OrphanPip
Pride or no Pride?
by , 05-22-2010 at 08:05 PM (1847 Views)
There is an obvious running theme throughout my blog post, which is gay issues. Well today's blog is no different.
So, I recently had a little conversation with a friend where I got a little uppity about the use of the word faggot. My friend responded that I shouldn't worry about the use of the word because I'm "just gay" and not "one of those faggots." Of course, I asked what the difference was. Apparently, I'm not a faggot because I don't "wear sparkingly underpants while marching in 'Gay Pride' parades" and don't "act like I think I should be treated like a God."
This isn't the first time I've encountered antagonism against Gay Pride festivities and this apparent view that gays consider themselves superior to others (I've actually heard this from Drizzy on the forum lol). While the prevailing topic in my blogs do nothing to discredit the notion that gays are self-absorbed, I think there is a great deal of ignorance surrounding people's perception of Gay Pride. Now, I don't think anyone is at fault for this. After all, what does the media ever show but men in drag dancing on floats. I hope to change people's perception of these celebrations by discussing the history of Pride celebrations, what it means today, and why I think the celebrations are an important part of LGBT culture.
The history of Pride parades goes back to the Stonewall Riots, in New York City during June of 1969. These riots marked the first time a major number of LGBT physically resisted police. A year after the event a politically motivated march was held to commemorate this important event. Similar commemorations were made in San Francisco, and eventually all over the USA. The early marches were often called Gay Liberation marches or Gay Freedom marches, they were rallying points for the gay community in resistance to the very real legal oppression that existed at the time. As a result of the subversive nature of these marches, radical aspects of the gay community, like overt sexuality and drag, were often highlighted.
Over the years, the marches in Canada, the USA, and Western Europe have lost much of their political activism colour. The need to fight against police violence and obscenity trials has subsided. Instead of being about "liberation" they changed into cultural celebrations. Gay Pride has prevailed as the most common name for these celebrations, which are still often held on the same day as the Stonewall Riots or near by in June.
The celebration of the subversive, and rather "colourful," aspects of gay culture continue to be an important part of the marches. Political activism also remains an important aspect, often with memorial floats for AIDS victims and political activism still included. The celebrations have taken on a form closer to the light hearted celebrations of St. Patrick's, Canada Day, or the 4th of July in the US.
Now, why are Pride celebrations important? Apart from the money the larger celebrations bring in from tourism. The parades are a symbol of freedom in our society, as long as the parades continue it is a sign that sexual freedom exists. The attempts at pride parades in Russia are forcefully shut down by the police, in many countries they are plagued by protest and sometimes violent resistance, several cities and countries in the less than free world explicitly ban them. Even if you're like me and don't particularly enjoy flashy floats blasting dance music, it's the fact that our societies allows these kinds of celebrations that make them great.
In many places where gay rights are only just emerging, these celebrations are still rallying points for resistance. In the West, they are a cultural celebration that commemorates a time when being openly gay wasn't possible, so once a year the community gets a little extra-gay to remind ourselves of that time.
I hope this helps people who think that the celebrations are just about gays having a big party for no reason or being "Proud" about being better than others.
Edit: I promise my next blog will be about hockey, as soon as the playoffs are over for Montreal.
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