The leadership of Phoenix Pride is obviously extremely concerned about the arrest that was affected on Friday and the knowledge that our signature annual events were the potential targets of acts of terrorism.

First and foremost on our minds is that the plot was interdicted, that our community members are safe, that the broader community as a whole is safe and that the events were able to take place without harm.

We are extremely grateful to the individuals in law enforcement at the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, the FBI and the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, and at the local departments who have been involved in this investigation and in affecting this arrest.

I will note that, we know there are those in our community who have very real, very reasonable and valid concerns about relationships between the community and our local police agencies and those are concerns that we continue to address as a community. But in this moment, our partners in public safety stepped up in the most vital of ways and we are thankful to them because but for their help, we might not be able to be here today sharing this information with you.

We will continue to work diligently and vigilantly with our partners in public safety, our partners in the community and our stakeholders at all levels to continue to do everything that is possible to ensure that our events are safe spaces, and secure spaces and welcoming spaces where our community members can not only feel accepted and at home but also feel and know they are safe.