How to celebrate Pride month
June is the time to celebrate our society's recognition and inclusivity of the LGBTQIA+ community! There's a multitude of ways to show your support, even if it's quietly.
Colours! Rainbows! Festivals and fun events!
While Pride month can be a great time of togetherness, celebrating might not be possible for some people due to a number of personal circumstances. However, showing your support for the LGBTQIA+ does not have to be for you to prove to the world that you're an ally, it can be private and known only to you. After all, your physical and mental wellbeing is the most important thing to take care of!
Here's a few different, subtle ways you can show your support for the LGBTQIA+ community for yourself, friends or family:
Supporting small businesses: Have a look and see what small businesses are donating to LGBTQIA+ charities during the month and what content is produced by members of the community (but be careful of rainbow washing!).
Hidden rainbows: It could be a pin, an iron-on patch, something embroidered on the inside of clothing or even hidden socks! It doesn't have to be all the colours of the rainbow either; there's a great number of colour variations representing different identities of the community that you could sport instead!
Donate/Watch to donate: Not everyone has the financial capacity to make a generous donation to a good cause, but there are many 'watch do donate' videos on Youtube that can still let you contribute to the revenue. All it takes is playing the video and not skipping the ads! But remember to check that it's legit and going to a certified organization, first!
Social media sharing: Again, not everyone might be able to do this, but it's a good opportunity to raise awareness and circulate information online. The key is for people to become educated on the topic and have a greater understanding and perspective of what the LGBTQIA+ community is all about!
Learn about the community: I was amazed to learn about old symbols that once represented the community in history, or that there was a cant language developed for members of the community, too (I'm a linguistics student so of course I loved this)! What a wonderful way to discover where the community has come from and how it has evolved to where it is today.
Pride month is indeed the time for celebration, support and awareness of people identifying as LGBTQIA+ folk. You don't have to be part of the community to be involved, either - I have many friends who are part of the community, and I want to do my part in showing my love and support for who they are! After all, what's important to my friends is important to me, too.