Love and let love
- coffee in a teacup
- Jul 10, 2019
- 4 min read
Wednesday begins with a coffee in a teacup, as per usual, but today I discover the news of a wonderful new law, which is long overdue, but finally in place.
Pride month may have come and gone, but being proud of yourself, your sexuality and your gender is something that should continue throughout the 365 days of the year. London saw it’s 47th Pride parade on Saturday. Admittedly, I have not been to a Pride parade in my lifetime, despite whole-heartedly supporting the LGBTQ+ community. However, I have been keeping up with all the shenanigans, so to make up for my absence, I wanted to contribute support in my own little way; a blog.
The rainbow flag certainly flew high over the weekend, and the parade was said to have seen approximately 1.5 million marchers and participants.
But how did Pride come to be?
The event wasn’t always such a bright and colourful celebration like it is in recent times.
Rewind to June, 1969. Police would often raid the Stonewall Inn, a popular gay club in downtown Manhattan. Yet one night, the patrons started a protest which would go on to create a historical movement across the Globe.
The riot was a political stand for gay rights, but it ignited a flame which would burn bright for the entire LGBTQ+ community.
The next year, the riot was commemorated with the Christopher Street Liberation Day (CSLD) March. The march wasn’t quite like the parades we see today, as there were “no floats, no music, no boys in briefs” - as described by Fred Sargeant, who explained to Village Voice what it was like to be at the CSLD March in 1970. They simply marched, held signs and chanted,
“Say it clear, say it loud. Gay is good, gay is proud.”
From then on, Pride parades became an annual celebration internationally, and London saw its first march in 1972.
Pride has certainly created waves in society, and the community has gone on to expand and welcome all the variations of sexualities and gender identities.
Yet here we are, 50 years on since the Stonewall riots, with massive progress been made, yet we’re still seeing some horrific hate crimes being committed against the LGBTQ+ community.
Recently in the news, we saw a lesbian couple viciously attacked by a group of young men after refusing to kiss in front of them. Chris and Melania were horrifically beaten, and left feeling very shaken up from the experience. However, when BBC News asked whether they'd be scared to openly display affection towards one another in the future, Chris said
"I am not scared about being visibly queer. If anything, you should do it more."
Not only that, but statistics from the Stonewall organisation show:
One in five LGBTQ+ people have experienced a hate crime or incident because of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity in the last 12 months.
Two in five trans people have experienced a hate crime or incident because of their gender identity in the last 12 months.
Four in five anti-LGBT hate crimes and incidents go unreported, with younger LGBT people particularly reluctant to go to the police.
But this is not a time to be afraid.
This a time to be proud and to stand strong.
Chloe kindly put forward a few words to me in regards to her bisexuality:
“I was lucky enough to know from a young age that I was bisexual. I didn’t know what it was called, but I had the same feelings towards boys as I did girls. I was raised genderneutral and never had heterosexuality pushed upon me as a child. In secondary school, I asked a friend if I was weird and he told me quite simply that I was weird, but not because of my sexuality. I have a great support network in the LGBTQ+ community and have found my chosen family within it. It’s an important community and a strong one, too. Whenever I’ve felt pushed out because of my sexuality, I can turn to my chosen family and they’re there in a heartbeat to remind me to ignore the haters and keep being myself.”
The representation of LGBTQ+ people in the media is constantly evolving and support is flooding in from several influential figures and popular platforms.
Last week, Little Mix released their Pride version of the ‘Bounce Back’ music video, in which we see the pop group dancing around with some fabulous drag queens. Not only that, but with the success of reality shows such as RuPaul’s Drag Race, and the rise of effeminate YouTubers including Jeffrey Star, men wearing makeup and dressing in stereotypically feminine styles are showing the world how to be fearlessly yourself.
Caitlyn Jenner came out as a trans woman back in 2015, encouraging several trans people to do the same. Though the Kardashians/Jenners are not everybody’s favourite family, you can’t deny the positive effect Caitlyn’s actions and courage had within the community and society in general.
Popular Netflix series, Orange is the New Black, famously depicts homosexuality in the show, and animation series, Adventure Time, finally confirmed the suspicion behind the relationship of Marceline and the Bubblegum Princess.
Yet it’s not just popular culture; laws are changing, too.
Yes, the article I was reading this morning informed me that same-sex marriage, for the first time, is finally legal within every area of the UK.
As for the rest of the world? It’s a work in progress.
The strength, courage and determination of the LBGTQ+ community is something to admire, and their history is inspirational.
We must not forget those who were shamed, but not ashamed. Those who lost their lives, living it the way they were destined to. Those who fought to the end, but were never defeated.
No matter what your president, prime minister or preacher may believe,
Live and let live,
Love and let love.
10.July.2019 Wednesday
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