Pride Month 2022: Celebrating LGBTQ+ Identities And Visibility

Celebrated every June, Pride Month stands as a reminder of the resilience and perseverance of the LGBTQ+ community, showcasing the many identities, cultures, and stories that make up the queer community. In honour of Pride Month, we are recognizing just how much of an impact visibility has on our society today and how important it is to break down barriers that leave people feeling ashamed or uncomfortable in their own skin.

Pride Month in Historical Context

June is a celebratory month for many cultures, but especially important to people in the LGBTQ+ community. June is celebrated as Pride Month to commemorate the Stonewall Riots, one of modern history’s most significant demonstrations against anti-LGBTQ violence. The riots took place in New York City on June 28, 1969. Before then, police officers often targeted gay establishments as part of their morals code (which included blatant discrimination against women). The protest began with a raid by police on a gay bar called Stonewall Inn that night. When patrons resisted arrest, crowds gathered outside and continued to protest for five days afterwards in support of sexual freedom.

Representation Matters

Pride month is an annual celebration of LGBTQ identities. Throughout June, we have an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate LGBTQ+ with parades, festivals, picnics, parties, dinners—and even weddings! Pride is not just a parade or festival; it’s an identity. By celebrating Pride month (and year-round), we’re demonstrating our support for equal rights for all people. We’re also promoting visibility for a community that has historically been misunderstood and made invisible by mainstream culture. Let’s talk about Pride!

Affirmation is Key

Pride means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. For many, it’s about coming together as a community and celebrating diversity; for others, it’s an opportunity to educate others about issues that affect their lives. Whatever it is you want to do during Pride month, make sure you remember to affirm your identities! This month is not just a celebration but also an opportunity for some introspection. We live in turbulent times, after all. The current political climate has changed a lot over recent years—not always for the better—and Pride Month has become even more important.

Spread Love During Pride Month – Why a Rainbow Flag?

Pride Month is meant to be a celebration of diversity in all its forms. But there’s an even deeper level that many might not realize, which you can use as a jumping-off point for your celebrations. The rainbow flag became a symbol of gay rights during Pride because it represents all colours—it’s not just one hue of colour, but red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet. This was a way to represent every part of queer culture from cis-gendered gay men to transgender folks to bisexual people as well as everything in between. Showing pride for gay culture doesn’t have to stop in June; embrace diversity all year long!

Speak Up Against Hate Speech

We all have a responsibility to call out hate speech. As Pride Month continues, it’s important to stand up against hate speech wherever you see it—whether that’s at work, online, or on TV. It’s okay if you feel uncomfortable having conversations about certain issues, but remember that your discomfort won’t last long compared to how much comfort and safety being kind can provide someone else. Ask yourself is what I am saying or doing going to be hurtful? A lot of times we don’t realize we are being hurtful towards our peers until we stop and think about what we’re saying or how something may come across.

Love Yourself, So You Can Love Others

Pride began as a political protest to change societal views on what it means to be LGBTQ+. We’ve come a long way since those first marches in 1970, but there is still work to be done. Although we celebrate Pride each year, we must never forget that many don’t have that same luxury—they are harassed and attacked for who they are or whom they love. There is still much progress that needs to be made before all members of our society can feel safe, included, and celebrated. Pride Month reminds us that love always wins.

To find out what Pride Events are going on in London visit prideinlondon.org

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