REFLECTIONS: Pride Month 2021
June marks the beginning of an important month-long celebration for the LGBTQ+ community: Pride Month.
Pride month falls in June each year, as a reflection of the Stonewall riots - a pivotal moment in LGBTQ+ history that eventually sparked a worldwide movement for equality. It’s important to remember those that were the trailblazers of this movement and to recognise that a large proportion of the activists were people of colour and Trans, and that moving forward from the Stonewall riots, they were left behind - and the LGBTQ+ rights movement centred mostly around cisgender, white, gay people.
Today, we largely celebrate Pride with rainbow filled streets, marches that declare our honour and integrity for our community, and LGBTQ+ parties. Pride seems to have moved away from its original message of unity and resilience and is more focused on celebrating all that we as a community have overcome.
Moving forward, we need to remember that not all LGBTQ+ people have the same rights and treatment in society. Just because a cisgender, gay white man is given opportunities and is widely accepted in the world today, does not mean that a Trans Black woman is treated with such dignity and respect. We as a community need to be using Pride month (and every other month) to amplify the voices in our community that aren’t being heard, are listened to - and that opportunities are equally offered to all, globally.
You have the opportunity to use your voice, your platform and your income to change lives this pride month. No matter how small of a following you have online, or how much money you have, there are different ways that you can truly support the community and make a difference.
Tips for Supporting LGBTQ+ people:
Start by considering a donation to an LGBTQ+ charity, small business, GoFundMe, or creative. Instead of purchasing a big named brand’s Pride merchandise, you could find an independent boutique ran by a Queer creative, and by purchasing their Pride apparel, you will directly make an impact to the community. If donating money isn’t an option, you can spark discussions with friends and family (if it’s safe for you to do so), you can watch LGBTQ+ documentaries and educate yourself and others, or you could share LGBTQ+ information.
Pride month goes deeper and beyond a rainbow tank top and partying at Pride events. Sure, we love this too, but we need to remember the true meaning of Pride and the historical significance behind this month of celebration.
Welcome to the family:
We hope that wherever you are in your journey of Queerness, you feel at home and supported by the LGBTQ+ community. We are a strong community and family. If we stay together and support each other, Pride month can be every month.
Support our work:
If you’d like to support Learnest, you can donate to us by clicking on this link. Every penny we make goes back into the LGBTQ+ community by providing free mentoring, events, job opportunities and more.