Taking Black Pride, sometimes stylized as Taking B(l)ack Pride, is a left-wing critical race theory-aligned LBGT-focused organizing group fiscally sponsored by the Alliance for Global Justice. ¹ The group organized an annual music and arts festival in Seattle, Washington, focused on non-white LGBT artists. ²

Background

Taking Black Pride is an LGBT-focused organizing group founded in 2020 by Seattle-based LGBT activists. It is fiscally sponsored by the Alliance for Global Justice, an organizing group that also serves as a fiscal sponsor to a variety of left-wing initiatives, such as Refuse Fascism, United Students Against Sweatshops, and Stop Mass Incarceration, which describes itself as “anti-capitalist.” ^{3 4 2 5 1}

As of December 2025, the organization’s website appeared to be inaccessible. ⁶

Activity

Taking Black Pride organized an annual music and arts festival of the same name, often stylized as Taking B(l)ack Pride, in Seattle, Washington, focused on the promotion of the non-white LGBT community, particularly transgender activists whom the organization’s founders refer to as “trancestors.” ²

Critical Race Theory

The organization’s leaders have written that their interest in founding the organization stemmed from a dissatisfaction with other LGBT groups, claiming that Black and other non-white transgender activists had previously been “thrown under the bus” by white LGBT activists. In that vein, the organization also noted on its website that the idea of reparations is “central” to its annual festival of the same name and justifies that centrality with claims that non-white individuals in Seattle, particularly in the Central District, Beacon Hill, Columbia City, and Rainer Beach, have been subject to gentrification and were being “criminalized.” ⁵

In a section on the organization’s website titled, “White Accomplices,” Taking Black Pride noted that contrary to people who are “probably” disconcerted with the existence of white individuals who support events like the organization’s festival of the same name, the organization does not “see the issue.” ⁵

Reparations Fee Controversy

In 2021, Taking Black Pride announced that the organization would charge a “reparations fee” of $10 to $50 on white attendees of its annual festival of the same name in Seattle, Washington while allowing Black individuals to attend the event at no charge. In response, Capitol Hill Pride, an organization that was then planning an LGBT festival coinciding with the date of Taking Black Pride’s event, filed a complaint with the Seattle Human Rights Commission regarding the reparations fee policy, arguing that it constituted racial discrimination. In response, Taking Black Pride’s organizers characterized the complaint as racist and reactionary. ⁷

Later, the Seattle Human Rights Commission rejected the complaint, arguing that the policy did not constitute a human rights violation and that the free-admission of non-whites constituted “a courtesy.” In that vein, other aligned organizations published statements supporting Taking Black Pride’s reparations fee policy, including Seattle Pride and Gay City, a Seattle LGBT center. However, according to reporting in the Advocate, following the publicization of the policy, several candidates in the Seattle mayoral election canceled their planned appearances at the event. ⁷

Eventually, the organizers of Capitol Hill Pride issued a statement regarding their complaint to the Human Rights Commission, saying that that the latter was not meant as an “attack” and requesting a meeting with Taking Black Pride’s organizers. ⁷

Funding

Partners and sponsors of Taking Black Pride include Queer the Land, Alphabet Alliance, API Chaya, Trans Woman of Color Solidarity Network, Lavender Rights Project, and Puckduction Production and Entertainment. ⁸

Leadership

Taking Black Pride’s leadership did not generally identify themselves with their full names, but rather with either just their first names or those plus the first letters of their surnames. Additionally, a collective statement on the organization’s website, noted that the organization’s core organizers are all locally based in Seattle and have participated in Black Lives Matter movement protests, including the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) and Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) in the summer of 2020. ^{5 2}

Mattie Mooney is a core organizer and cofounder of Taking Black Pride as well as the cofounder of the Trans Women of Color Solidarity Network. ^{5 9}

Evana Enabulele is a core organizer of Taking Black Pride and a core member of Queer the Land. Previously, Enabulele worked as an event scheduler and assistant coordinator in the City of Seattle’s Parks Department. ^{10 5}

Lourdez Velasco is a core member of Taking Black Pride as well as a cofounding member of the CHamoru (indigenous Guamanian, typically spelled Chamorro in English) art collective Guma’ Gela,’ and cofounder of the Trans Women of Color Solidarity Network. ^{5 11}

1. Taking Black Pride. Bonterra. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://afgj.salsalabs.org/takingblackpride/index.html
2. Neilson, Sarah. “Meet the founders of Taking B(l)ack Pride, which embodies the original, liberation-focused roots of Pride.” Seattle Times. June 24, 2022. Archived Augst 27, 2022. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://web.archive.org/web/20220827175550/https://www.seattletimes.com/life/lifestyle/meet-the-founders-of-taking-black-pride-which-embodies-the-original-liberation-focused-roots-of-pride/
3. “#BlackLivesMatter Protests Held Amid Parties on New Year’s Eve.” NBCNews. January 01, 2015. Accessed December 29, 2025. 
4. Hogberg, David. “Communists Funding the Resistance: The Alliance for Global Justice.” Capital Research Center. August 29, 2017. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://capitalresearch.org/article/communists-funding-the-resistance-the-alliance-for-global-justice/?_gl=1*12g11gi*_gcl_au*MjEwODkxNDk5Ni4xNzY2OTA4NjQz
5. “What We do.” Taking Black Pride. Archived January 16, 2025. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://web.archive.org/web/20250116103530/https://www.takingblackpride.org/about
6. Homepage. Taking Black Pride. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://www.takingblackpride.org/
7. King, Trudy. “‘Reparations Fee’ at Black Pride Event Sparks Complaint by Rival Group.” Advocate. June 23, 2001. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://www.advocate.com/pride/2021/6/23/reparations-fee-black-pride-event-sparks-complaint-rival-group#toggle-gdpr
8. Homepage. Take Black Pride. Archived December 29, 2025. 2023. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://web.archive.org/web/20231219012706/https://www.takingblackpride.org/
9. Klein, Jessica. “Trailblazer: Mattie Mooney.” Alta. June 26, 2023. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://web.archive.org/web/20250116103530/https://www.takingblackpride.org/about
10. “LT Alumni Challenge Night: Housing.” Leadership Tomorrow. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://www.leadershiptomorrowseattle.org/events/2021/5/20/lt-alumni-challenge-night-housing
11. “Lourdez Velasco.” Artist Trust. Accessed December 29, 2025. https://artisttrust.org/artists/lourdez-velasco/