Proud of Pride?

Right now, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) groups in locations all over the world are gearing up for this year’s run of Pride events that are to be the party of all parties. Sydney, London, Delhi, Johannesburg, Tel Aviv, Madrid, Amsterdam, Cardiff to name but a few all hold their own version of these events.

Look around and you will find many definitions of what a Pride event is all about, the most common being a celebration of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender culture as well as being an opportunity for demonstration and protest for legal rights. Yet, despite the positive intentions Pride is still as divisive as it is inclusive.

There are a growing number of critics within the LGBT community that feel there is no longer a need for the events and actually, it does more damage than good. Even in the most unlikely of countries, LGBT people are achieving the equal rights that they deserve, and the number of countries backing down and removing laws against homosexuality is ever increasing. With this equality spreading, some may ask… Do we need an event that could be perceived as doing the opposite and segregating us further?

Every day, we, as a community, strive to achieve an equality that means that we are treated exactly like everybody else without discrimination in any way and then once a year (or more, if you, like me, want to travel to as many as humanly possible) we get together to parade through the streets and unintentionally point out how different we are, or at the very least, can be.

Of course, pride events are an opportunity to throw inhibitions away and party without fear of recriminations and so there are a large number of people who do exactly that. Some will don their best frock, wig and tiara, others will break out the leather. Some will be in the skimpiest of undies and others will squeeze themselves into….. well, the list just goes on doesn’t it? We all know that sub-cultures exist, to the point that there is a name for each, and Pride events allow those who live their life within that culture to be completely open and frank about it.

Naturally, it does have repercussions, even in the most liberal-minded of places. The world media is prepared to run stories about the Pride events, which is an achievement in itself. No longer is the world hiding away from the reality that LGBT people exist. How could they when pictures and videos of drag queens, bears and half-naked muscle men are so actively used in reporting? This, in turn, begs the question, what is the image of the LGBT people?

The media, now in support of the Pride events, give reports and show off the flamboyant and the more outlandish costumes that are on display but do they show the images of anyone not in costume? I daresay a lot of readers know exactly where this point is going. Certain areas of the media have harboured an obsession with sensationalism and in turn, the masses (not just those in the LGBT camp) are quite willing to give it to them. In LGBT culture this often means donning an even more extravagant costume and so the escalation continues and even more extreme images appear for the entire world to see. If you have a think about the types of articles you have seen related to Pride events it is clear that they are often non-representative of the LGBT community as a whole. At this point, it is worth noting that it doesn’t just happen with Pride, but with any form of protest, irrespective of sexuality. The more sensational it is, the more likely it is going to attract press coverage.

So now there is the possibility of a public perception that LGBT people ALL dress and behave in this extravagant and indulgent way that sets us apart from ‘straight’ culture. Some critics would go so far as to say that this kind of behaviour only fuels stereotypes and opens the LGBT community up to ridicule whilst others, go further, and believe that it could even hamper the efforts of those fighting for equality. On one hand, we have the critics who believe the pride events have become damaging and on the other, we have the activists who see this merely as misrepresentation in the media.

As clichéd as it may sound, it seems that the original message of Pride events has somehow been lost. Early ‘Pride’ events were certainly more about protest when Craig Rodwell first rallied support for the first pride parade with this statement and vision:

That the Annual Reminder, in order to be more relevant, reach a greater number of people, and encompass the ideas and ideals of the larger struggle in which we are engaged-that of our fundamental human rights-be moved both in time and location.
We propose that a demonstration be held annually on the last Saturday in June in New York City to commemorate the 1969 spontaneous demonstrations on Christopher Street and this demonstration be called CHRISTOPHER STREET LIBERATION DAY. No dress or age regulations shall be made for this demonstration.
We also propose that we contact Homophile organizations throughout the country and suggest that they hold parallel demonstrations on that day. We propose a nationwide show of support.


The fundamental ‘message’ here is the fight for equality. Over the following years there was more of this fighting, sometimes even in the literal sense. In some areas, such as Russia, this fight continues. In the UK, it has been almost forty years since 1972 and the first London Pride and we find that we have achieved a massive amount in the struggle for equality. Being LGBT has become a far less taboo issue here and in many other nations around the world. Laws have been created that protect us from discrimination and even institutionalise the ideal that homophobia is wrong. So here we are, wondering whether we even need Pride events anymore. The arguments for both viewpoints are equally compelling and neither perspective is wrong or right.

However, there is still a long way to go. The laws and protections are in place but are social attitudes changing? In the workplace, discrimination has been massively minimised for instance, but could I walk down the road hand in hand with my partner in my home town without having to deal with homophobic or even violent attack? I will be honest and say I don’t think we are quite in that place yet, but it is getting there. More and more children are brought up in this country with the mantra that being gay is ok. Of course, there are still those that completely disagree but those numbers are diminishing slowly.

It is the norm that a Pride event carries some kind of political agenda, some protest of an area within society where LGBT communities are still discriminated against. In recent years there has been protest over the rules relating to gay ‘marriage’ and same sex couples adopting. Again, some social attitudes and the laws that breed these attitudes are changing. Ultimately this makes homophobia far more difficult to perpetrate but it does still exist out there.

Perhaps then, we, as a community do need to focus on the message that Pride events are sending out and what we are campaigning for. It is all very well having the laws to protect us when we find ourselves a victim of homophobia but we also need to be campaigning to ensure that those homophobic incidents do not occur in the first place. This begs the question; Should we ditch the drag or should we be pushing the media to make sure they cover a bigger representation of the LGBT community?

For me, Pride has always been an opportunity for me to reflect on the homophobia that I experienced in my years growing up. A friend recently said it was like a big fingers up (trust me when I say that this is much nicer edited way of putting it) to all the people that inflicted homophobia on him and I certainly understand those sentiments. It is a time to be able to do the things I feel unable to do in public, like holding hands with my partner in the middle of the street. It is time to be out there and proud of the fact I am gay, regardless of what anyone else thinks. Over the last forty years people have fought long and hard to get us this far and to give us that voice which allows us to declare ‘I am gay’ without reproach and I thank those people for it. I thank them by attending Pride, by standing side by side with fellow members of the community and by showing that I am proud of what I am. I thank them by remembering all that has been achieved and everything that is left to attain.

If it just so happens that I am dressed in a full Cher (circa 1989) outfit then so be it!

CONVERSATION

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