It’s OK to be in front of a screen Friday night. Seattle Pride 2020 will be a virtual experience.

With COVID-19 restrictions preventing the normal large events and gatherings you’d see for Pride weekend in Seattle, organizers have put together full schedules of streaming and online events to carry forward the traditions and actions of Trans Pride and PrideFest.

The three days of speakers, performances and activities begin Friday with Gender Justice League, PrideFest, and Seattle Pride collaborating on a Together For Pride weekend at togetherforpride.org:

The organizers of Seattle Pride wish to acknowledge and stand in solidarity with other regional LGBTQIA+ organizations to condemn the senseless murder of George Floyd, standing together against racism in all forms. The LGBTQIA+ community knows firsthand the feeling of marginalization, and the importance of compassion and standing together – especially in this time of need. As with other impactful movements, the LGBTQIA+ movement also began with a protest. Much of Seattle Pride’s programming will be centered on matters of activism and centering black and brown voices.

“For each of the three days, one organization is taking the lead in developing engaging program content – each day will offer a full schedule of program tracks, and featured sessions within each,” organizers say.

Echoing the growth of the annual Volunteer Park Pride Festival event as a showcase for great music, this weekend’s online Pride will also feature a lineup of “queer-artist musical performances throughout the weekend.”

Saturday’s musical acts – presented by Seattle PrideFest – will be headlined by Mary Lambert (from Macklemore’s “Same Love” and her Billboard charting single “Secrets”) and will also include, a Latinx Showcase with Ruth Soto (Latin Rose) and Friends, Purple Lemonade, BeautyBoiz, Adra Boo, Xander Corbett, and an Eric Martin “Beyond Pride” Showcase.

. Sunday’s musical acts – presented by Seattle Pride – include headliner, Black Belt Eagle Scout, as well as CarLarans, Chong the Nomad, Fly Moon Royalty, Latin Rose, Stephanie Anne Johnson & The Hidogs, Sera Cahoone, and more.

The musical performances will be hosted by KEXP’s Marco Collins and popular Seattle drag queen Betty Wetter.

Other organizations are also moving their efforts online. Capitol Hill’s Three Dollar Bill Cinema will host a weekend of streaming Pride movie screenings.

CHS reported here on the mid-April decision by organizers to move 2020 Pride online in Seattle as the COVID-19 crisis deepened in the region.

2019 marked the official 45th anniversary of Seattle Pride with the Capitol Hill elements of the celebration like Trans Pride and the Seattle Dyke March drawing record crowds and supporting events across the city. The early days of Seattle Pride when the parade marched down Broadway and finished with a celebration in Volunteer Park have given way to a much larger, citywide celebration with PrideFest at Seattle Center and on the Hill at Cal Anderson and on Broadway..

The move followed a series of cancellations and postponements of major events including producers pulling the plug on this summer’s Capitol Hill Block Party.

Earlier this month, CHS talked with Capitol HIll LGBTQ venue owners about the impact of COVID-19 and their support for the Black Lives Matter movement that brought important protests and an ongoing camp of activists to the neighborhood. “We typically do giant three-day outdoor celebrations with huge street parties. All of that is gone this year, but we have a different type of outside event and that’s the protests — that is what Pride looks like this year and should,” Queer/Bar’s Joey Burgess said. Monday night, Burgess announced another of his venues, The Cuff, will not be opening as a community space during Pride due to concerns about violence around the protest zone.

For more on Together For Pride check out togetherforpride.org.

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