Pride has been mistaken by a lot of people. Pride is not about forcing people into two groups: gay and straight. It’s about celebrating people who are different.
Some might be wondering why just being queer is worth celebrating, but they miss the point. It’s a celebration of people being open about who they are. Most LGBTQIA people have spent years of their lives trying to hide their true identity. This is because of the rhetoric that people in the 2000s were spreading, “it’s okay to be gay, just don’t show it”. This was claimed to be the progressive way of thinking, but it’s still saying that being gay is shameful. Straight people were allowed to show affection in public, but when two girls do, it’s inappropriate.
Growing up in that culture, I had to deal with acts of casual homophobia on a regular basis. I personally struggled with my sexuality all throughout high school. I never told anyone until college because I didn’t want to be different, I didn’t want to stick out. Multiple times I had typed messages to my friends telling them about what I feeling, just to delete them. These thoughts plagued me, and basically made my life hell.
While I am openly gay in college, I still feel the stigma on a daily basis. Recently I attended a banquet to celebrate the end of my rugby team’s season. We were asked to bring dates, and that simple phrase left me worried. The rest of my teammates would be bring dates that they were romantically interested in, but I didn’t know if I should. I spent many nights laying in my dorm room just thinking. Should I try fit in with my team and bring a girl, or should I try and fit in and actually bring a date? These are situations most people have never actually had to go through, but for gay and lesbian people they are an everyday occurrence.
Pride isn’t about separating people, but showing them that being gay is OK. Pride is about showing that kid in high school that has yet to tell their parents that they are gay, transgender, or just queer, that everything will be okay. Pride is about celebrating the strides we have made in this country toward equality, but also a rallying point to continue the fight. Pride is about showing the world that we’re here, we’re queer, and that they should get used to it.
Neal Chapmam,
Juneau