Registrations for the month-long celebration of Auckland Pride Festival 2021 are now open! Taking suggestions, funding applications, and event registrations, Auckland Pride welcomes the community to begin planning and submit their events to be part of the celebrations in February on the Auckland Pride website.

Delivering on their commitment to grow accessibility, Auckland Pride are delighted to confirm that their partnership with Spark has been renewed for 2021, bringing with it the second iteration of The Pride & Spark Empowerment Initiative. Aimed to help directly resource the community, the Empowerment Initiative provides vital funding to allow independent producers to create the events of their dreams as part of the Auckland Pride Festival programme.

At the time of registration on the Auckland Pride website, event organisers will be able to opt in for consideration to the funding pool as part of the Empowerment Initiative, making the application process as easy as possible. This funding is targeted to help provide resources for diverse and less-privileged voices within the Festival programme, lending a hand to bring authentic representation to the fore. The Empowerment Initiative is made possible through the generosity of Proud@Spark, who continually commit to real action to uplift rainbow diversity in Aotearoa with their community-centric kaupapa, closely aligning with the values of Auckland Pride.

“We’re incredibly excited to have Spark back on board to help us further increase the accessibility of the Auckland Pride Festival” says Director of Pride Max Tweedie. “Spark has increased their investment in our Festival and communities, and it’s more important now than ever as Auckland waits for our venues to reopen and our arts sector to restart. We can’t wait to see the benefits for independent event organisers and our queer artists.”

Proud Centres are also back for the 2021 Festival, for a third year of transforming Auckland Council’s arts, community, and event venues, to create hubs of pride in neighbourhoods right across the region. Proud Centres host all-inclusive and free events that celebrate the city’s LGBTQI+ communities. Sporting events, drag competitions, and a series of thought-provoking talks were just some of over 80 free activities that were programmed in Proud Centres as part of the 2020 Festival, created by and for the community in every pocket of the city.

With registrations open now, organisers of any kind of event can have a home this Pride with Auckland Council providing these venues free of charge, representative of the commitment to ensure accessibility for as many rainbow people as possible to take part in Auckland Pride Festival 2021. 

“The return of the Proud Centres is a huge win for rainbow communities across Tāmaki Makaurau” added Tweedie. “We’re grateful that the team at Auckland Council still see immense value in supporting grassroots community initiatives in the Festival. The Proud Centres are a vital part of ensuring that our Festival remains accessible and diverse.”

The Pride & Spark Empowerment Initiative and Proud Centres are two of several initiatives designed to break down the barriers of entry to the Auckland Pride Festival programme, aimed to increase participation from right across the community. By reaching directly into neighbourhoods to create a rainbow presence, alleviating some financial risks taken by event organisers, and ensuring there are non-ticketed events for rainbow people to attend as part of the Festival programme, Auckland Pride is excited for a diverse and community led programme for the 2021 Festival.

Register an event here

For media enquiries contact: Kelly Geater – Elephant Publicity,
[email protected] | 027 254 4094

The Auckland Pride Festival 2021 runs from
Wednesday 3  – Sunday 28 February, 2021

Website:  https://2021.aucklandpride.org.nz
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/AucklandPride/
Twitter:  https://twitter.com/AucklandPride
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aucklandpride/

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