UK Black Pride returns prouder than ever with ‘Love and Rage’
Taking over the iconic Roundhouse with a stellar line-up, 2–4 July.
Words: Alastair James; pictures: Twitter / @ukblackpride
UK Black Pride is returning with a three-day event this weekend (2-4 July), with a programme of events titled ‘Love and Rage’.
Building on last year’s digital celebration, which brought in 30,000 viewers, the event – Europe’s largest celebration for LGBTQI+ people of African, Asian, Caribbean, Latin American, and Middle Eastern descent – has been extended to three days and will be broadcasting live from the Roundhouse in London.
The festival will feature a number of ‘rooms’ with discussions and acts being broadcast across the weekend.
“We have a lot to be mad about”
Launching at 3pm on Friday (2 July) UK Black Pride will kick off with an afternoon of panel discussions, including recent Attitude Pride Award winner, Marc Thompson, the ambassador for Opening Doors London, the UK’s largest charity providing support to the LGBTQ community. The Cocoa Butter Club will be providing performances throughout the evening starting at 7pm.
The LGBT+ Switchboard and Just Like Us will be joining the discussions on Saturday (3 July) with the Desi, Young Queer Folx, and Wellness and Wellbeing rooms offering up spaces to reflect, discuss and celebrate.
On Sunday (4 July) Afroswing artist, Darkoo, will be headlining the main event with six hours of performances from some of the best in the UK’s Black community. The full lineup is available here.
If it’s anything like the DJ set UK Black Pride performed for Attitude, we’re in for a good one!
Writing on the website, the co-founder of UK Black Pride, Lady Phyll Opoku-Gyimah (who also featured recently as part of Attitude Pride at Home, in association with Klarna) says, “To honour what has been a tremendously difficult year for so many in our communities, UK Black Pride’s 2021 theme is ‘Love and Rage’.
“We’ve seen firsthand over the past year our communities’ persistent commitment to each other; the ways we show up, in big and small ways, is nothing short of inspiring. We continue to show what it means to love, to love hard and to love against the odds.
“We are also raging, disappointed and tired. Our communities continue to be overlooked and undervalued, tokenised and discarded. From constant gaslighting to this country’s steadfast refusal to address and redress structural and institutional racism, we have a lot to be mad about.
“Our anger is righteous. Our love is righteous.”
People will be able to catch behind-the-scenes action on UK Black Pride’s TikTok account.
FOLLOW our new @tiktok_uk account for a behind the scenes look at UK Black Pride which starts TOMORROW! https://t.co/AME4aGFiYp
— UK BLACK PRIDE (@ukblackpride) July 1, 2021
UK Black Pride will be broadcast from the Roundhouse, London from 2-4 July.
Watch Lady Phyll’s reading of one of her favourite Zita Holbourne poems as part of Speaking of Pride, empowered by Bentley.
The Attitude Summer issue is out now.
Subscribe in print and get your first three issues for just £1 each, or digitally for just over 1.50 per issue.
