Watch: Drag Queen Storytime at Philadelphia's Independence Mall

Philadelphia doubles down on being a welcoming city for all.

Case in point: Just in time for Pride Month, Visit Philadelphia has launched a TV spot airing on CBS New York and CBS Philadelphia that celebrates the LGBTQ+ community, highlighting a drag queen storytime in the birthplace of the nation.

The 30-second TV spot features famed Philadelphia drag queens Brittany Lynn and Morgan Wells taking turns reading the children’s book Giraffes Can’t Dance by author Giles Andreae and illustrator Guy Parker-Rees. The audience includes a group of children and their parents in front of Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution were debated and signed — and the site of the country’s earliest organized recurring gay rights demonstrations known collectively as the Annual Reminders.

The highlighted book tells the inspiring tale of Gerald, a giraffe who is made fun of for his dance moves until a friend encourages him to move to his own tune. Read by drag queens Brittany Lynn and Morgan Wells, who are pillars of the LGBTQ+ community, the message of the book is one of self-love and acceptance.

Brittany Lynn and Morgan Wells reading Giraffes Can't Dance   — Photo by Visit Philadelphia

According to a recent study of LGBTQ+ travelers to Philadelphia by market research firm Ipsos, two-thirds (63%) of respondents cited Philadelphia as an LGBTQ-friendly destination.