Taking B(l)ack Pride Presents Seachella: A One-Day Festival at Seattle Center on July 25th

Seattle Center hosts the third annual Taking B(l)ack Pride, a day-long event focused on empowering Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) queer and trans community members through a festival-like setting on Saturday, June 25th at the Mural Amphitheatre.

"Finding opportunities for healing, joy, safety and community-building are crucial to our community given the ongoing violence perpetuated against trans and queer BIPOC individuals," said festival organizers. "Taking B(l)ack Pride is not a solution, but a way to radically invest in community through intentional giving, empowerment through funded self-care and the celebration of Pride through honoring its BIPOC trans and queer roots."

Taking B(l)ack Pride has made history as Seattle's first and only large-scale Pride event centered around transgender and queer BIPOC community members. The event highlights aspects of joy, grief, healing, anger, celebration, pride, and expression of culture and community.

This year's activities include live music, free food, family activities sponsored by Families of Color Seattle, healing and wellness tents, harm reduction tents, BIPOC vendors, AIDS testing and safer sex materials, youth programming and community resources.

Hosted by the hottest QTBIPOC artists from North America, performances make for an all-day party of revelry and celebration of the complex identities, narratives and experiences of QTBIPOC communities.

For the past three years, Taking B(l)ack Pride (TBP), a group comprised of Black and Brown trans and queer organizers from Trans Women of Color Solidarity Network, Queer the Land, local music artist Mamma Nikki and mental health & homelessness advocate Renata B, have been a mainstay during Seattle's Pride season. The event was born from the unheard Black trans and queer voices of the Chop/Chaz era. Organizers found their stories and experiences were excluded from many conversations regarding state violence, and they decided to build a refuge from the distinctly cishet narratives of the Seattle BLM movement.

Seattle Center is celebrating 60 years with all that is "New, Now, and Next" as Seattle's hub for arts, sports, community events, and cultural festivals. Originally built for the 1962 Seattle World's Fair, the dynamic 74-acre campus has transformed over the years to respond to, reflect, and represent the region's ever-broadening community. Seattle Center and its iconic International Fountain are often referred to as the "Heart of Seattle," serving as a treasured community gathering place where the local, regional, national, and international visitors come together every day. Today more than 30 cultural, educational, sports and entertainment organizations reside on the grounds, along with a diverse variety of public programs and thousands of events attracting more than 12 million visitors each year. At Seattle Center, part of Uptown Arts & Cultural District and home to Climate Pledge Arena, our purpose is to create exceptional events, experiences, and environments that delight and inspire the human spirit to build stronger communities. Activities at the Center generate $1.864 billion in business activity and $631 million in labor income.