'The Awakened Deep'
Saturday July 25th 2026
12pm-4pm
This year, the Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival invites you beneath the surface.
Entering our 11th year, we gather not just to celebrate, but to listen. Awakened Deep honors the parts of ourselves and our communities that have lived below the light and are now surfacing, becoming visible on their own terms. Like the creatures of the deep ocean, these parts are shaped by pressure, darkness, and resilience, evolving in ways the surface world rarely sees or understands.
Eleven is a number of awakening and alignment, a reminder that what has been forming beneath the surface is ready to move with clarity and purpose.
Our opening ceremony and parade unfold as a living procession through the city we love, blending ritual, performance, and collective presence. This year we call in the strange, the luminous, and the beautifully other. Merfolk, sirens, and sea kin are invited to draw inspiration from the depths and embody what has learned to survive and shine in the dark.
Rooted in creativity, belonging, and reverence for our waters, the Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival continues to be a gathering place for imagination and community. This year, we invite you to go deeper. To surface what has been waiting. To celebrate the magical, the weird, and the beautifully strange that lives within us and among us.
Scroll on for more info!
Entering our 11th year, we gather not just to celebrate, but to listen. Awakened Deep honors the parts of ourselves and our communities that have lived below the light and are now surfacing, becoming visible on their own terms. Like the creatures of the deep ocean, these parts are shaped by pressure, darkness, and resilience, evolving in ways the surface world rarely sees or understands.
Eleven is a number of awakening and alignment, a reminder that what has been forming beneath the surface is ready to move with clarity and purpose.
Our opening ceremony and parade unfold as a living procession through the city we love, blending ritual, performance, and collective presence. This year we call in the strange, the luminous, and the beautifully other. Merfolk, sirens, and sea kin are invited to draw inspiration from the depths and embody what has learned to survive and shine in the dark.
Rooted in creativity, belonging, and reverence for our waters, the Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival continues to be a gathering place for imagination and community. This year, we invite you to go deeper. To surface what has been waiting. To celebrate the magical, the weird, and the beautifully strange that lives within us and among us.
Scroll on for more info!
2026 Mermaid Festival Events
Three days of mer-mazing events, now all on one weekend!
DAY 1: The Sirens Ball- Friday July 24th Time & Location TBA
The Sirens Ball is a darkly elegant, ocean-themed costume gala celebrating the mystique of the sea’s most enchanting legends. Held within FATHOM’s immersive undersea dreamscape, this 18+ event features ethereal music, interactive art, otherworldly performances, and deep-sea decadence. Dress to dazzle—this is mermaids after dark.
The Sirens Ball is a darkly elegant, ocean-themed costume gala celebrating the mystique of the sea’s most enchanting legends. Held within FATHOM’s immersive undersea dreamscape, this 18+ event features ethereal music, interactive art, otherworldly performances, and deep-sea decadence. Dress to dazzle—this is mermaids after dark.
DAY 2: The Portlandia Mermaid Parade- Saturday July 25th (12noon-4pm)
Begins @ Japanese Historical Plaza, Downtown Waterfront
The Portlandia Mermaid Parade is a FREE whimsical, all-ages promenade celebrating water, creativity, and community. Merfolk, sea creatures, and ocean allies of all kinds march through Portland in a joyful tide of color, costumes, and music. It’s a splashy celebration of imagination and water stewardship for all who love the sea!
Register for free at the top of the page. Look below for more parade details.
Begins @ Japanese Historical Plaza, Downtown Waterfront
The Portlandia Mermaid Parade is a FREE whimsical, all-ages promenade celebrating water, creativity, and community. Merfolk, sea creatures, and ocean allies of all kinds march through Portland in a joyful tide of color, costumes, and music. It’s a splashy celebration of imagination and water stewardship for all who love the sea!
Register for free at the top of the page. Look below for more parade details.
DAY 3: The PNW Mermaid Confluence- Sunday July 26th (10pm-5pm)
@ Sherwood Regional Family YMCA 23000 SW Pacific Hwy Sherwood Oregon 97140
The PNW Mermaid Confluence is a joyful, family-friendly gathering of merfolk, ocean lovers, and aquatic artists from across the region. Featuring swimming, vendors, workshops, photo ops, and community building. The Confluence celebrates the magic of mermaiding in a supportive and inclusive space. Tails encouraged—splashing guaranteed!
Click to the confluence info page on this website for more event details!
@ Sherwood Regional Family YMCA 23000 SW Pacific Hwy Sherwood Oregon 97140
The PNW Mermaid Confluence is a joyful, family-friendly gathering of merfolk, ocean lovers, and aquatic artists from across the region. Featuring swimming, vendors, workshops, photo ops, and community building. The Confluence celebrates the magic of mermaiding in a supportive and inclusive space. Tails encouraged—splashing guaranteed!
Click to the confluence info page on this website for more event details!
Parade Location & Route
Gather @ Japanese Historical Plaza along Tom McCall Waterfront Park
Located between NW Davis and Burnside along the downtown waterfront.
Located between NW Davis and Burnside along the downtown waterfront.
Parade Event Schedule
12 noon Opening Ceremony Begins
1:00/1:30pm Parade Line Up Starts
1:00pm-1:45pm Parade Procession in Progress
2:00pm Group Photo on Poets Beach
2:00pm-4:00pm Beach Hangout, Memory Wall, and Other Suprises!
4pm and Later- FATHOM
1:00/1:30pm Parade Line Up Starts
1:00pm-1:45pm Parade Procession in Progress
2:00pm Group Photo on Poets Beach
2:00pm-4:00pm Beach Hangout, Memory Wall, and Other Suprises!
4pm and Later- FATHOM
Parade Route
The parade route will take approx. 30-45 minutes depending on the size of our group. We will launch from the Japanese Historical Plaza and casually make our way down the waterfront to Poets Beach! The route is along flat sidewalks, no streets, and is ADA friendly. Individuals utilizing mobility devices may need assistance getting on to the beach. There is a paved pathway that leads down to the sand.
Become a Vendor
The Portlandia Mermaid Parade is accepting a limited number of vendors.
The following restrictions apply :
PLEASE GO TO APPLICATION LINK FOR MORE DETAILS:
The following restrictions apply :
- Vendors may only have a single 6 X 4 ft table only, (NO pop-ups!)
- Vending Time is from 2pm-4pm.
- Vendors must supply their own table and chairs.
- No power or wifi
- We are a leave no trace event
- Ocean, water, mermaid themed wares or items only
- Handmade items preferred
- Trinket Trading welcome
PLEASE GO TO APPLICATION LINK FOR MORE DETAILS:
🧜♀️ What Is a Mer-Ambassador?
A Mer-Ambassador is more than a costume or a crown—they are a heart-forward representative of the merfolk community who uplifts others, celebrates diversity, and advocates for inclusion, creativity, and water stewardship.
This honorary title is awarded to young people (ages 8–19) in the Pacific Northwest who embody the spirit of the sea through compassion, imagination, and a desire to make waves of positive change.
Whether you're an experienced mer or simply dreaming of becoming one, Mer-Ambassadors are chosen not for how they swim—but for how they shine.
This honorary title is awarded to young people (ages 8–19) in the Pacific Northwest who embody the spirit of the sea through compassion, imagination, and a desire to make waves of positive change.
Whether you're an experienced mer or simply dreaming of becoming one, Mer-Ambassadors are chosen not for how they swim—but for how they shine.
🌊 Why Become a Mer-Ambassador?
- Be part of a beloved and inclusive tradition at the Portlandia Mermaid Parade
- Share your voice, story, and creativity with a wider community
- Receive merfolk-themed prizes, event access, and on-stage recognition
- Make meaningful connections and grow as a youth leader in ocean and water advocacy
How to Qualify
🐚 Contest Qualifications – Youth Mer-Ambassador Contest
To be eligible, applicants must meet the following criteria:
To be eligible, applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Age Requirement: Open to youth ages 8–19.
- First-Time Winners Only: Applicants must not have previously won a Mer-Ambassadorship.
- Previous applicants who did not win are welcome to re-apply!
- Submission Requirement: Applicants must complete the official application form and submit either a qualifying essay (300–500 words) or video (3–5 minutes) in response to the contest theme of the year.
- Parental Consent: Applicants under 18 must have permission from a parent or legal guardian.
- Required Forms: All applicants must submit a signed media release and liability waiver.
- Experience Not Required: No prior mermaid experience is necessary.
In fact, we especially encourage submissions from aspiring merfolk who dream of joining the mer-community! - Residency: Applicants must live in the Pacific Northwest region.
- Attendance Required: Selected winners must be present at the
Portlandia Mermaid Parade on Saturday, July 26th, 2025,
to be crowned during the Opening Ceremony.- If the selected winner cannot attend in person, the title and prize will be awarded to the runner-up in their age category.
Previous Mer-Ambassador Winners
2023
Una Vivienne
Jaspur Weems
Suzanne Larrison
Chloe Wilson
2024
Luke Lyman
River Frisbee
Emory O'Keefe
Una Vivienne
Jaspur Weems
Suzanne Larrison
Chloe Wilson
2024
Luke Lyman
River Frisbee
Emory O'Keefe
🌊 A Special Message from the Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival 🌊
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In the shimmering current of celebration, we gather not just in costume, but in community. The Portlandia Mermaid Parade and Festival is more than a spectacle, it is a sanctuary of joy, imagination, and belonging for everybody and every-body.
We affirm, without hesitation or condition, that all people—of every race, class, ethnicity, gender, orientation, citizen status, ability, age, and body type, deserve to be seen, celebrated, and treated with dignity. This is not a passing ideal; it is the deep tide that shapes our festival’s very soul. As waves of division and intolerance rise across the nation, we stand firm in our values. The magic we create is rooted in radical inclusion. We do not shy away from the storm, we rise through it, together, with scales gleaming and hearts open. We are not afraid to swim the currents of resistance against hate, and rivers of hope flowing toward a more compassionate world. We believe civil treatment is a basic right, not a reward. Respect is not conditional on who you are, how you look, whom you love, or where you come from. At this festival, you are welcome exactly as you are, whether you come ashore in sequins, wheels, heels, fins, or bare feet. To all who enter this magical space: may you feel held, may you feel honored, may you feel free. Together, we enchant a better world into being, one glittering moment at a time. With love & Solidarity, The Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival |
Policy Statement on AI Use, Ethics, and Environmental Impact
There are strong feelings and passionate conversations surrounding the use of AI technologies. As society moves through rapid technological change, these conversations are important. Equally important is engaging them from an informed place, grounded in nuance rather than binary or all-or-nothing thinking. Topics such as these are rarely simple. Clarity matters.
The Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival does not support false binaries or toxic narratives that frame the issue as creativity versus non-creativity. The more relevant question is how emerging technologies can be integrated responsibly, ethically, and in ways that reduce harm. This is a complex and evolving process, and no single person or organization holds a complete answer. It is something society is collectively navigating in real time.
We recognize that some forms of AI have caused real harm, particularly to artists and to the environment, and these concerns are valid. At the same time, much public discourse conflates very different technologies under a single label. Many people lack accurate information about how different AI systems operate, how they are trained, and what infrastructure supports them. Knowledge, policy, and governance around these tools are evolving rapidly.
The Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival does use AI-assisted tools occasionally for editing, organization, and visual development of original concepts. These tools are used to support creative and administrative processes, not to replace human creativity, authorship, or decision-making. All final work remains guided by human review, intention, and ethical judgment.
Text-based AI systems function through probabilistic language modeling rather than storing, retrieving, or reproducing original written works. We intentionally avoid AI tools that replicate identifiable artistic styles or exploit copyrighted material without consent. Discernment in tool selection is a core part of responsible use. Environmental impact is a broader systemic issue that extends far beyond AI alone. All modern technologies, including computers, phones, vehicles, medical equipment, and digital infrastructure, carry environmental costs through resource extraction, energy use, cooling systems, and disposal. In a technologically interconnected world, it is not possible to exist entirely impact-free unless one is fully off-grid and disengaged from modern systems.
For this reason, technological responsibility begins with harm reduction, informed use, and advocacy for better systems. End users are not able to determine which specific data centers or cooling methods support individual digital interactions, as cloud-based platforms operate across distributed and dynamically routed infrastructure. Accountability for water use, energy sourcing, and sustainability exists at the provider, regulatory, and policy level, not at the level of individual users or single software applications. We support efforts to strengthen laws, regulations, and safeguards that reduce environmental harm, improve transparency, and protect artists and workers. We also believe informed discernment, rather than fear-based rejection, is one of the most effective tools available to technology users.
The Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival supports responsible regulation, evolving safeguards, and evidence-based public dialogue. We reject binary thinking, fear-based misinformation, and bad-faith demands for impossible technical specificity.
The Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival does not support false binaries or toxic narratives that frame the issue as creativity versus non-creativity. The more relevant question is how emerging technologies can be integrated responsibly, ethically, and in ways that reduce harm. This is a complex and evolving process, and no single person or organization holds a complete answer. It is something society is collectively navigating in real time.
We recognize that some forms of AI have caused real harm, particularly to artists and to the environment, and these concerns are valid. At the same time, much public discourse conflates very different technologies under a single label. Many people lack accurate information about how different AI systems operate, how they are trained, and what infrastructure supports them. Knowledge, policy, and governance around these tools are evolving rapidly.
The Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival does use AI-assisted tools occasionally for editing, organization, and visual development of original concepts. These tools are used to support creative and administrative processes, not to replace human creativity, authorship, or decision-making. All final work remains guided by human review, intention, and ethical judgment.
Text-based AI systems function through probabilistic language modeling rather than storing, retrieving, or reproducing original written works. We intentionally avoid AI tools that replicate identifiable artistic styles or exploit copyrighted material without consent. Discernment in tool selection is a core part of responsible use. Environmental impact is a broader systemic issue that extends far beyond AI alone. All modern technologies, including computers, phones, vehicles, medical equipment, and digital infrastructure, carry environmental costs through resource extraction, energy use, cooling systems, and disposal. In a technologically interconnected world, it is not possible to exist entirely impact-free unless one is fully off-grid and disengaged from modern systems.
For this reason, technological responsibility begins with harm reduction, informed use, and advocacy for better systems. End users are not able to determine which specific data centers or cooling methods support individual digital interactions, as cloud-based platforms operate across distributed and dynamically routed infrastructure. Accountability for water use, energy sourcing, and sustainability exists at the provider, regulatory, and policy level, not at the level of individual users or single software applications. We support efforts to strengthen laws, regulations, and safeguards that reduce environmental harm, improve transparency, and protect artists and workers. We also believe informed discernment, rather than fear-based rejection, is one of the most effective tools available to technology users.
The Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival supports responsible regulation, evolving safeguards, and evidence-based public dialogue. We reject binary thinking, fear-based misinformation, and bad-faith demands for impossible technical specificity.
Merfolk & Social Justice
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At the confluence of myth and movement, the Portlandia Mermaid Parade & Festival rises in celebration and resistance. We honor the magic of merfolk not only as fantasy, but as a mirror reflecting the truths of our world and the possibilities for what it might become.
We openly and unequivocally support the pursuit of racial equity and justice. We envision a future rooted in restorative values, where public safety means care, not control—healing, not harm. We call for an end to institutional violence, white supremacy, and the continued killing of Black citizens. Black Lives Matter, period.
The wisdom of the merfolk is ancient, and it flows from deep waters of consciousness. Across cultures and centuries, Black and African mermaid myths have thrived—from Mami Wata and Yemoja to the powerful sea spirits of the African diaspora. These stories are not new; they are eternal. Yet colonial narratives have long tried to bleach the seas of their richness, narrowing our imaginations to one dominant image: the thin, white, cisgender mermaid.
But the ocean does not consent to such limitations.
Here on land, there is much work to do. Racism is not just a distant storm—it is present in our communities, our conversations, and our silences. The mermaid world is no exception. Subcultures, no matter how whimsical or well-meaning, can replicate the same social ills as the broader society—becoming microcosms of exclusion, privilege, and harm.
Too often, people view racism only as overt violence—failing to see how implicit bias, microaggressions, and systems of power operate quietly and insidiously in everyday life. This denial halts progress. To dismantle racism, we must turn inward. We must confront the ways white supremacy has conditioned our thoughts, spaces, and identities—even when unintentional. This requires vulnerability, accountability, and a willingness to be uncomfortable. At the Portlandia Mermaid Parade, we choose to be uncomfortable if it means moving closer to justice. We reject the silence that protects power. We reject the fear that silences truth. We reject the idea that neutrality is an option. Those who would withdraw their support because we speak these truths are not aligned with our mission or our values.
White silence is violence.
Black mermaids matter.
Black and brown lives matter.
This is not politics—this is humanity. This is democracy. This is love.
Let it be known: we do not swim in shallow waters. We dive deep, we listen, we unlearn, and we rise. The sea is vast, and there is room for all of us in its story.
We openly and unequivocally support the pursuit of racial equity and justice. We envision a future rooted in restorative values, where public safety means care, not control—healing, not harm. We call for an end to institutional violence, white supremacy, and the continued killing of Black citizens. Black Lives Matter, period.
The wisdom of the merfolk is ancient, and it flows from deep waters of consciousness. Across cultures and centuries, Black and African mermaid myths have thrived—from Mami Wata and Yemoja to the powerful sea spirits of the African diaspora. These stories are not new; they are eternal. Yet colonial narratives have long tried to bleach the seas of their richness, narrowing our imaginations to one dominant image: the thin, white, cisgender mermaid.
But the ocean does not consent to such limitations.
Here on land, there is much work to do. Racism is not just a distant storm—it is present in our communities, our conversations, and our silences. The mermaid world is no exception. Subcultures, no matter how whimsical or well-meaning, can replicate the same social ills as the broader society—becoming microcosms of exclusion, privilege, and harm.
Too often, people view racism only as overt violence—failing to see how implicit bias, microaggressions, and systems of power operate quietly and insidiously in everyday life. This denial halts progress. To dismantle racism, we must turn inward. We must confront the ways white supremacy has conditioned our thoughts, spaces, and identities—even when unintentional. This requires vulnerability, accountability, and a willingness to be uncomfortable. At the Portlandia Mermaid Parade, we choose to be uncomfortable if it means moving closer to justice. We reject the silence that protects power. We reject the fear that silences truth. We reject the idea that neutrality is an option. Those who would withdraw their support because we speak these truths are not aligned with our mission or our values.
White silence is violence.
Black mermaids matter.
Black and brown lives matter.
This is not politics—this is humanity. This is democracy. This is love.
Let it be known: we do not swim in shallow waters. We dive deep, we listen, we unlearn, and we rise. The sea is vast, and there is room for all of us in its story.
Black Mermaid Book List
Mermaids Have Always Been Black
A relief sculpture of the goddess Mami Wata on the wall of a voodoo temple in Benin.
NEW YORK TIMES- Opinion July 10th 2019
Mermaids Have Always Been Black
By Tracy Baptiste
As a young child growing up in Trinidad and Tobago within sight and walking distance of the Caribbean Sea, I was gripped by the intrigue of mermaids. I was introduced to one version of a mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen, whose tale of a magical girl creature, an impossible location and an outrageous desire was thrilling.
But I already knew mermaids. We spent most weekends on the beach. There were plenty about. Every cousin, aunt and uncle who threw me in the waves and laugh-shouted at me to swim back to shore seemed to know that we were all part of the sea.
My father, in particular, was a surrogate Poseidon. He would strike out into open water, disappearing for minutes at a time behind huge waves, then appear again, hanging off the side of a fishing boat, where he rested, chatted with the fishermen and then swam back to shore. I didn’t need a Danish fairy tale to tell me that he was part fish. By the time I came across Andersen’s tale, I already knew that mermaids were black and brown people: my family. Besides, what happens when you stay out on the sea? You get darker and darker, deepening to shades of black and brown that glow from absorbing the sun.
It was in this state last week that I first heard about Disney’s decision to cast the black teenage actress and singer Halle Bailey (of Chloe x Halle fame) in the title role for “The Little Mermaid,” and the flood of white people’s tears over it. When the announcement was made, I was swimming in the sea off the Bahamas, getting sunburned as fish swam past me. A lifeguard had just warned me that there were baby sharks about. Was I concerned? Honey, please. This was my natural state.
Back in my hotel room, I turned on my phone for a bit, and several notifications came in, people tagging me in social media posts. The Wi-Fi was spotty, so it was another day or so before I figured out what was going on. I laughed. It was so laughable, this idea that a mermaid couldn’t be black. Didn’t they know?
When I wrote Mama D’Leau into my series of middle grade novels, The Jumbies, I didn’t have to stretch my imagination very far from home. Aiming at kids who don’t know Caribbean folklore, and Caribbean parents who maybe had forgotten it, I reimagined supernatural creatures I had known since I was a child.
Mama D’Leau in the oral tradition was huge and hideous, fierce and unstoppable. She ruled the water, both river and sea alike, and reveled in upturning fishing boats by whipping her powerful anaconda tail and watching her victims drown in the blue. As a young feminist, I was delighted by the idea of such a powerful and free woman, the murder notwithstanding. In my story, I made her as beautiful and well coifed as any of my aunts, and just as fearsome as the stories — or again, any of the aunties.
Mama D’Leau always existed in my imagination. I worried when my father swam out so far that I couldn’t see him, and worried again that the creature would capsize the boat he was hanging on to before he could swim back. In the stories, Mama D’Leau never cared whom she killed. It was sport. Though, same as any fisherman, I suppose. I don’t remember when I figured out that this was only a story.
The story likely started during chattel slavery, when people were kidnapped from the west coast of Africa and brought to the Caribbean and the Americas. The mother of the sea came with them because she already existed in West Africa as Mami Wata, a deity who promised fertility and prosperity to her devotees. It was incredibly good luck to encounter her in person. In West Africa, the goddess was beautiful, sometimes appearing fully as a woman, sometimes as a woman with a fish tail, sometimes with two fish tails. Check your Starbucks cup to see how she’s been co-opted.
LINK TO ORIGINAL ARTICLE:
blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2019/07/16/the-black-mermaid-booklist/?fbclid=IwAR3JROEJ1O23zjASY0ynSrW0c5qlJ4r0SRgmYmLSVCuihVo7bwUCHja6WRw
MORE ARTICLES:
ourtimepress.com/discovering-the-myth-and-folklore-of-black-mermaids/
https://www.tor.com/2021/11/09/black-mermaids-the-waters-beyond-eurocentric-mythology/
https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/black-mermaids-ariel-history
https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2022/09/30/black-mermaids-the-little-disney
https://manyheadedmonster.com/2022/11/28/black-mermaids-and-the-long-legacy-of-eighteenth-century-racism/
ourtimepress.com/discovering-the-myth-and-folklore-of-black-mermaids/
https://www.tor.com/2021/11/09/black-mermaids-the-waters-beyond-eurocentric-mythology/
https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/black-mermaids-ariel-history
https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2022/09/30/black-mermaids-the-little-disney
https://manyheadedmonster.com/2022/11/28/black-mermaids-and-the-long-legacy-of-eighteenth-century-racism/
Merfolk are here, and many of us are Queer!
Here are some Queer friendly merfolk tales, and resources:
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/queer-merfolk
https://abitlit.co/history/sacha-coward-on-queer-history-museums-and-mermaids/
https://arsenalpulp.com/Books/I/I-ve-Heard-the-Mermaids-Singing
https://pankmagazine.com/piece/mermaids/
http://queercomicsdatabase.com/series/thirsty-mermaids/
https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/the-little-mermaid-lgbtq-fans-ursula_uk_5dce8608e4b0d2e79f8adb51
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/queer-merfolk
https://abitlit.co/history/sacha-coward-on-queer-history-museums-and-mermaids/
https://arsenalpulp.com/Books/I/I-ve-Heard-the-Mermaids-Singing
https://pankmagazine.com/piece/mermaids/
http://queercomicsdatabase.com/series/thirsty-mermaids/
https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/the-little-mermaid-lgbtq-fans-ursula_uk_5dce8608e4b0d2e79f8adb51
Have a question? Please reach out!