Seattle police officers will not march in the Pride Parade Sunday, interim Police Chief Adrian Diaz said in an open letter expressing frustration with Seattle Pride's decision to bar uniformed officers from marching.
Diaz's letter comes after the Seattle Pride board of directors said any police officers marching in the parade must do so out of uniform. In explaining their decision, the board referenced the criminalization of LGBTQ+ people and the community's history of distrust with law enforcement.
The board noted protests against police violence marked the start of the Pride movement 53 years ago, referring to the Stonewall Riots. Pride parades around the country are held on the last Sunday in June in remembrance of that watershed moment in the LGBTQ+ rights movement.
