Make sure to take your support offline, too, and attend a gay pride event, festival, or parade to physically support the community.
Participate in a Clubhouse talk promoting a project or business of a queer friend. Sign equality petitions and link to them on your Instagram, Linktree, or social media accounts. Show UpĪfter doing the work of listening and learning, use your resources to amplify queer life experiences. Read stories and educate yourself on queer terms and concepts-there are plenty of resources that help you understand the differences between gender and sex, expressions, and pronouns, and asking your LGBTQ+ friends to tell you can place an unnecessary burden on them.Ĭheck out The Trevor Project’s guide to being an ally for transgender and nonbinary youth and this guide from the Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians and Gays Organization to being an ally to lesbian, gay, and bisexual friends and family. If you are straight and/or cisgender, take time to evaluate where you have benefited from your orientation in contrast to the different life experienced by someone queer. It’s about listening, understanding, and owning up to your mistakes. Make sure to keep it brief-it’s not their job to educate you, or absolve you of any negative feelings. Listening is the best place to start.Ĭheck in with your gay friends and family and ask how you can support them during this time. It can be hard to understand the struggles others face unless we walk in their shoes-and while that isn’t always possible, there are ways to learn, understand, and show empathy to LGBTQ+ loved ones in a way that honors, lifts, and validates their experience.
Read on for ways to become a better ally and celebrate pride month with integrity. Straight people have the opportunity to be stronger allies and help advocate for this marginalized community-with the typical parade marching and rainbow-colored apparel associated with this month being just one facet. According to a study by the Human Rights Campaign, only 27% of gender-expansive youth reported that their families are very accepting of LGBT people. Fast-forward to 2021 and progress has been made, but the community still faces significant adversity, prejudices, and challenges. Since then, gay pride events take place in countries and cities around the world with a vision of improving the visibility and legal rights for LGBTQ people. Pride month is hosted in June to honor the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall uprising in New York City, a pivotal moment in the liberation of the LGBTQ+ community. Whether or not your city is covered in rainbow banners, hosting multiple parades, or if there’s only a faint sign of recognition-it’s a good time to remember why we’re celebrating in the first place. We’re halfway through Pride month, a celebration of the LGBTQ+ community and the impact they’ve had on the world.