Three members of the Habs Community discuss Pride Month.
Pride this year is definitely different. Our world has certainly been shaken around and turned upside down, which leads me to wonder where Pride celebrations fall. We can’t march, party or fund raise together, and due to a lack of customers, many big stores aren’t running Pride promotions, so Pride is not as visible as it was in previous years. So I find myself looking for Pride in the little things. A flag in a window here, someone’s rainbow manicure there, and (my personal favourite so far) a trans Pride mask. Some friends and I decided to attend virtual Pride, where speeches and slam poetry were performed, as well as a virtual drag show. Was it odd? Absolutely. But the spirit was there. And what a beautiful and enduring spirit it was. Pride is about love, acceptance and equality. This year has reminded me that we do not have to be physically together to be able to come together, be together, and feel together.
Maddy Smith, Girls’ School student
Pride month, as a closeted teen, means quite a lot. Despite my inability to openly participate, watching others who are out and proud can inspire confidence for me to be myself. Seeing parades, inclusivity and acceptance show to me and many others that being gay isn’t something to hide – but rather something to celebrate and be proud of. It’s emotionally moving to see the progression of Pride – starting as a riot for rights and ending up as a peaceful celebration. It highlights that as a community we have come into acceptance for being ourselves. And it brings comfort to know that one day, I’ll be able to come out of my shell and tell the world who I am – and who I love.
A Boys’ School student
The theme of this year’s Pride is ‘MeYouUsWe’, calling on each of us to reach out and understand one another, demanding us to be better allies within our own community and encouraging us to make an act of allyship. The lack of spacing between the words is symbolic of that sense of us all standing shoulder to shoulder together, something that has become even more important at a time when we cannot do so literally because of lockdown restrictions. It is also symbolic of the way our society is currently looking at ways to stand by and stand up for victims of prejudice and bigotry by supporting the Black Lives Matter campaign. I have spoken in assembly of my own sense of isolation growing up as a gay teenager in South Wales in the 1980s, and so this theme of solidarity and friendship between people who are different resonates strongly with me. Pride this year presents a paradox that despite the restrictions on so many of us being together in person, we can be together in spirit and in our determination to understand and support each other and to celebrate and be proud of our differences.
Mr James-Robbins, Senior Deputy Head, Haberdashers’ Aske’s School for Girls
