After a year like none other, Ugg—with Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors and the Los Angeles Hammer Museum—is inviting the public to participate in a “worldwide electric slide.”
On Sunday, the Hammer Museum will host a virtual, “F*ck White Supremacy, Let’s Get Free” dance party. The free, six-hour event, Ugg said, “invites everyone around the globe to move together, united by a groove and the freeing act of dancing.” It will kick off with a discussion between Cullors and Hammer Museum associate curator Erin Christovale and then feature DJ sets by Everyday People in New York City and Cumbiatón in Los Angeles. “Thoughts and musings” by Cullors will intersperse these live performances.
“Given the challenges in the world today, I can’t think of a better time to unite through art, activism and an interactive dance party,” Andrea O’Donnell, president of Ugg and Koolaburra by Ugg, said in a statement. “Ugg is very proud of its partnership with Patrisse Cullors and the Hammer Museum for ‘F*ck White Supremacy, Let’s Get Free.’”
Cullors previously led a similar event under the same name in early 2020 for the Frieze Los Angeles art fair. Participants wore headphones and moved together in a back lot daily during the event. The performance was accompanied by video documentation in a storefront with merchandise and information in support of the non-profits Reform L.A. Jails and Black Lives Matter. Hammer’s edition of the event moves the performance online due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“The worldwide Electric Slide dance party with Patrisse is the perfect way to recharge and lift our spirits as we battle systematic racism,” Ann Philbin, director at the Hammer Museum, said in a statement. “The museum’s mission has always been about harnessing the power of art and ideas to build a more just world, and joy is absolutely necessary for healing and facing the many challenges ahead.”
The Ugg-sponsored event builds on the good vibes the brand put on display when it debuted three new plant-based footwear designs as part of its Feel Good sustainability platform. The Plant Power Collection included two fluffy sandals silhouettes featuring sugarcane-based foam outsoles and a chukka boot sporting a cotton-hemp upper.
Ugg described the drop as “just the beginning.” By 2027, it said, the brand plans to increase its use of recycled, repurposed, plant-based, bio-based and certified fibers by 35 percent.