WHAT IS ATLANTA FAMILY WEEKEND?

Atlanta Family Weekend is a multiracial gathering of LGBTQ+ families from the greater Atlanta area, the South and beyond with an explicit focus on BIPOC families. In order to prioritize low-income and disabled attendees, financial and physical accessibility are pillars of this event. Family Weekend centers the vibrancy of Atlanta while creating safe spaces for youth, parents, and the whole family. We invite families to the kickback to connect and dream about what a collective of multiracial LGBTQ+ families, justice-minded organizations, and local resources can do together. This year, COLAGE, SPARK Reproductive Justice Now, Feminist Women’s Health Center, and Mothering Justice are partnering to put on Atlanta Family Weekend from October 12-13, 2024 at Piedmont Park. See the Atlanta Family Weekend 2023 Itinerary to get a sense of last year’s event that COLAGE co-hosted with Forward Together.

We prioritize BIPOC, low-income, and disabled people by:

• Hiring queer & trans BIPOC performers, artists, caterers, and ASL interpreters

• Ensuring at least 70% of attendees are BIPOC

• Hiring a COLAGE facilitator team that is at least 70% BIPOC and reflect the identities and experiences of youth attendees

• Ensuring our organizing team is majority BIPOC and 100% queer and/or trans

• Offering culturally relevant resources such as QTBIPOC mental health professionals, QTBIPOC owned local restaurants, etc

• Using a pay-what-you-want model for registration

• Fairly compensating all facilitators, performers, artists, caterers, and ASL interpreters

• Ensuring our space is ADA accessible

• Asking all attendees to mask via their travels to the event and while indoors at the event space

• Asking attendees to stay home if they feel sick and take a rapid COVID-19 test before entering the space

• Placing HEPA filters indoors

• Cultivating a wellness corner with first aid materials, essential oils, coloring books, and more

• Providing signs and visual maps of the park with marked event location. 

Objectives:

• Create a safe space for youth who have LGBTQ+ parents/caregiver

• Create a safe space for prospective and current LGBTQ+ parents/caregivers

• Create an accessible space for low-wealth attendees and disabled attendees

• Cultivate lasting networks and connections for LGBTQ+ families

• Provide local reproductive justice, family-building, and community-based resources to LGBTQ+ families 

• Dream about collective liberation for our families and beyond

WHO IS FAMILY WEEKEND FOR?

The morning of October 12 and 13 is for:

• Current or Prospective LGBTQ+ parents/caregivers. 

• Kids with LGBTQ+ parents/caregivers.

The afternoon of October 12 is for everyone (General Admission)! Including but not limited to:

• LGBTQ+ kids and their parents. *Straight-identifying parents are welcome to come along with their LGBTQ kid. If you're interested in resources for how to parent your LGBTQ+ kid, we recommend PFLAG. This event is not an educational outlet for straight parents/caregivers*

• LGBTQ+ adults who are not parents/caregivers.

• Loved ones of people attending for the morning on October 12 and 13. (Think grandparents, aunties, uncles, family friends, cousins, etc).

Please note that youth are required to come with an adult unless they are 15 or older. 

PAY-WHAT-YOU-WANT

Registration is pay-what-you-want to ensure that programming reaches as many families as possible! You are welcome to pay more or less according to your needs. Anything you’re able to give will go directly into our fund for Atlanta Family Weekend next year ensures that we are able to show up year after year to support LGBTQ+ families!

REGISTRATION

Everyone, regardless of ticket-type, will get to attend the afternoon kick back with games, music, food, an open mic, a the BlaQueer Artist market, resource fair and more! Arrive just as you are for a chill atmosphere of queer & trans joy!

In addition to the afternoon kickback, keep reading to see what specialized programming we have planned.

KIDS WITH LGBTQ+ PARENTS/CAREGIVERS

0-7 YEARS OLD

For 0-7 year olds, we will have free childcare available for the duration of the event. You are welcome to bring your children to any of the adult programming or have them play in the childcare area with childcare professionals.

8-18 YEARS OLD

8-18 year olds with LGBTQ+ parents/caregivers will get to join COLAGE programming at Family Weekend which includes workshops and activities facilitated by adults who also have LGBTQ+ parents. In these workshops, they’ll get to meet other kids with LGBTQ+ parents/caregivers and talk about the challenges and joys of growing up with LGBTQ+ parents.

CURRENT OR PROSPECTIVE LGBTQ+ PARENT/CAREGIVER

As a parent/caregiver, or a prospective parent/caregiver, you will get to parent programming that will explore the barriers LGBTQ+ people face while parenting, and build a network of LGBTQ+ parents for Family Weekend and beyond. If you have youth in your family who are 0-7, they are more than welcome to join you for parent programming and they will have the option of hanging out in childcare with other youth aged 0-7.

GENERAL ADMISSION

General admission is for LGBTQ+ youth who have cis/straight parents and for any other loved ones who do not fit the category of kids with LGBTQ+ parents or LGBTQ+ parents/caregivers themselves. Think aunties, uncles, grandparents, or other close comrades.

*If you feel uncomfortable answering the questions on the registration form, please email atlfamilyweekend@colage.org for an alternative registration.*

COVID-19 SAFETY

As we are still navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, our teams are working hard to ensure that we can all engage as safely as possible. To that end, we will be asking everyone to mask via their travels to Atlanta and while indoors at the event space. We will also be asking everyone to take a rapid COVID-19 test before entering the space each day. Most of our events will be held inside with HEPA filters. We are continuing to follow CDC guidelines and will continue to share safety information leading up to and during Family Weekend.

ACCESSIBILITY

We are doing everything we can to make Family Weekend inclusive in celebration of our different perspectives, lives, experiences, and accessibility needs! You will be prompted to indicate any access needs you may have while registering. Magnolia Hall at Piedmont Park, is one level without stairs. We have gathered measurements, images, and pictures from in-person trips for anyone who wants to know more about the space(s) and is looking to submit accessibility requests for Family Weekend. ASL interpreters will be interpreting at all front-of-room moments, and available for any individual who needs interpretation during programming. If you or your youth need ASL interpretation, please indicate that on your registration when prompted about access needs.

We are very open to feedback and giving support or resources upon request. Our goal is to plan this event and center disability justice for our collective liberation -- please contact us if we are failing to reach this goal. If you have any questions about how we can best support you and your family’s access needs, please email us at atlfamilyweekend@colage.org.

LIMITED SPOTS & REGISTRATION TIMELINE

We have a set number of registration spots for the 8-18 year olds to ensure a healthy youth to facilitator ratio to foster connection. For example, the Waffles age group (8-10) has a 5:1 youth to facilitator ratio, the Crew age group (11-13) has 6:1, and High School age group (14-18) has 6:1. We stick to these ratios to best respect and support our youth and facilitators, and therefore have a max capacity per age group. We also have space capacity at Magnolia Hall which means there are limited spots for younger youth and adults.

If you aren’t sure if you can make it (due to time-off requests for work, or anything else), we encourage you to still reserve your spot. You can cancel at any time, preferably by September 12, so we can offer your spot to someone else. Register today! When our registration fills up, please use this Google form to reserve a spot!

OPEN MIC

On Saturday, October 12 in the afternoon, we will be hosting an open mic. Youth and adults are welcome to perform. Any type of talent or skill can be showcased. For example: singing, comedy, dancing, juggling, playing an instrument, reading poetry, showcasing visual art, etc. All performances should be no more than 3 minutes long. If you are interested in participating in the Open Mic, please indicate that on your registration.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Do I need to register for each family member or is one ticket sufficient?

Yes, you will need to register for each family member.

PLEASE ENSURE THAT YOU SELECT THE CORRECT AGE GROUP FOR YOUR YOUTH! If you select the wrong one, and try to correct it after our slots fill up, we will not be able to guarantee a slot for your youth. When tickets sell out, please use this Google form to reserve a spot on our waitlist.

I want to register, but I don’t want to answer the registration questions. Is there another way to register?

Yes! The questions on the registration form are there to make your experience amazing, add you to our networks for future opportunities, and to apply for funding so we can host this event every year. If you do not feel comfortable sharing the information the questions are asking for, you can email atlfamilyweekend@colage.org for an alternative registration. 

How can I be informed about COLAGE's work outside of Family Weekend?

COLAGE unites people with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or queer parents into a network of peers and supports them as they nurture and empower each other to be skilled, self-confident, and just leaders in our collective communities. We welcome you to join our national mailing list at the bottom of our homepage, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Instagram to stay connected!

How can I be informed about Mothering Justice's work outside of Family Weekend?

Mothering Justice provides policy advocacy resources for black and brown mamas and caregivers. We offer lobbying opportunities, leadership development fellowships and community networking opportunities. Learn more at our website.

How can I be informed about SPARK's work outside of Family Weekend?

SPARK serves as an entry point and leadership pipeline for new social justice leaders, and a political home for Black women and young people, centering Black queer women, trans folx and folx living outside the gender binary.

We utilize arts, culture and media to build resources for and shift narratives about our communities. SPARK engages in power building through grassroots organizing, advocacy, knowledge-building, and political development of our base and members in Georgia and across the US South.

You can get more information about SPARK by checking out our website to connect with us socially you can find us on instagram and Facsebook  @SPARKRJNOW 

Also, SPARK will be hosting our 2nd annual conference, JUSTICE NOW  Nov 15-17 in ATLANTA - www.justicenowcon.com ; Early Bird Registration ends June 1st

How can I be informed about Feminist Women’s Health Center's work outside of Family Weekend? 

We envision and offer compassionate, judgment-free healthcare, abortion access and bodily autonomy for all who need it, intentionally centering black people, Indigenous people and the TGNC+ community. We imagine clinics, legislation and communities where our decisions about our bodies, pregnancy, sexuality, family and safety are honored, protected and treated with dignity. Gender affirming care, legislative, Latin X initiative, movement building, volunteering and internship are some of the areas we connect with and in the community. Learn more at our website.