Out of the Darkness Tip

The Out of the Darkness Tip started in 2017 at Palm Springs Swing & Mix, after Ett McAtee lost both of her younger brothers to suicide in the fall of 2016.

This gathering signifies walking in the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention's "Out of the Darkness Overnight Walk" for Suicide Prevention... and quite literally, walking into the sunrise and light after a long, dark night of walking.

Ett McAtee explains: Similarly, we try to raise ourselves out of the darkness after losing loved ones to suicide, or struggle ourselves. The tip encompasses all Mainstream dancing. We hold hands and dance to remember those lost.

• We provide colored beads to signify loss. For instance, orange beads are for siblings.
• In Philadelphia 2019, we will provide temporary tattoos of semi-colons, to signify that our own stories are not done yet, that our sentence doesn't just end with a period, but a semi colon, a continuation...