Know Your Pride

I know we’re still a month out from Pride. And, again, it’s going to look and feel very different this year as we’re still — yes, still — in this damn pandemic. (Also, if you haven’t already, GO GET VACCINATED. It’s safe, it’s free, it’s available to anyone age 16-and-up in America. And, hopefully, we ship vaccines to rest of the world soon because viruses respect no borders. Like, please, help India now.)

But I can’t help to feel a little excited for our LGBTQ+ Rainbow Mafia as June approaches. I know we likely still won’t see the parades and the floats. But, honestly, the festivities were never supposed to be about the excess. They were about being unapologetically ourselves and believing in our worth when no one else would.

So I’m kind of excited to watch the new “Pride” documentary by FX on Hulu later this month. It’s a reminder that the first Pride was a fucking riot. When the times call for them, indeed, riots are needed. As anti-trans bills sweep through Republican-led states, let’s not forget the fight that got us where we are today. We’re only as free and as equal as those most unfairly persecuted in our society. True progress must be intersectional. And we’ll only appreciate how far we’ve come if we understand how hard we’ve fought to get here.

“Being told that you’re a piece of shit and not believing it is a form of resistance.” Yeah, it sure the fuck is. So be proud, a whole month early. We all deserve it.