Capital Pride has become a hallmark event in the DMV area—bringing hundreds of thousands of people together for festivities, showcases, and celebrations spanning multiple days. In 2019, Capital Pride had one of its biggest celebrations yet with 550,000 participants attending the Capital Pride weekend of festivities, which included the Parade and Festival.
To quantify the economic impact of Pride, Capital Pride coordinated a group of volunteers who conducted an Economic Impact Assessment. The team of volunteers surveyed a diverse group of 400+ attendees of 2019 Capital Pride.
The report findings are not surprising—Capital Pride brings the LGBTQ+ and broader community together and, as a result, produces a lot of economic activity in the DMV—including for queer-owned businesses, regional corporations and franchises, local hospitality, to name a few.