Thousands gather for Seattle Pride in the Park 2025: ‘It's all about love'
The Brief
Seattle Pride in the Park kicked off with thousands celebrating music, community, and resistance.
This year's theme, "Louder," emphasizing both joyful celebration and active protest against LGBTQ+ rights threats.
The event highlights the importance of visibility and community support amid current political challenges.
SEATTLE - From the music to the artists and the food, thousands of people of all ages gathered at Volunteer Park on Saturday for this year's Seattle Pride in the Park. The event is the official kick-off event for Seattle Pride.
"I'm just happy to be here and see everyone be so proud of themselves," Production Manager for the Diamond Squad for Cheer Seattle, Lili Loyer said.
This year's theme was "Louder."
"We're talking about louder in two ways, it's both about celebration and music and joy and it's about resistance and protests and not being quiet and not standing by while our rights are attacked," Seattle Pride Executive Director Patti Hearn said.
She went on to explain that Pride in the Park is about love, joy and community and said this year's gathering is even more important given the current political climate.
"I think a place where we can come together and have a sense of belonging is always really necessary, but particularly when queer and trans people are feeling their rights are being threatened, their safety is being threatened, it's absolutely important to have that sense of community like we have today," Hearn said.
"Unfortunately, it feels like people are generally less safe outside of our community, so to be here where everyone has the same goals in mind of creating a safe atmosphere for people to exist and have a day in the sunshine is just great," Loyer said.
Eric Olson has been coming to pride for decades and has seen the changes over the years. He even remembers when pink triangles symbolized pride before the rainbow flags. He told FOX 13, having events like Pride in the Park is important because visibility is key.
"When we were fighting for gay marriage, for example, one of the things encouraged was, it may be uncomfortable but please come out because a lot of the narratives that were called out against gay people, they were untrue," Olson said.
From the vendors to the performers, to those basking in the sun, pride in all forms filled Volunteer Park.
"Come out and feel the love, it's all about love," Olson said.
The Source
Information in this story came from original FOX 13 Seattle reporting and interviews.
WA Gov. Ferguson activates National Guard in search for Travis Decker
Former Army squadmate shares insight into Travis Decker's military past
Man shot, killed at his 21st birthday party in Kent, WA
Miles Hudson found guilty on 2 counts of reckless driving in Seattle
Seattle man charged with string of burglaries at the homes of NFL and MLB stars
Rochester dog training facility owner accused of killing employee during video shoot
To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter.
Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Yahoo
Thousands gather for Seattle Pride in the Park 2025: ‘It's all about love'
The Brief Seattle Pride in the Park kicked off with thousands celebrating music, community, and resistance. This year's theme, "Louder," emphasizing both joyful celebration and active protest against LGBTQ+ rights threats. The event highlights the importance of visibility and community support amid current political challenges. SEATTLE - From the music to the artists and the food, thousands of people of all ages gathered at Volunteer Park on Saturday for this year's Seattle Pride in the Park. The event is the official kick-off event for Seattle Pride. "I'm just happy to be here and see everyone be so proud of themselves," Production Manager for the Diamond Squad for Cheer Seattle, Lili Loyer said. This year's theme was "Louder." "We're talking about louder in two ways, it's both about celebration and music and joy and it's about resistance and protests and not being quiet and not standing by while our rights are attacked," Seattle Pride Executive Director Patti Hearn said. She went on to explain that Pride in the Park is about love, joy and community and said this year's gathering is even more important given the current political climate. "I think a place where we can come together and have a sense of belonging is always really necessary, but particularly when queer and trans people are feeling their rights are being threatened, their safety is being threatened, it's absolutely important to have that sense of community like we have today," Hearn said. "Unfortunately, it feels like people are generally less safe outside of our community, so to be here where everyone has the same goals in mind of creating a safe atmosphere for people to exist and have a day in the sunshine is just great," Loyer said. Eric Olson has been coming to pride for decades and has seen the changes over the years. He even remembers when pink triangles symbolized pride before the rainbow flags. He told FOX 13, having events like Pride in the Park is important because visibility is key. "When we were fighting for gay marriage, for example, one of the things encouraged was, it may be uncomfortable but please come out because a lot of the narratives that were called out against gay people, they were untrue," Olson said. From the vendors to the performers, to those basking in the sun, pride in all forms filled Volunteer Park. "Come out and feel the love, it's all about love," Olson said. The Source Information in this story came from original FOX 13 Seattle reporting and interviews. WA Gov. Ferguson activates National Guard in search for Travis Decker Former Army squadmate shares insight into Travis Decker's military past Man shot, killed at his 21st birthday party in Kent, WA Miles Hudson found guilty on 2 counts of reckless driving in Seattle Seattle man charged with string of burglaries at the homes of NFL and MLB stars Rochester dog training facility owner accused of killing employee during video shoot To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter. Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Pride in the Park kicking off Seattle Pride month
Seattle Pride is kicking off its 51st year with Pride in the Park, an event open to everyone, on Saturday at Volunteer Park. The theme for this year's Pride: Louder. 'We think of louder in terms of celebration, cheer, party, but also louder in resistance and protest and fighting back,' said Patti Hearn, the executive director of Seattle Pride. Pride in the Park started at a picnic with hot dogs, mostly attended by those in the queer and trans community. More than a decade since it's first event, it's grown to include two stages with performances throughout the day, several food trucks, and vendors that predominantly feature queer and trans operators. Bands and Color Guard from Rainbow City Performing Arts, drag shows, drag story time, and dance parties fill the lawns from 12:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. 'This is my first pride I've been to,' said Ciel Hunting, 'This is my first time ever being loud in that sense, so I'm just excited to be here and have a ton of fun.' Hunting is one of the people operating the 'Teen Space' tent operated with Seattle Pride and Seattle's LGBTQ+ Center. It puts teens in charge of events they put on for their peers. Hunting is an organizing intern with Yan Wen Shu. Shu says it was an opportunity for him to be involved, create a safe space, and help advocate for his community. 'Right now we are lacking third spaces, especially for queer and trans teens and that's what we aim to provide.' Shu said, 'Being trans and queer at a time like this is in and of itself an act of resistance and this is what we really wanted to lean into. Shu and Hearn point to legislative attacks on queer, and especially trans people, across the country. While Seattle and Washington has increased protections for people in those communities, other states and the federal government have worked to roll them back. 'There's a lot happening that's challenging for the queer and trans communities,' Hearn said, 'I think Louder is a call to stand up, speak up, and fight back.' Jing Jing Wang is with the LGBTQ+ Center, providing as little assistance as possible so teens can create the event they want to see. Wang was struck by how the youngest members of the community are bringing the roots of pride back to the forefront. 'One thing that really came from our youth is—Pride is a riot. We are here for our rights, for our community to fight for our right to be queer.' Wang said.
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Yahoo
AI Keanu Reeves Reportedly Scammed Woman Out of $160K
Word of advice: if Keanu Reeves hits you up online, be very, very suspicious. That's a lesson a Florida woman unfortunately learned the hard way. In an interview with Fox 13 in Tampa Bay, Dianne Ringstaff shared that the grift began when she was innocently playing Words With Friends. Out of nowhere, she received a message from the John Wick star—or at least someone claiming to be him. Ringstaff was understandably skeptical. Her initial reaction to the unsolicited message was that 'It can't be' Reeves, she told Fox 13. 'Until he videoed me,' she explained. 'And I was like, oh my God, that's him!'"I couldn't believe it,' Ringstaff continued. 'It was him, but it was far away. But I thought it was him." While she still felt the whole scenario was a bit implausible, that video call and a series of phone calls over a two-and-a-half year period eventually convinced Ringstaff that she was indeed talking to The Matrix star himself. The two became phone friends and would chat here and there. This was the case for a long time before things took a scammy turn. But when they did, the Not Reeves' requests for cash became persistent. The person posing as Reeves claimed that he was being sued by a former manager and that he was facing a potential legal headache after the FBI allegedly planted drugs in his home. Bottom line, claimed the grifter, his assets had been frozen and he was in desperate need of Bitcoin and says she did press a bit further: 'I said, but why don't you have a bank account?' Whatever the answer, it was enough to convince her to help. 'I was vulnerable,' she said. 'I just lost my boyfriend. And then later that summer in 2022, my dog died.' So she decided to help—which entailed taking out a home equity loan and selling her car. All in all, she estimates that the perpetrator, who is believed to be using AI to pose as Reeves, collected approximately $160,000 from her. Just a month ago, local sheriffs came knocking at Ringstaff's door to let her know that she wasn't the only person being scammed—and that some of the other victims' money was actually being funneled through her bank accounts. 'I just broke down and cried,' admitted Ringstaff. Until she decided to take back control. 'I'm by myself,' she said. 'I didn't have anybody to talk to, to give me guidance. So then I got mad, and I started getting my things together, and now I'm on track to get back on track.' Ringstaff is also bravely speaking out and telling her story in order to prevent others from falling into the same trap. According to Fox 13, these so-called 'romance' scams are one of the most common types of fraud being perpetrated right now. And the easy availability of AI makes it possible for determined fraudsters to impersonate just about anyone, including one of the world's most popular action stars. 'Knowing what I know now and all the technology that's out there, [people] can fake voices and everything else,' Ringstaff warned. 'It will never happen again. But I just want to let people know not to be naive and stupid and do your research and don't give anybody your personal information unless you already know them.' AI Keanu Reeves Reportedly Scammed Woman Out of $160K first appeared on Men's Journal on May 26, 2025