The Importance of Pride

Amy-Louise, a first year history student at York Saint John University, going to Pride for the first time and the importance of Pride Month.

Pride Month (June) is celebrated to honour and commemorate the 1969 Stonewall Uprising. This became a major point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the United States and became a large scale celebration for those who identify within LGBTQIA+ communities world wide.

I had never been to a pride event before, coming from a smaller town in the south, the closest pride events were minimum of an hour away and it was never accessible for me. York Pride 2024 was my first time seeing a celebration for the community and being apart of the parade was major for me.

Pride will always be something that has strong importance to me, especially being part of the community as a bisexual woman, it was a place where so many were themselves freely and openly without judgement from others.

There was music, flags, dancing and clapping throughout the parade, the atmosphere was incredible!

The importance of Pride was and continues to be evident with each year where many businesses put out flags in the windows, where corporate companies make attempts for donations to a range of LGBTQIA+ charities as well as generally raising awareness to the community within York. The amount of people wearing their flags and celebrating their gender and sexual identities was such a wonderful sight to be able to witness, especially for the first time.

We walked from the York Minster to the Racecourse where there was live music, rides and market-style stalls waiting. Each stall had something different to sell between pins, shirts, flags and other small businesses brought the experience of Pride to a different level. The music being played ranged from ABBA tributes to drag shows, which added to an atmosphere for people to have fun and relax in the sun.

But why is Pride so important?

Pride events hold so much importance for a range of reasons. They bring together a community that faced large amounts of prejudice and discrimination and celebrate liberation for this community to be able to be themselves freely. Pride also strengthens the spirit of the LGBTQIA+ community and brings attention to where homosexuality and transgender identities are no longer criminalised or illegal. Unfortunately, this is not a reality for everyone. There is still one third of countries worldwide that criminalise homosexuality.

Pride is important to bring attention to those who remain silent on their gender and sexual expression and identity.

Pride is important to show the support and love that the LGBTQIA+ community has, despite the struggles and challenges faced every day by members of this community.

Pride Month was, and continues to be, incredibly important to the community that surrounds it. It showcases how society has grown and lessened the prejudices that surrounded homosexuality and transgender identities whilst celebrating and promoting ideals of being true to oneself and celebrating the differences between one another. Pride month has grown from the Stonewall Riot to a celebration and commemoration of the event whilst building constantly on individual pride to themselves. At Pride, you can be yourself and show your confidence in how you identify.

That will always be something incredibly important to me; having the confidence and bravery to be yourself, no matter what.