Identity
CONFESSIONS OF A MASK. Content Warning.
In the dim confines of my childhood, I lived in a hoouse shadowed by the heaviness of sickness and old age. My grandmother, "a narrow-minded, indomitable, and rather wildly poetic spirit," consumed my early years with her sharp intellect and bitter demeanor, her illness gnawing at her nerves. She pulled me from my mother's arms on my forty-ninth day, raising me in a suffocating room, "perpetually closed and stifling with odors of sickness and old age." It was here, in this stagnant atmosphere, that my identity, already shaped by exclusion, began to take root in longing.
By ANTICHRIST SUPERSTARabout a year ago in Pride
The Pink Shoes
I grew up in the eighties and nineties, a period in England, if not elsewhere, where the word “gay” was still bandied about as an insult at the beginning of my secondary schooling, alongside “poof” and “fag” and (gasp) “lesbian”. By the end of school however, a large proportion of my peers no longer considered “gay” to be an insult, or “poof” and “fag” to be acceptable at all. The jury remained firmly out on (whisper it) “lesbian”. Did the jury come back on that yet?
By Hannah Mooreabout a year ago in Pride
Colin Bridgerton: Demi-Romantic Representation
. I've written before about Bridgerton, for all it's flaws, doing good things in terms of representation. I'm not the only one talking about that, but there's one thing that I'm not sure anyone else has actually noticed, something that I honestly never expected to see in a Romance show.
By Natasja Roseabout a year ago in Pride
Understanding World Mental Health Day 2024: Date, history, significance
World Mental Health Day, observed annually on October 10, is a crucial global initiative aimed at raising awareness and mobilizing efforts in support of mental health. As the world continues to grapple with the growing challenges posed by mental health issues, this day serves as a reminder of the importance of emotional well-being and the need to address mental health with as much seriousness as physical health. In 2024, the theme for World Mental Health Day highlights the importance of creating “Mental Health for All: Raising Voices and Taking Action,” focusing on global efforts to make mental health care accessible to everyone.
By Poonam Ownabout a year ago in Pride
Accurate Representation. Runner-up in Represented Challenge.
I remember sitting in my parents’ living room when I was in my early teen years. I don’t remember the age, but it was around that time in my life. I was watching an MTV show about HIV. In the show, two men kissed and hugged and held hands. That was the first time in my life I pondered my sexuality. It brought me peace, that other people can love openly and without shame. Seeing physical affection between two men on a tv screen made me realize that is what I wanted.
By J. Delaney-Howeabout a year ago in Pride
Finding My Ruling Identity
The television screen is dark, with the outline of a performer standing on stage emitting through. Amongst the quiet cheers, popping sporadically, the iconic organ chord pours out of the speakers. “Dearly beloved,” the opening two words of the song greet the audience. They respond with a frenzied cheer. He goes through the whole speech talking about how life and crazy and the afterworld. One minute later, after instructing us to “punch a higher floor,” he dives into a guitar riff accompanied by the synthesized sounds of an electric keyboard. Purple lights flood the stage. He is majestic. Purple jacket, white laced bloused and high heels. Though the beat it rhythmic, I reach for the remote and quickly change the channel.
By Iris Harrisabout a year ago in Pride
