It’s no secret that the LGBTQ+ community has been one of the most oppressed groups in the history of the United States and beyond. While efforts in acceptance and education have massively improved within the last several decades, there is still much to be done for equality, protection and rights for members of the community. This Pride Month, make the effort to educate yourself and actively find ways to support the LGBTQ+ community.
Below is our starting guide to help you begin:
The History of Pride Month
June was chosen in honor of the 1969 anniversary of the Stonewall riots, a series of protests which many consider the turning point of the gay liberation movement and the fight for LGBTQ+ rights in the United States. The riots first began at the Stonewall Inn, a gay bar in New York’s Greenwich Village, on June 28th and lasted through July 3rd.
In 1970, on the one-year anniversary, Pride marches were held across U.S. cities as an act of awareness for the rights of LGBTQ+ communities and have continued in some form every year since. In June of 1999, former President Bill Clinton declared June as “Gay and Lesbian Pride Month,” which was expanded to include the entire LGBTQ+ community by former President Barack Obama in 2011. June was chosen to honor the anniversary of the Stonewall riots, but it’s also the month of several other key dates within the LGBTQ+ community.
These include:
- June 1st: LGBTQ+ Families Day
- June 12th: Pulse Remembrance Day
- June 15th: Anniversary of the Supreme Court Bostock ruling
- June 26th: Anniversary of the legalization of gay marriage in the United States
Pride Month is often celebrated through parades, marches, gatherings and workshops centered on recognizing, advocating for and educating others on the LGBTQ+ community and their needs.
Ways to Show Support
Whether you identify as LGBTQ+ or are an ally for the community, one of the best ways that you can show your support this month is by donating to organizations that are actively working towards the rights and well-being of LGBTQ+ people. These nonprofits not only provide resources to those in the queer community, but are a great educational tool for families, friends and allies. Some credible organizations to consider include:
- The Trevor Project: Suicide prevention efforts and supportive programs for LGBTQ+ youth
- American Civil Liberties Union: Works in legislature and courtrooms for LGBTQ+ equality
- Lambada Legal: Legal representation for cases protecting the rights of the LGBTQ+ community
- OutRight Action International: Global protections for the LGBTQ+ community
- Point Foundation: LGBTQ+ scholarship fund
- NGLCC: Supports queer-owned businesses and business people.
- GLAAD: Media coverage surrounding the LGBTQ+ community
Another great way to show support is to shop from queer-owned small businesses. An easy way to do this is to swap at least one purchase that you would usually make with a chain retailor with an LGBTQ+–owned business. Many of these companies can complete transactions online and specialize in everything from clothing, food and furniture to health care, event planning and home improvement.
Queer Media to Consider
Television, film and books are some of the best resources to better understand topics surrounding the LGBTQ+ community. These resources are even more impactful and prone to accuracy when they are written, produced and star creatives that are LGBTQ+ themselves. Supporting queer creatives is also a great way to financially give back.
Some of the most popular media to consider this month include:
- Documentaries and Bio-Pics
- Paris is Burning (Documentary, 1990)
- Pride (Documentary series, 2021)
- Disclosure (Documentary, 2020)
- Intersexion (Documentary, 2012)
- Milk (Bio-pic, 2008)
- Rustin (Bio-pic, 2023)
- Fictional Movies and Television Shows
- Heartstopper (Television series, 2022- Present)
- Carol (Historical drama, 2015)
- But I’m a Cheerleader (Comedy, 1999)
- Schitt’s Creek (Television series, 2015-2020)
- Pose (Television series, 2018-2021)
- Saving Face (Rom-com, 2004)
- Books
- Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg
- Yes, You are Trans Enough by Mia Violet
- This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone
- Tomboyland by Melissa Faliveno
- The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith
- Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin
View more articles for the LGBTQ+ Community here.
