Some people desire a small, intimate wedding ceremony. Others dream of more elaborate celebrations. Then, there are people like Freddie Lutz and Johnny Cervantes, who said their “I dos” with thousands of people during WorldPride 2025 in Washington, D.C., and on a Pride parade route, no less.
“We literally invited the entire world to our wedding,” Lutz says.
Lutz owns Freddie’s, a beloved gay bar in Arlington, Virginia. Known as the “straight-friendly gay bar,” Freddie’s has been a cornerstone of Northern Virginia for over 20 years. Only a short Metro ride away from the Pentagon, it has also served as a haven for queer Pentagon employees.
The bar owner and Cervantes have been together for 28 years but decided to finally wed at WorldPride. “I wanted to make sure that we liked each other first,” Lutz jokes.
Cervantes and Lutz seal their vows with a kiss.courtesy Freddie Lutz
Throughout the years, they considered marriage. The hassle of choosing who to invite and organizing everything made putting it off easy, Lutz says. However, the couple decided months ago that, in light of the Trump administration’s anti-LGBTQ+ actions and Supreme Court justices who have voiced support for overturning marriage equality, WorldPride was the perfect wedding venue.
“[One day], I turned to Johnny and I said, ‘You know, I think we should get married. It is our right, and we need to claim it,’” he says.
With Lutz in white and Cervantes in black on the morning of June 7, the couple ascended a parade float for the Equality Chamber Foundation, a D.C.-area nonprofit that supports LGBTQ+ businesses. Virginia state Sen. Danica Roem, the first trans person to serve in a state legislature, officiated the ceremony.
“Every time we kissed on the parade, [the parade crowd] went crazy,” Lutz says.
But there were concerns about the day, Lutz explains. He originally wanted his grandniece and grandnephew to participate in the parade, but he became worried about their safety. Lutz says it “speaks to what a sad state we’re in in this country.”
For Lutz, the current political climate is exactly why he and Cervantes married where and when they did.
“We can’t be afraid,” he says. “Like Stonewall or the Vietnam War, we gotta stick up for our rights and can’t back down.”
This article is part of The Advocate's Sept/Oct 2025 issue, now on newsstands. Support queer media and subscribe — or download the issue through Apple News, Zinio, Nook, or PressReader.
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