The Desperado LGBTQ+ Film Festival, a fixture on Arizona’s cultural calendar for 16 years, has been abruptly canceled after organizers cited President Donald Trump’s latest executive order targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. The beloved event — hosted by a student organization at Paradise Valley Community College in Phoenix — has been a celebration of queer stories on screen since 2009. But this year, the credits rolled early, and not by choice.
In a statement posted online, organizers didn’t mince words: “As a publicly funded institution, we must comply with these orders.” The mandate in question? Trump’s directive to terminate all DEI-related mandates and programs in federally funded institutions — a move the White House claims is a return to “common sense,” but LGBTQ advocates call nothing short of a cultural rollback.
Compliance Over Community
The festival, backed by a nonprofit and held on a college campus that receives federal aid, now faces a bleak reality. Organizers said noncompliance could jeopardize financial aid, grants, and hundreds of positions across the district — collateral damage in a sweeping policy war. “The loss of such funding would create a ripple effect,” the statement read, warning of the toll on students, staff, and faculty alike.
Seven features and seven shorts were lined up for what would have been this year’s edition, offering a curated look into LGBTQ lives and identities. Now, those stories are silenced — not because of waning interest or lack of funding, but due to a political power play with chilling implications for marginalized communities.
“This is not a farewell but a momentary pause,” organizers added, holding on to hope that the festival could return if and when conditions change. But for now, the red carpet’s rolled up, and the screen has gone dark.
A Pattern of Erasure
Trump’s DEI order is part of a broader pattern that’s left the LGBTQ community bracing for impact. According to GLAAD, it’s just one of over 300 anti-LGBTQ actions in his current administration. Others include gutting the 988 suicide hotline for LGBTQ youth, banning transgender service members from the military, and scrubbing Harvey Milk’s name off a Navy vessel. It’s a greatest hits list of erasure — policies that chip away at visibility, dignity, and basic rights.
When pressed for comment about the film festival’s cancellation and the long list of anti-LGBTQ policies, the Trump camp gave a sunny soundbite: “The President is delivering on every campaign promise supported by 77 million voters and is ushering in our Golden Age.” But if this is a golden age, it sure feels like a dark time for queer Americans.
The Impact on LGBTQ Youth and Visibility
The loss of Desperado isn’t just another calendar scratch-off — it’s a hit to representation, especially for queer youth in conservative states where access to affirming spaces is already limited. Events like this film festival serve as lifelines, affirming identity and community in places that don’t always offer either. And make no mistake, cutting DEI programs under the guise of neutrality often ends up disproportionately harming queer and trans individuals.
This move doesn’t just target programming. It sends a loud, neon-lit message that LGBTQ stories — our stories — are expendable in the political tug-of-war. But the community has endured worse and come back louder, more defiant, and more fabulous. Whether it’s on a big screen or a makeshift projector in someone’s backyard, queer storytelling will persist. It always has.
Because if there’s one thing Trump can’t executive-order away, it’s pride.