One of the most common phrases heard throughout the month of June every year is “Happy Pride,” and for good reason: For more than a half-century since the Stonewall Uprising, Pride season has been defined by expression, celebration, protest, and the LGBTQ community’s determination to continue the fight for a better future.
In an era when LGBTQ rights — especially trans rights — are widely under attack, when nearly every headline about the queer community points to another step backwards in the fight for our rights, it can feel overwhelming for some community members who constantly bear the brunt of the transphobia and homophobia pouring out of the White House and Republican-led statehouses around the country: President Donald Trump and his administration refuse to acknowledge the existence of the LGBTQ community. More than half of US states have moved forward with bans on medically-necessary medication and care for trans youth, according to the Movement Advancement Project. More than half of US states have also barred trans students from participating in sports in accordance with their gender identity. At least nine states have banned trans people from using bathrooms and facilities consistent with their gender identity in K-12 schools and other government buildings. Hospitals in New York City and elsewhere have restricted gender-affirming care for youth.
The Supreme Court has weakened LGBTQ rights, as well, with rulings such as one in March that rejected Colorado’s ban on conversion therapy for minors, as well as rulings last year in which the court upheld Tennessee’s state law banning gender-affirming care for youth and ruled that parents at a Maryland public school could use religion as an excuse to opt their children out of classes featuring LGBTQ storybooks.
The onslaught of attacks targeting the community brings greater urgency to the LGBTQ rights movement. Against that backdrop, however, it’s also important for individuals to find queer joy, and the final weekend in June represents a key opportunity — for many individuals, at least — to show their Pride. Some people will choose to dance to music alongside floats at Heritage of Pride’s NYC Pride March; others may opt to join the Reclaim Pride Coalition’s Queer Liberation March because of its grassroots, political focus and its policies barring police or corporations.
No matter how people show their Pride, it is personal and unique to everyone — and Pride can also be exhilarating. Ellen Broidy, a longtime lesbian activist who helped organize the first-ever Christopher Street Liberation Day March on June 28, 1970, later said she “had no idea what would happen” at the march, “but we hit the streets, and all of those fears absolutely disappeared.”
“It was, in fact,” she said, “one of the most life-affirming moments I ever had.”
Every member of the LGBTQ community has navigated adversity in their own way — in the workplace, at school, when coming out, and more — and every member of the community deserves to express queer joy in their own way at Pride. It’s OK to celebrate yourself, to cheer on the community, and still stay motivated to help push the community forward each and every day.
Happy Pride!
