Why Pride Must Always Be Celebrated

Introduction

This may sound negative but bear with me on this. In a civilised society, we should have no need for any of the movements and charities below.

• Pride - We are all human so whether you are lgbtqia+ or not should not matter, but there is so much prejudice that from the time of Stonewall has come into being and grown into a movement today. Ironically the prejudice that caused this has given us an amazing life-affirming movement, but prejudice is still with us and will not leave. We need to make it go away.

• Black Lives Matter - Again we are all humans but in my Juneteenth story, I state that Black People in the UK and USA are treated as an underclass. They are not, They deserve respect and equality but systemic racism that exists in the UK right to the top of government enforces prejudice against anyone of colour.
• Women’s Support, #MeToo - Like Black People women are often treated as second class. They are things for the Patriarchy to use and abuse. This is wrong. Women should be treated with respect and equality.
• Help For Heroes and Veterans Support - Governments and Financial institutions send men to war and when they come back, their lives destroyed by physical and mental injury governments throw them on the scrap heap and expect charities to care for them. It is the government’s responsibility to completely cover this.
• Food Banks - The USA and UK are among the top five richest nations in the world therefore no one should be starving. The current UK government see foodbanks as a huge success but it demonstrates the failure of the government to run the economy properly.
• Crowdfunding Medical Conditions - This is currently mainly in the USA. Medical Treatment is expensive but money should be provided by governments for all treatment however the sick are now treated by insurance companies as cash cows, not as patients to be treated.

That is that out of the way, now the real reason for this story.

Why Pride Must Be Celebrated

I don’t know when I first became aware of Pride. I was brought up in a homophobic, racist and misogynistic environment but I have grown to appreciate the value of everything and everyone regardless of orientation.

I recently shared the Instagram meme (used as the main image) from my Facebook Friend Lucy who I followed and then she friended me on Facebook so I shared some of my Pride stories with her which she enjoyed.

Pride was really kicked off with the Stonewall Riots in 1967 and you can read my poem about it below.

Pride celebrates itself as a wash of colour and joie-de-vivre, and we are all invited to take part in the celebrations to support everyone in the lgbtqia+ spectrum. There are many who are frightened to state their true feelings and in a civilised society, no one should have to hide away because they love someone of the same sex or are transitioning between gender types.

The public often sees Pride and just Rainbows and Parades, and Rainbows and Parades are lovely but it is so much more than that.

It is about respecting people for what they are and not discriminating or insulting because someone is different to you. I see the whole Pride environment as a beautiful cosmopolitan community where everyone supports each other and wants the best for each other.

The Pride Comunity is there for those among us who feel scared and threatened by the normal mainstream community. Those who are transitioning need us to be understanding and supportive.

If you are born in one body and identify as another sexual type that should be part of normal life and easy to just say that is you, but even in 2022 it is not, and it should be.

I loved the 2014 Stephen Beresford film “Pride” which is based on the Gay and Lesbian Community supporting Miners during the strike in the eighties caused by Margaret Thatcher’s vicious tactics. Remember in the eighties your average Mining Community would have been rife with homophobia itself but they all came together to support each other. The IMDB link is worth reading and the film is a definite must-see.

Pride must be celebrated and must keep going even after the lgbtqia+ is just part of the global community. It is a shining beacon of tolerance and support and must always be with us.

The Pride Rainbow Flag

This is taken from the BBC history article below.

The flag consists of a band of hot pink (representing sexuality) running across the top of the flag in the original scheme, followed by red (which stood for life), then by orange (for healing), yellow (sunlight), green (nature), turquoise (magic), indigo (serenity), and violet (spirit) at the bottom.

My Pride Conclusion.

I love the Rainbows and Parades because they are lovely and entertaining but remind me that I need to be there for those that need support in any way that we can give them.

Pride must always be celebrated.

lgbtqia+ Support Groups

Stonewall UK

Northern Pride

There are many Pride Organisations which you can find by a quick search. This is one close to home for me.

What Is Pride?

My Pride Pinterest Page