{"id":3321,"date":"2021-06-18T15:02:26","date_gmt":"2021-06-18T14:02:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/?p=3321"},"modified":"2021-06-18T15:02:26","modified_gmt":"2021-06-18T14:02:26","slug":"why-is-pride-important-to-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/2021\/06\/18\/why-is-pride-important-to-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Why is Pride important to you?"},"content":{"rendered":"

To mark\u00a0Pride Month<\/a><\/strong>, LGBTQ+ staff and student networks at University of Kent posed the question \u2018Why is Pride important to you?\u2019 Along with their answers, members submitted pictures that made them think of pride.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Why is Pride important to you?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cPride is important to be because it makes me feel visible, included, and part of something bigger\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThe LGBT+ community is one of the most diverse, all-embracing, inclusive communities on the planet. The + is very important. The ability to self-define and still be accepted is a fundamental part of this community, which is what makes it so very special. And it\u2019s not just about who\u2019s allowed in; it\u2019s about the support once you arrive. We look after each other, support each other, and use discrimination against us as fuel to support other minoritised groups\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cPride Month is when I feel closest to my community. Wherever I am, knowing that the core nature of this community is to protect its own and speak its truth gives me a sense of balance and belonging\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cPride comes in many different colours, and the LGBT+ community covers many different communities, some more marginalized than others\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI am not proud because I am gay \u2013 I was born gay; I\u2019m proud because I\u2019m not afraid any more\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I think of Pride, the first word that comes to me is \u2018freedom\u2019. Freedom of being who I am, how I look like and what I wear, what I believe in, and who I love. Unfortunately too many people around the world still don\u2019t have such freedoms, so having a month to celebrate and reflect on the meaning of Pride is still very important, even in 2021\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cPride is important to me because for the other 364 days of the year, I find it hard to be proud\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cAs an ally, Pride to me is a reminder of my privilege and that the rights of LGBT+ friends, family and colleagues are far from being won. Pride to me is an ongoing effort to make sure I do all I can to recognise and fight against inequality and to call out injustice, standing side by side with the LGBT+ community with respect and friendship\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cPride to me never used to mean much, apart from a nice day out and lots of rainbows. That was before I was out as a pansexual\/queer person. Now, on the other hand, pride is so incredibly important to me. It is important because it is genuinely the ONLY time and place where I can hold my partner\u2019s hand and not feel worried about harassment and stares. It is the ONLY place where I can feel like I am \u2018normal\u2019 and a part of the majority, and nobody will judge me. I don\u2019t think anyone can really understand this without experiencing years of \u2018coming out\u2019 in every possible social situation. It also makes me so happy to see younger generations at Pride festivals and in Pride month just being visible and being who they are, in a way that was never possible when I was that age. I enjoy being a role model and making sure that generations to come can feel proud to be who they are and know that they are not alone\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, Pride is a time to reflect on the progress we\u2019ve made thanks to the work of queer heroes, and recognise that there\u2019s still so much to do. I don\u2019t always feel comfortable expressing who I am, but Pride allows me to celebrate \u2013 even if it is in very small ways!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cTo me, Pride is radical. It is self-acceptance; it is rejecting the voices that define you as \u2018less than\u2019. It is a celebration AND a fight\u2026 and there are still lots to fight for. We can only be proud if we stand with and for one another.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

To mark\u00a0Pride Month, LGBTQ+ staff and student networks at University of Kent posed the question \u2018Why is Pride important to you?\u2019 Along with their answers, members submitted pictures that made them think of pride. Why is Pride important to you? … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":589,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3321"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/589"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3321"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3321\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3323,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3321\/revisions\/3323"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3321"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3321"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/lgbtstaff\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3321"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}