June 1, 2021
Kau’ilani Robinson
(206) 251-8920 | [email protected]
Cory O’Born
[email protected]
SEATTLE – Seattle is an inclusive and vibrant city where all are welcome. Pride Month in June is here, and nothing can stop Seattle’s Pride celebrations. This year, both Seattle Pride and Seattle Pride Fest have postponed their in-person celebrations to later this year, but Seattle Pride is rolling out a great virtual lineup. There are also several in-person events that are taking place throughout the month for visitors and locals alike.
In Seattle, Pride is also much more than a month or a parade – we continue to share the love year-round at weSEAlove.com.
Seattle’s LGBTQIA+ community is made up of chefs, artists, business owners, entrepreneurs and so much more. Here are just a few of the tastemakers and leaders who make up this thriving community:
Dani Cone | Businessowner, Entrepreneur, Leader
An entrepreneur, food-lover and community-builder, Dani Cone is founder and CEO of local Seattle businesses Fuel Coffee, Cone & Steiner General, and High 5 Pie. In 2005, Dani opened Fuel Coffee, and by 2007 had expanded it to 3 locations (since acquired by Ada’s Technical Books and Café in 2020). In 2008, during a troubled economy, High 5 Pie was launched to bring a little “delicious comfort” to tough times. Dani believes that people come together over good food and drink and creates places that offer this experience. It was this belief, and mission, that lead to opening Cone & Steiner General in 2014, a neighborhood market modeled after Dani’s Great Grandfather’s store of the same name that was here in Seattle over 100 years ago.
Juan Alonso-Rodriguez | Sculptor and Painter
Juan Alonso-Rodriguez is a local painter and sculptor, whose work explores abstraction in many various forms and is influenced by his Caribbean origins (see his full artist statement). Alonso has worked on both large public art projects and smaller scale studio art. His work has been featured in museums across the country, and has received innumerable awards and grants, both locally and nationally. Alonso’s work can currently be seen at the Tacoma Art Museum (Painting Deconstructed: Selections from the Northwest) and at his own studio in Seattle’s Pioneer Square neighborhood, Juan Alonso Studio.
Nat Stratton-Clarke | Restaurateur, Community Leader
In 2008, then general manager, Nat Stratton-Clarke purchased a Seattle institution from its original owner – vegetarian-centric Café Flora. He has kept the Café as a thriving, community-oriented gathering place, and has also opened Floret in SEA Airport and most recently, The Flora Bakehouse. Nat continually seeks ways to improve the space, responsibly grow the company, and connect with the communities represented by the staff and the neighborhoods each restaurant calls home. As an openly transgender man, Nat strives to create safe and affirming spaces in each of his businesses.
While many events have gone virtual this year, there are still so many ways to celebrate Pride in Seattle – in June and beyond. Check out these cornerstone events taking place in Seattle this year:
Seattle Pride: Resilience | Saturday & Sunday, June 26-27
The official Seattle Pride celebrations will once again be virtual, with in-person events planned for October 2021. The weekend of Pride (June 26-27) will be jam-packed with performances, gameshows, educational and activism-focused speakers and panels, virtual booths to connect with local non-profits and vendors, and community gathering/discussion groups. Highlights of this year’s event include performances by national and local LGBTQIA+ artists like: Big Freedia, Mary Lambert, Perfume Genius, mxmtoon, DJ dark_wiley, Simone Pin, and Seattle Ladies Choir.
All Together Now | Thursday & Friday, October 9-10
The organizers of the Seattle Pride Parade and Seattle Pride in the Park events have planned for an in-person LGBTQIA+ event in the fall. With the theme All Together Now, Seattle Pride is planning a fall reunion to remember. Details of the event are still in development but the festivities will take place on Capitol Hill and other area neighborhoods October 9-10. Events will include a self-guided route with numerous stopping points featuring a wide variety of activities, performances and more, taking place in and around many of the community’s favorite LGBTQIA+ and ally-owned businesses. More details will be announced as available.
Nothing says Pride like celebrating the people who make up its vibrant community. Here are two power couples in the LGBTQIA+ community who proudly call Seattle home:
Seattle Pride in the Culinary World:
Chefs Aisha Ibrahim and Samantha Beaird are taking the helm at iconic Seattle fine-dining establishment, Canlis. The renowned restaurant welcomed Aisha Ibrahim as their new Executive Chef in May as they prepare to reopen their dining room July 1. Chef Ibrahim is the first female executive chef at Canlis, and only the seventh in Canlis’s 70-year history. Chef Ibrahim moved from Thailand to take over at Canlis, along with her partner, Samantha Beaird, who will serve a key role as research and development chef at Canlis.
Seattle Pride in Sports:
Megan Rapinoe and Sue Bird – partners, celebrated athletes and dynamic advocates – are two of the most celebrated members of the LGBTQ community in Seattle. Rapinoe, an Olympic gold medalist and two-time Women’s World Cup champion, and Bird, an Olympic gold medalist and four-time WNBA champion who plays for the Seattle Storm, appeared virtually to give the keynote address at the 2021 PCMA Convening Leaders Conference, partnering with Visit Seattle. Rapinoe and Bird discussed how they became activists, focusing on the work being done in Seattle to make it an inclusive hub.
Seattle Pride in the Arts:
Jenny Pohlman and Sabrina Knowles are life and work partners, and trailblazers of glass art in the Pacific Northwest. Each year, they open their incredible home and studio for Refract, Seattle’s Glass Art Experience, providing demos to the public and showcasing their work. Their work was also featured at the Museum of Glass in the national LGBTQ glass art show, Transparency.
For more information, please visit our 2021 Pride webpage with event listings, inspiration for intentional spending, community resources and more: pride.visitseattle.org.
Media Images: visitseattle.canto.com/v/mediaimages/album/U2GNC
About Visit Seattle:
Visit Seattle has served as the official destination marketing organization (DMO) for Seattle and King County for more than 50 years. A 501(c)(6) organization, Visit Seattle enhances the economic prosperity of the region through global destination branding along with competitive programs and campaigns in leisure travel marketing, convention sales and overseas tourism development. Visit visitseattle.org.
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