Black joy has always embodied resistance, resilience, renewal, and radical self-care. Notable black queer artists and writers were drawn to Provincetown, including James Baldwin, who visited Norman Mailer and enjoyed the openly queer social scene.
However, despite its reputation for bohemianism and artistic freedom, P-town — unlike Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard — did not historically have a black enclave or a consistent summer influx of African diaspora vacationers. That began to change in the 2000s with the emergence of black-themed weekends such as Womxn of Color Weekend and Frolic. Today, during two weekends in June, LGBTQ people of the African diaspora flock to Provincetown to celebrate community, visibility, and joy.
Representation matters at WoCW
“It’s great to see people of color, especially women of color. This is the only time you’ll get to see this many people in this space,” said an attendee at WoCW.
It is a four-day gathering taking place June 3-8. This is a vibrant, nonstop celebration of the many black cultures of the African diaspora, centering womxn of color and trans, nonbinary, and gender-fluid people of color.
For nearly two decades, the annual gathering has been a significant cultural anchor — a sacred haven of joy, love, sisterhood and unapologetic self-expression. In this political era that increasingly targets marginalized communities, WoCW stands as a bold and affirming intersectional space. It reasserts our right to exist, to gather, and to be seen.
The programs are electrifying. Beyond the music, pool parties, speed dating, fashion, and comedy shows, WoCW offers workshops and discussion panels focused on health, wealth, and both individual and collective empowerment. I had the honor of serving on the panel “Nurturing Our Narratives,” a powerful conversation about claiming our stories through storytelling, the arts, and media last year.
Founded in 2007, Womxn of Color Weekend has become a vital cultural force in Provincetown. The visionary power behind its growth and evolution has been Jha D Amazi, WoCW’s executive producer and director. Under her leadership, WoCW transformed into a nonprofit organization with a bold, unapologetic mission: to bring racial and cultural diversity to Provincetown while cultivating spaces rooted in belonging.
At the heart of WoCW is its founding principle of radical welcome: an intentional commitment to creating inclusive spaces for all women of color, while centering joy, healing, and community. The ethos is inspirational as well as it is practiced, lived, and felt throughout the weekend.
“There aren’t enough spaces that center and cater to our experiences as black, queer women, our expansive gender expressions, and our layered identities,” Amazi shared with me. “My hope is that our time together says black folks, queer folks, women folks don’t just exist here — we thrive here. We belong here.”
WoCW is a celebration of possibility and collective power. It creates space for intergenerational, multicultural, and cross-sector connection where networking, business engagement, and community relationship-building flourish. WoCW embodies the principle that when one of us rises, we all rise.
At the close of the four-day gathering, the goodbyes are neverending. They are marked by new friendships, strengthened bonds, and memories that linger. Last year, on the final day of the event, one attendee captured the spirit of WoCW perfectly in a simple text message:
“It was such a pleasure to meet all of you. I’m looking forward to seeing you all again!”
That sentiment — connection made, community formed, and anticipation for what comes next — is the heart of WoCW.
The Brotha-hood
Frolic 2026 Weekend is a six-day extravaganza June 17-22, in Provincetown, welcoming queer men of color. Now celebrating its 10th year, Frolic (formerly known as Men of Melanin Magic) is its signature summer event. It has expanded from a four-day gathering into a six-day embrace of bro culture — a supportive, affirming fraternity that fosters connection, belonging and pride. Frolic offers boat cruises, pool parties, club nights, beach takeovers, panels, workshops, group exercise and much more.
With more than 1,200 Frolickers the energy is unmistakable with laughter, joy and celebration rippling through every corner.
“At its core, Frolic is a space rooted in joy, belonging, and intentional community-building for queer people of color,” Ronnie Smith told me. Smith is the executive producer of Frolic weekend. This multicultural brotherhood creates a safe, protective camaraderie that sparks lifelong friendships and shared memories.
Frolic feels radically refreshing and boldly subversive.
“Different cultures have enhanced our overall sense of community,” said Camilo Cazimi, Frolic’s program manager. “We’re seeing more and more people of color from diverse backgrounds, including mixed-race folks, who once hesitated to attend events like this because they didn’t feel they belonged. Now, they do.”
The name change from Men of Melanin Magic to Frolic reflected the organization’s growth, expanding impact, and an evolved sense of purpose. While the original name spoke powerfully to queer men of color, it became clear that the spirit of what was being built extended far beyond a single identifier. “We came to see that what we were creating reached well beyond one label,” Smith said.
Frolic feels radically refreshing and boldly subversive. The word “frolic” is rarely associated with people of color, in part because of dehumanizing racial tropes such as the “angry black woman” or the “dangerous black man,” and media narratives that so often center our lives solely on trauma, oppression, and struggle. Choosing joy as a descriptor is a powerful clap-back to those limiting frames.
Frolic started from grassroots gatherings in local bars into a multi-day destination experience that now stands as a national cultural platform.
“The name invites people across the queer community to see themselves reflected in the experience, while continuing to honor and center queer people of color,” Smith explained. “By evoking joy, play, freedom and connection, Frolic embodies values that transcend boundaries, allowing us to grow our audience without ever losing sight of our roots.”
Frolic’s origin story is rooted in a desire to bring color, culture and community to spaces where they were sorely missing.
What began as intimate monthly meet-ups in Boston blossomed into something far greater than anyone had imagined. “A response to exclusion has grown into a celebration of visibility, creativity and collective care,” Smith reflected.
Frolic started from grassroots gatherings in local bars into a multi-day destination experience that now stands as a national cultural platform. With chapters in Atlanta, DC, Los Angeles and NYC, along with themed weekend tours across the country, Frolic’s growth has been both intentional and powerful. “Our company centers queer people of color, operating from a deeply intentional ‘for us, by us’ philosophy,” Smith stated.
Frolic is powered by a large and dynamic operational team. “Frolic Weekend is a living, breathing example of what’s possible when queer people of color are centered,” Smith said.
That spirit remains at the heart of Frolic today.
The theme for Pride Month 2026 — resilience, liberation, and visibility — is more than a slogan; it is a call to action and radical self-care. WoCW and Frolic themed weekends of joy are both. They are acts of resistance, to take up space and rebuke erasure in this political clime. Those themed weekends are a bold declaration of our rights as queer people of color to be our authentic selves. We are all fam. It’s the one time each year I gift myself a weekend of unabashed radical self-care. I only wish there were more.
