Gimme Five

5 Portland Activist and Community Choirs to Know

Instead of Christmas carols and religious hymns, these local groups sing to resist oppression and foster community.

12/01/2025 By Isabel Lemus Kristensen Illustrations by Dilek Baykara

Giving Back

19 Ways to Make a Difference in Portland

Volunteering opportunities across the city, from serving lunch to planting trees.

11/26/2025 By Isabel Lemus Kristensen

LGBTQ+

Portland Pride Guide 2025

Our annual roundup of LGBTQ+ parades, pageants, concerts, drag shows, and festivals.

06/11/2025 By Portland Monthly Staff

Queer Bars

Portland’s Best LGBTQ+ Bars, Clubs, and Parties

Historic gay bars, iconic drag revues, and roving lesbian dance parties, these are the top spots to celebrate Pride in Portland.

06/09/2025 By Andrew Jankowski and Portland Monthly Staff

Month Ahead

What to Do in Oregon in June

Goonies Weekend takes Astoria, the rodeo ropes Sisters, and a Sasquatch fest stomps through Glide.

05/28/2025 By Rebecca Jacobson and Portland Monthly Staff

Love Letters

An Illustrated Ode to Dyke Hoops

The queer-friendly pickup games are still serious—but about building inclusive community.

05/05/2025 Illustrations by Shay Mirk By Shay Mirk and Brooke Jackson-Glidden

Get Out

What to Do in Oregon in March

Get schooled on cacao terroir, dissect an owl pellet, watch whales on their way to Alaska, and amble under a canopy of cherry blossoms.

02/26/2025 By Rebecca Jacobson

Food News

Portland’s Oldest East-Side LGBTQ+ Bar Will Close

After 23 years of service, Crush Bar is closing after its final New Year's Eve party.

12/02/2024 By Alex Frane

LGBTQ+

Correcting the Transgender History of Westward Expansion

An exhibit at the Oregon Historical Society places trans identity at the heart of the American mythos.

11/26/2024 By Matthew Trueherz

Getting Steamy

Portland’s Gay Bathhouse Scene Hasn’t Dried Up Yet

The city has lost almost all of its gay bathhouses, but the LGBTQ+ community still finds solace in the sauna.

10/28/2024 By Byron Beck Illustrations by Derek Abella

When’s Pride Again?

Your Local Drag Queen Is Booked and Busy

Portland can’t decide between June and July Pride celebrations. Silhouette is getting her money either way.

07/15/2024 By Thom Hilton

Q&A

Ex-Hasidic Queer Comedian Robby Hoffman Was ‘Totally Normal’ Growing Up

“But when you put me in regular society, suddenly it’s like, ‘Why would you say such a thing?’”

06/20/2024 By Matthew Trueherz

Pride

Pride Parades and Events 2023: Portland Upgrades to 2 Months of Celebrations

The big parade moves to July, but June is still packed with Pride events, from the Portland Gay Men's Chorus Disney Show to the Queer Wine Fest.

06/08/2023 By Margaret Seiler

Light a Fire 2022: Leveling the Field

Brown Girl Rise Makes a Safe Space for BIPOC Youth

The Portland nonprofit centers joy, fun, and radical sisterhood for girls and nonbinary kids.

12/30/2022 By Isabel Lemus Kristensen

Light a Fire 2022: Lifetime Achievement

Civil Rights Advocate Valerie Whittlesey Is Someone Who Says Yes

From her time as a civil rights volunteer in Arkansas to campaigning against anti-gay Measure 9 in Oregon, Whittlesey has worked for equality for decades.

12/30/2022 By Fiona McCann

Life and Death

Transgender and Nonbinary People Misgendered on Death Certificates

A new study identifies barriers to accurately reflecting a person’s gender identity after death—and proposes some common sense solutions.

10/06/2022 By Isabel Lemus Kristensen

Pop Culture Deep Dive

A List of Things Less Gay Than Beyoncé’s Renaissance

The superstar’s seventh album is a glittering tribute to queer dance music through the ages, making it a hell of a lot gayer than, say, a bachelorette party at Darcelle's (all love).

08/01/2022 By Conner Reed