Metro Parks Tacoma announcement.
TACOMA – Vibrant. Mesmerizing. Diverse parts making up a beautiful whole. It’s Mosaic: Tacoma’s Arts & Culture Festival, the new name for Metro Parks Tacoma’s popular Ethnic Fest which returns to Wright Park July 23-24 after a two-year pandemic hiatus.
Why the name change?
“The pandemic closures gave us all an opportunity to take a step back and really evaluate all our programs and events,” explains Sophia McKee, marketing manager for Metro Parks Tacoma’s parks & recreation department. “We wanted a name for this community festival that truly celebrates the brilliant diversity of cultures in our city, without a term that is offensive in the way it’s often used.”
In the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the word “ethnic” is defined as “of or relating to large groups of people classed according to common racial, national, tribal, religious, linguistic, or cultural origin or background.”
In festival terms, that could refer equally to German bratwurst, Korean pop music or Texan line dancing. But the term is often misused, especially by white people, to refer, as Washington Post food writer Lavanya Ramanathan puts it, “to cuisines that seem the most foreign, often cooked by people with the brownest skin” – and by extension to music and other art forms as well.
In its place, meet Mosaic. The free festival will continue its 34-year-old tradition of bringing together a kaleidoscope of dance, music, art, food and family fun, set under the shady trees of the city’s downtown park.
And while the exact Mosaic line-up will be announced later, the new name comes with a new logo and look, launching this week.
WHEN: 11 a.m. – 7 p.m. July 23-24
WHERE: Wright Park, 501 S I St, Tacoma
LEARN MORE: Discover Mosaic at mosaictacoma.com.
