It’s that time of the year when tens of thousands of individuals who are part of the LGBTQ community, along with family members, advocates and friends, take over the District for the annual celebration of gay pride.
With the pandemic behind us and folks finally able to “get their groove on,” this year’s two-week celebration promises to be a rainbow-colored cornucopia of parades, parties, panels, potlucks and plenty of pomp and circumstance.
Pride is a family reunion during which gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender – and other distinctions that have extended the “gay alphabet” – come together in love and friendship.
However, it’s important to remember that homophobia and legal and social oppression of the LGBTQ community continue to exist in our “land of the free.” In fact, the gay movement began in the 1950s because of the extremely repressive laws that penalized and ostracized those who dared to live outside of heterosexual norms.
With last week’s Black Pride events now over and with the District anticipating the kickoff of Capital Pride, LGBTQ Americans face an onslaught of anti-LGBTQ restrictions which target gender identity. These restrictions include bans on gender-affirming care and teacher constraints on LGBTQ topics, to transgender rights.
But what’s the big deal about LGBTQ rights?
After all, according to a Gallup poll conducted in 2022, only 7.2% of U.S. adults identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or “something other than heterosexual.” Even while other polls suggest that number may be slightly higher, closer to 10% according to Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), that’s still just a slice of America’s total adult population, which numbered 258.3 million according to the 2020 U.S. Census.
When we look back over the past 100 years, pride has always been about achieving equal rights and justice in America for LGBTQ individuals. However, even beyond LGBTQ pride, values taught from childhood teach the importance of individual pride.
Consider for a moment the songs that you learned during your first years of school or even when you first joined the Cub Scouts or Brownies. One of the more popular songs that children still learn and sing today is “Proud to Be Me.”
The song goes:
“I’m proud to be me, but I also see, you’re just as proud to be you.
We may look at things a bit differently, but lots of good people do.
It’s just human nature so why should I hate you, for being human as I?
We’ll get and we’ll give, and we’ll live and let live, and we’ll all get along if we try.
I’m proud to be me, but I also see, you’re just as proud to be you.
It’s true! You’re just as proud to be you.”
Such truth and wisdom come out of the mouth of babes.
It’s time to celebrate LGBTQ pride . . . and all Americans should attend the party.
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