Equality Business Alliance

07/16/2026

07/01/2026

🌈 Pride season is officially underway in San Diego! Pride supports our community and our local economy, generating millions in economic activity each year. Read the full story from LGBTQ San Diego County News below. 📰⬇️

Pride Season Officially Begins in San Diego

San Diego’s Pride season officially kicked off this week as community leaders, elected officials, advocates, and organizations gathered at City Hall to celebrate the beginning of one of the city’s largest and most anticipated annual events.

The kickoff recognized the contributions of LGBTQ+ organizations, volunteers, and community leaders while reaffirming San Diego’s commitment to equality, visibility, and inclusion. Representatives from across the region joined city officials for a ceremonial proclamation marking the official start of Pride season.

Beyond its cultural significance, San Diego Pride is also a powerful economic engine for the region. Pride generates an estimated $26.6 million in economic impact, supporting local hotels, restaurants, retailers, transportation providers, and small businesses throughout Hillcrest, Balboa Park, and communities across San Diego County. The economic benefits extend well beyond the festival itself as visitor spending creates additional jobs, purchases, and wages that ripple throughout the local economy.

Pride Week officially runs July 11–19, featuring events across San Diego leading up to Pride Weekend. Highlights include the D**e March on Saturday, July 11, Light Up the Cathedral on Wednesday, July 15, the Spirit of Stonewall Rally on Friday, July 17 at The Brass Rail’s Arko Park, the Pride 5K Run & Walk and the San Diego Pride Parade on Saturday, July 18, followed by the two-day Pride Festival in Balboa Park on July 18–19.

San Diego Pride continues to be one of the largest Pride celebrations in the United States, bringing together hundreds of thousands of residents and visitors each year while helping fund year-round LGBTQ+ advocacy, education, and community programs.

Sources: San Diego Pride San Diego Pride, San Diego Councilmember Stephen Whitburn ().

06/28/2026

PTSD: Some Stories Never Really End.
The Lasting Impact of PTSD.

Today, June 27, is National PTSD Awareness Day.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often associated with military service, but trauma has many faces. Survivors of hate crimes, domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, mass shootings, medical emergencies, serious accidents, and other life-altering events can all develop PTSD. Recovery isn’t about simply “moving on.” For many, it’s learning how to live with a brain and body that were changed by trauma.

Within the LGBTQ+ community, PTSD is especially common. LGBTQ+ people experience higher rates of violence, bullying, family rejection, discrimination, homelessness, and sexual assault than the general population. Every one of those experiences can leave lasting psychological wounds. The trauma isn’t caused by being LGBTQ+—it’s caused by how society has too often treated LGBTQ+ people.

PTSD doesn’t always look like panic attacks or nightmares. It can look like isolation. Hypervigilance. Difficulty trusting others. Avoiding places that once felt safe. Feeling disconnected from yourself. Trouble concentrating. Or simply surviving one day at a time.

Healing is possible, but it rarely follows a straight line. It doesn’t happen on a schedule, and it doesn’t mean forgetting what happened. It means finding safety again, one step at a time.

But for many people, PTSD is a lifelong condition. Symptoms may improve over time, but some can persist for years—or even a lifetime. Recovery doesn’t always mean the trauma disappears. Often, it means learning to live with it while continuing to move forward.

Today, let’s replace stigma with understanding.

Lead with compassion.
Create safer spaces.
Check in on your friends.
Stand against hate.
Support one another.

Need support? Call or text 988 anytime. Help is available 24/7.

By; 🌊 Oxean Eddie Rey — Oxean Eddie Rey), Publisher

06/23/2026

History and Pride… Should Balboa Park be renamed? The violent and anti-LGBTQ colonial history behind the park’s name.

05/16/2026

💼 Meet Rhealyn Corrigan, Public Relations Director of the Filipino American Chamber of Commerce Greater San Diego Foundation.

Rhealyn is a results-driven mortgage broker and California REALTOR® with 20+ years in real estate and finance. A San Diego State grad and former Mortgage Executive, she’s an expert in home finance strategy and creative financing, helping families achieve homeownership and build generational wealth.

As FACCGSD ambassador & now a Director for Public Relations in the FACCGSD Foundation, she drives community impact by uplifting Filipino Americans and youth, advocating for underserved groups, supporting local businesses, inspiring and empowering future leaders across generations.

✨To connect with Rhealyn, scan the QR code.
✨To learn more about the Foundation, visit faccgsdfoundation.org

03/26/2026

03/26/2026

TRIGGER WARNING: The following post references violence, medical trauma, and a link that contains images and video related to a hate crime. Please proceed with care.

A personal note from the Executive Director.

For years, I’ve used this platform to advocate, organize, and help build stronger support for LGBTQ+ businesses and our broader community.

Today, I’m asking that same community to show up for me.

In 2024, I was one of the victims in the targeted gel/polymer pellet shootings at LGBTQ bars in San Diego. I was shot in the eye, and since then I’ve been dealing with PTSD, ongoing treatment, and medical complications that have impacted my ability to work and sustain myself.

This past Monday, my worst fears were confirmed—my eye has permanent damage, and I’ll need ongoing lifetime care to monitor risks to my vision, including the very real possibility of blindness.

In addition, nearly two years later, I remain in treatment at Sharp Mesa Vista Psychiatric Hospital in San Diego, where I continue to receive 3–4 hours of intensive therapy per day, 5 days a week, and an additional 2–4 hours a week of outside treatment, including equine, art, or group therapy.

To put this into perspective, I now attend more hours of mental and medical care each week than I worked before I got shot.

This has been one of the hardest chapters of my life—but I’m still here, still doing the work, and still fighting to get back to stability.

I don’t usually ask for help like this—but right now, I need it.

My GoFundMe goal has been raised to $65,000, and I am just $15,000 short.

Approximately $6,000 will go toward housing and utilities for the next 3 months. Another $4,000 will go toward transportation to and from my daily appointments, and $5,000 will cover co-pays, storage, moving, and other immediate needs.

If you’ve worked with me, supported Equality Business Alliance, or believe in the work we do, I’m asking for your support.

If you can donate, share, or support in any way, it would mean more than I can put into words.

👉 Donate or share here: https://gofund.me/0a8a4d817 (or via the link in our bio).

Thank you so much.

— Oxean Eddie Rey

02/17/2026

The European Parliament adopted a transgender-inclusive resolution ahead of next month’s U.N. Commission on the Status of Women meeting.

02/17/2026

For 50 years, Stepping Stone has been creating safe spaces where LGBTQ+ individuals can heal, build strength, and achieve lasting recovery. Now we're looking for a strategic Director of Development & External Affairs to lead our fundraising and strengthen our community presence. You'll drive revenue growth, build meaningful partnerships, and ensure our mission reaches those who need it most.

What You'll Do:
● Lead annual and multi-year fundraising strategy across grants, major gifts, corporate partnerships, events, and campaigns with clear metrics and accountability
● Oversee institutional giving, partnering with grant writers and program teams to secure government, foundation, and corporate funding
● Build and steward a portfolio of major donors and sponsors, creating cultivation plans and securing multi-year commitments
● Provide executive oversight for signature events (including our Pink Gala) and annual giving campaigns with focus on revenue growth and donor experience
● Serve as senior ambassador, building relationships with government leaders, community partners, and key stakeholders to expand visibility and support
● Oversee communications and marketing strategy in partnership with our marketing vendor, ensuring consistent mission-forward storytelling
● Supervise and develop the Development Manager, establishing clear goals, systems, and processes that drive results

About You:
● 5+ years of senior-level fundraising experience with demonstrated success across multiple revenue streams (major gifts, grants, events, campaigns)
● Proven track record developing and executing fundraising strategy with measurable revenue growth
● Strong relationship-building skills with comfort engaging donors, executives, board members, and community leaders
● Excellent project management abilities with attention to detail and ability to manage multiple priorities
● Experience supervising staff and managing vendors; proficiency with CRM systems and donor databases preferred
● Deep passion for Stepping Stone's mission serving LGBTQ+ communities and advancing addiction recovery

Recovery is possible. Community is waiting. Join us in making it happen. Apply at https://steppingstonesd.org/job/director-of-development-external-affairs/

02/17/2026

Welcome to the family, Kelcie Parra! 💜

Kelcie is Executive Director of Crisis House and a lifelong advocate for compassionate, effective systems of care. Her commitment to recovery work is deeply personal - and her belief that affirming spaces change everything aligns perfectly with our mission.

(She also lives in La Mesa with her wife and two cats, Akuma and Mr. Business, who remain unimpressed by her accomplishments. We, however, are very impressed. 🐱)

Welcome, Kelcie. We're so glad you're here.