Wellington Pride Festival will be postponed until September. Photo / Supplied
Wellington Pride Festival will be postponed until September. Photo / Supplied
The 2022 Wellington Pride Festival is being delayed by six months due to the ongoing community Covid-19 outbreak and vaccine inequity.
Festival co-chairs Vivian Lyngdoh (Khasi, Bengali) and Tahlia Aupapa-Martin (Ngāti Maniapoto, Kāti Māmoe, Kai Tahu, me te Vaimaanga, Titikaveka ki Rarotonga) said the decision to postpone will mean a more equitable and safe Pride Festival for attendees.
The event had been set down for March and will now be held in September.
Vivian Lyngdoh (left) and Tahlia Aupapa-Martin. Photo / Supplied
Aupapa-Martin said they made the decision because they are yet to see vaccine equity across vulnerable groups.
"Due to inadequacies in the vaccine rollout, vaccination rates for Māori are disproportionately low compared to the rest of the population."
While Aupapa-Martin noted delaying the festival wasn't an easy decision, or made lightly, they said if it had gone ahead in March using vaccine certificates, they would be excluding Māori and takatāpui.
"And potentially endangering our community.
"The safety and wellbeing of our communities and whānau is the priority."
Last year, the festival recorded over 7,000 people at the Wellington Pride's Out in the City event at the Michael Fowler Centre.
"Wellington Pride Festival will take place when we are confident that the vaccination rates are at a level where people can enjoy the festival safely and experience pride, joy and mauri ora."
Lyngdoh said the postponement means there is a better chance for Wellington Pride Festival to run smoothly and without restrictions.
"Although we're used to seeing Pride Festivals happen in March, holding the Pride Festival in September offers more security for attendees, performers, venues, stallholders, and the wider community," they say.
"We want the rainbow community to experience the best Pride Festival we can offer in 2022."
For them, Pride is about creating a safe, affirming celebration for the rainbow community in Te Whanganui-a-Tara.
"The kaupapa of Wellington Pride is to uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi, and the mana of marginalised communities. This decision is about putting their wellbeing first."
