Pacific Northwest Black Pride celebration to kick-off this weekend after pandemic interuption

Most of the events will take place at the Embassy Suites at 15920 West Valley Highway.

By Cameron Sheppard • October 28, 2021 4:00 pm
photos from Pacific Northwest Black Pride 2021 (courtesy of POCAAN)
photos from Pacific Northwest Black Pride 2021 (courtesy of POCAAN)

This weekend in Renton, the 2021 Pacific Northwest Black Pride event will kick-off, celebrating intersectionality and fighting anti-Blackness in the LGBTQIA community.

With Pride’s typical June festivities being interrupted by the pandemic, this year’s event will be the first one since 2019.

Christopher Porter, spokesperson for POCAAN, the People of Color Against AIDS Network and one of the hosts of the event, said the festival is about supporting, uplifting and celebrating the LGBTQIA community while also fighting the anti-Blackness that has been known to exist.

He said since Pride celebrations began in 2006, there has been a predominant focus on gay White males in a community which includes far more than just that demographic.

The events begin on Friday, Oct. 29, with a welcome reception at Rotie Cellars at 3861 1st Avenue South, Suite F, in Seattle. It will begin at 4pm and will include complimentary wine. At 7pm in the Embassy Suites at 15920 West Valley Highway in between Tukwila and Southcenter there will be a Sip and Paint event for a limited number of people.

To attend the Sip and Paint event, contact Mejour Mook at 206-322-7061 ext. 11 or mejour@pocaan.org, or RSVP online at https://www.nwblackpride.org/events/sipandpaint.

The next day, Oct. 30, will be a series of workshops beginning at 11am there will be a series of workshops and panel discussion on topics including Relationships & Agreements, the Black Trans Symposium, The Disproportional Impact of Covid-19 on African Americans, Thinking Healthy Spiritually, and kink culture. These workshops will take place at the Embassy Suites as well and those interested can register here: https://www.nwblackpride.org/events.

Then, beginning at 7pm will be the Haunted Nights Masquerade Ball, an event that encourages dress-up and “radical freedom to express the beauty and consciousness of Black and Brown Queer culture.”

Porter said he hopes attendees will have their spirits uplifted at these events and will leave feeling empowered and recognized.

“We are really excited to do this and to get the community back together for the first time in a while,” Porter said.