Tri-Cities’ only gay pride festival is canceled. Here’s why after a ‘record breaking’ year
The 2023 Tri-Cities Pride Festival in Pasco has been canceled, according to the organization that puts on the annual event.
That’s because Tri-Cities Pride is being reorganized into a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and doesn’t have the board members in place to approve budgets, organize vendors and designate volunteers and planning.
“We’ll pretty much be taking this year to reformat the board and hopefully the new board will have the new pride fest going in 2024,” Carly Coburn, president of Tri-Cities Pride, told the Tri-City Herald.
The one-day, free event is the capstone to a busy week of gay pride events celebrating queer arts and culture, which usually ends the first Saturday of Gay Pride Month.
About 2,000 people showed up at last year’s festival in Pasco. It’s the only large-scale gay pride gathering of its kind in the Tri-Cities.
More than 60 vendors lined the park’s concrete path with food trucks along Third Avenue. Music blared as drag performers danced across a stage framed with rainbow flags. Community members, young and old, attended.
“It was really amazing to have such a fantastic turnout,” Coburn said of the record-breaking attendance. “We’re disappointed knowing that we can’t do it this year.”
The Tri-Cities Pride Festival has been an ongoing annual event since 2016.
The COVID pandemic forced the group to cancel all events in 2020. And events in 2021 were mostly virtual, aside from one socially-distanced gathering.
The Tri-Cities Pride organization collaborates with local businesses and organization to host several other family-friendly events for gay pride week, including a GLOW skate night at the Rollarena Skating Center, poetry slams, board game events at Moonshot Brewery, drag shows, art shows and other happenings.
Some of those events — which attract hundreds — might still take place this year, but it’s too early to tell.
Last year’s theme was “V.I.S.I.B.L.E.” — a rallying cry to ensure everyone knew they were “valid, included, seen, important, beautiful, loved and empowered.”
This year’s theme hasn’t been announced yet.
Coburn said Tri-Cities Prides will be opening up applications on its social media soon for new board members.
