerment of LGBTI+ people, and LGBTI+ economic inequality.
She’s the Chief Economist and co-founder of Koppa: The LGBTI+ Economic Power Lab. In addition, Badgett is Professor Emeritx of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She is a Williams Distinguished Scholar at UCLA’s Williams Institute, where she was a co-founder and the first research director. She has worked with the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank, Open For Business, UNDP, USAID, IDB, the U.S. State Department, OECD, global businesses, and many LGBTI+ organizations. Badgett’s work includes testifying as an expert witness (including as an expert witness in California’s Prop 8 case), analyzing public policies, consulting with development banks, briefing policymakers, writing op-ed pieces, speaking with journalists, and advising businesses. She is quoted regularly in newspapers across the country, including The Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Washington Post. Curve Magazine named her one of the twenty most powerful lesbians in academia, and she has appeared on The Advocate magazine’s “Our Best and Brightest Activists” list and Out Magazine’s “Out 100.” Her latest book is The Economic Case for LGBT Equality: Why Fair and Equal Treatment Benefits Us All (Beacon Press, 2020). Badgett received a Ph.D. in economics from the University of California-Berkeley.
Yasmin Benoit
Yasmin Benoit is a British model, multi-award-winning asexual activist, writer, speaker, consultant and researcher.
Described as the “unlikely face of asexuality” by Cosmopolitan Magazine, she quickly became a leading voice for the community after publicly coming out in 2017. She started the #ThisIsWhatAsexualLooksLike movement for diverse asexual visibility and representation and co-founded International Asexuality Day (April 6). Yasmin was the first asexual grand marshal at NYC Pride 2023, and the first asexual person to lead Pride in London in 2024. Partnering with Stonewall, she released a groundbreaking report into asexual discrimination, and has since become a Visiting Research Fellow at King’s College London’s Policy Institute.
Anna DeShawn
Anna DeShawn is an Ambie award-winning Chicago podcast host, producer, and digital media entrepreneur.
She founded E3 Radio in 2009 to spotlight Queer news and music. Expanding her impact, Anna co-founded The Qube, a podcast production company that amplifies podcasts by BIPOC and QTPOC creators.
Thee Muses
Adrienne and Janeeka Muse are Thee Muses, a married creative duo, visual artists, and cultural storytellers based in Los Angeles.
Together, they’ve built a dynamic platform rooted in artistic freedom, queer visibility, mental health advocacy, and unapologetic Black joy. Their artistry features fine art, public speaking, digital content, and community based projects that center
around healing, and self-expression.
With millions of followers across social media, Thee Muses use their presence to deconstruct
stereotypes and uplift narratives often erased from mainstream media. Named TikTok’s LGBTQIA+ Trailblazers, they’ve partnered with leading brands and institutions including Netflix, Amazon, Hyundai, GLAAD, The Atlanta Dream, Hulu, and more. Their viral content blends creativity, entertainment, and purpose yet always with the mission to educate and inspire.
As artists and wives, Adrienne and Janeeka are committed to creating space for others to live boldly and honestly. Whether on canvas or camera, their message remains clear, visibility is power, art is healing, and authenticity is revolutionary.
Featured Panels
(Stay tuned for the complete list of empowering panel discussions.)
Solutions in the Face of Fear: Transformative Housing Solutions for Black Trans Women
An important conversation at the WorldPride 2025 Human Rights Conference (June 4–6), “Solutions in the Face of Fear: Transformative Housing Solutions for Black Trans Women,” spotlights how the community-driven organization @TSMadisonStarterHouse is countering systemic inequities and providing safe, affirming, and empowering spaces for Black Trans women.
Fierce, Fabulous, and Fired Up: Drag Takes a Stand
The bold, brilliant, and unapologetically outspoken Bob the Drag Queen is bringing the real talk to Fierce, Fabulous, and Fired Up: Drag Takes a Stand—a powerhouse panel at the WorldPride 2025 Human Rights Conference.
Get ready for truth, wit, and wisdom as Bob shows how drag isn’t just art—it’s activism.
Agenda
(Subject to change.) All events will take place at the National Theater and the JW Marriott Washington, DC.)
Please click “Schedule” below.
Presenting Advocate
Changemaker Advocate
Equality & Equity Advocate
Ally Advocate
Wellness Advocates
