OPINION: Dear Pride Month, How Can We Be Better?

Here it comes! The barrage of rainbow logos, banners, and flags for Pride Month! And how could I possibly forget: the Instagram story and Twitter reposts of the same image and sentiment that gets regurgitated each year by people and corporations alike!

Harsh? Maybe. Every June 1st marks the start of Pride Month, the celebration of 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals that began after the Stonewall Riots in 1969. New York in the 1960s was ripe with discrimination against queer individuals, with same-sex relations being prosecuted. When police raided the gay bar Stonewall, truly one of the only places where queer individuals could feel safe in a homophobic city, rather than submit, rioters pushed for queer rights for five days. This led to the creation of various civil rights organizations and the eventual gay rights movement.

It’s been 55 years since Stonewall. So much good has happened since then, and we should celebrate and be proud. But so much still needs to happen, and we need more than a repost, which I bet most of the viewers passively swipe past anyway. A barrage of passive advocacy does nothing but distill a once powerful message. Self-satisfaction for being a part of the ‘right thing’ breeds complacency.

Am I saying everyone should donate, march in pride parades, and immerse themselves in queer history and theory? Honestly, maybe. But I realize that that’s not realistic and is somewhat unfair, because Rebecca, they’re at least trying!

Yeah, I get they’re trying, but we can try and still get nothing done, all while hurting people who still face discrimination. I recognize it's a double-edged sword for me to discredit all of these advocacy attempts because at least it’s a show of support! But there is a time and place for these posts to create awareness and build momentum, not become a substitute for action.

Well, Rebecca, you might be saying. So what do we do? Do you have a clear line and delineation between performativity and ‘real’ activism? What even is real activism? How do we even know our intentions are real, even if we think they are? What... even is real…??

Okay, stop — we’re having a TOK-esque crisis, and no one should ever want that. I don’t have these answers, and really, I don’t think anyone does. But what I will say is that this year’s Pride Month theme is “Be _____”. To be proud, to be free, to be respected, and more. I hope that regardless of whether you identify as part of the 2SLGBTQIA+, identify as an ally, or are just beginning on your journey to becoming a more understanding individual, I hope that you will just try to be better, to be more.

If you can donate, march, and learn, that’s amazing. But if not, then just taking the time to read this article is already a step in the right direction. Maybe, just maybe, for this June, you can take some time to learn more about the Stonewall Riots, historical and modern queer persecution, the Lavender Scare, and so, so, much more. I’ve started by providing two excellent infographics we all should know: 1) genderbread person, on the differences between gender identity, expression, sex, and sexual orientation and 2) some of the many pride flags. Ridley, let’s be better educated and equipped to be better supporters and truly be an inclusive community for this June 2024.

GenderBread Person

Some of the Many Pride Flags to Know