Gay Pride Month 2021 latest news – Biden vows to protect LGBTQ rights with an official proclamation

WHY IS PRIDE MONTH CELEBRATED IN JUNE?

Pride Month is celebrated annually in support of the LBGTQ+ community, but why in June?

The month of June was chosen to commemorate the Stonewall riots that were held in New York City on June 28, 1969.

During these riots, the LBGT community banded together against a police raid at the Stonewall Inn.

This riot was the beginning of a movement to fight for LBGT rights in the United States.

MOST FAMOUS CELEBS THAT ARE PART OF THE LBGTQ+ COMMUNITY

Some of the celebrities who helped pave the way for creating mainstream normalcy of non-heterosexual identification were musician Troy Sivan and talk show host Ellen DeGeneres -- both of whom came out as gay and lesbian respectively.

Following suit in bringing gender identification into the public eye was "Juno's" Elliot Page and "Orange Is the New Black's" Laverne Cox who remain two of the most famous transgender individuals.

Then there are celebrities such as Sam Smith who brought non-binary gender identification into the spotlight when he came out in 2019.

TAYLOR SWIFT PUSHES CONGRESS TO PASS EQUALITY ACT

On the first day of Pride Month, singer, songwriter Taylor Swift took to Twitter to pronounce that she joins GLAAD in their push for the Equality Act.

GLAAD, which is a non-governmental media organization that speaks out against online defamation of the LGBTQ+ community has been outspoken on its support for the Equality Act.

The Equality Act is a bill that would protect sexual orientation and gender identification in already existing civil rights law.

WHAT DOES DEMISEXUAL MEAN?

LGBTQ+ encompasses a wide array of genders, sexualities, and identities. But what does someone who identifies as demisexual mean when they use that term?

Demisexual people can be gay, lesbian, straight, bisexual, pansexual, etc. They can identify themselves as any of these or have any gender identity. What makes demisexual people distinct is that they only feel sexual attraction to those with whom they feel a close bond.

No celebrity has famously come out as demisexual and Hollywood as a whole has been criticized for failing to portray demisexual characters in mainstream media.

MENTAL HEALTH RESOURCES FOR THE LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY

According to the Trevor Project, LGB youth are more than five times as likely to have attempted suicide in comparison to heterosexual youth.

For Pride Month, the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention proclaimed their support for LGBTQ+ youth in times of mental distress.

They claim "We are dedicated to preventing suicide in the LGBTQ community."

AS PRIDE CELEBRATION CONTINUE, SOME LOOK AT ROAD AHEAD

Despite all the progress made in the past few years for members of the LGBTQ+ community, some activists are taking Pride Month as a chance to look ahead at all the changes yet to be made.

One activist, writer, and cultural organizer Raquel Willis notes that there has yet to be a Pride Month celebrated with zero acts of violence committed against trans-people in the same year

In fact, in just the first four months of 2021, hate crimes against transgender people were up by 100%.

SESAME STREET CELEBRATES PRIDE MONTH

The popular children's educational show, Sesame Street, showed their support for Pride Month via Twitter, proclaiming, "We're celebrating love in all of its beautiful forms."

Sesame Street has celebrated LGBTQ+ Pride Month on their social media accounts since 2017.

Sesame Street has also featured diverse families within their show, at times showing families made up of households with two mothers or two fathers.

BIDEN SHOWS SUPPORT FOR PRIDE

President Biden tweeted on the first day of Pride in support of the LGBTQ+ community.

He said "Pride stands for courage, it stands for justice, and most of all it stands for love."

Biden called on Congress to pass the Equality Act during his presidential proclamation.

JOJO SIWA PROUD TO BE PART OF THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY

as a member of the LGBTQ+ community in January 2021.

She made a lengthy video on her Instagram where she opened up for the first time about her . 

began the clip: “Personally I have never, ever, ever been this happy before and it feels really awesome. 

“I've been happy for a little bit now. It's just so, so, so awesome. You guys probably haven't seen me this happy since I was on tour,” she exclaimed.

“I always believed that my person was just going to be my person. If that person happened to be a boy, great! 

“And if that person happened to be a girl, great! I think I'm just really happy. I think in life you know when you meet your person, I really do."

BACHELORETTE STAR APOLOGIZED TO LGBTQ COMMUNITY

Upcoming Bachelorette star after she was accused of "mocking" LGBTQ fans with a photo of herself kissing another woman.

The other woman was actually Casandra Suarez, one of the contestants who competed alongside her for ' heart in the last season of .

The photo showed the Bachelorette star being passionately kissed by Casandra on the neck while standing in front of a neon sign that read "Girls, girls, girls."

Along with the pic, she wrote: ";Whatever floats your boat."

Many wondered if the Bachelorette was coming out but others criticized her as they believed she was using the LGBTQ community for social media clicks or was queer-bating her audience.

HOW IS PRIDE MONTH MOST COMMONLY CELEBRATED?

Individuals, in and out of the LGBTQ+ community, celebrate Pride Month in various ways.

Most commonly you will see Pride Month celebrated through events such as parades, marches, rallies, commemorations, dance parties festivals, and community gatherings.

During such events, you are likely to see participants donned in rainbow gear, glitter, and holding gay pride flags.

MEANING OF BIGENDER

that can be translated as 'two genders' or 'double gender'.

People identifying as bigender experience two gender identities, identifying as both simultaneously or varying between each identity.

Bigender people can have any sexual preference.

Bigender people can use any pronouns they like. They can switch between she/her/hers, he/him/his and they/them/theirs.

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE STONEWALL RIOTS

New York City bar Stonewall Inn is a historic landmark and its legacy is remembered.

The are largely remembered as the beginning of a gay pride movement.

On June 27, 1969, six undercover police officers entered the bar and began to arrest employees.

During this time, police targeted gay bars for illegal liquor licenses.

They also targeted drag queens because masquerading as the opposite sex was a crime at the time. During the early hours of June 28, a riot broke out.

CELEBRITIES SUPPORTING PRIDE

Actor Will Poulter tweeted in support of Pride Month by saying "HAPPY PRIDE MONTH".

Poulter has always been vocal about his opinions. “I’m keen to develop as an activist and involve myself in charities and organisations. And with my acting, it’s important that the projects I do have a sociopolitical impact. I try to be conscious about the message. As a white, straight, middle-class male, I’m aware of things I take for granted.”

WHAT LGBTQ STANDS FOR

for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer - a term used to represent the wider community.

And the acronym LGBTQ+ is also used to incorporate various spectrums of sexuality and gender.

The acronym has been commonly used since the 1990s but is believed to have existed for much longer.

PRIDE FLAG'S BIG DEBUT

The original gay pride flag was seen in the San Francisco Gay Freedom Day Parade on June 25, 1978.

Around 30 volunteers helped to hand-dye and stitch the first two flags for the parade.

Demand increased after Harvey was assassinated on November 27, 1978, and the Paramount Flag Company started selling the seven-striped version - red, orange, yellow, green, turquoise, blue, and violet.

A CREATOR'S DREAM

Gilbert Baker from Kansas, USA, created the iconic flag.

He taught himself to sew after getting an honorable discharge from the army in 1970.

He met influential gay leader Harvey Milk in 1974, who challenged him to come up with a symbol for the gay community three years into their friendship.

Rumor has it that Gilbert got his inspiration for the flag from the famous Judy Garland song Over the Rainbow.

Judy was of course a popular gay icon, and some say Gilbert was inspired after the Stonewall riots that occurred days after her death.

LEGO SET HONORS PRIDE MONTH

The Lego Pride set is a new release by the toy giant to celebrate pride month in June.

The set is called "Everyone is Awesome" riffing off the song featured in The Lego Movie.

The set includes 346 pieces and 11 monochromatic figures.

The blocks piece together to create a rainbow flag, an icon of the LGBTQIA+ community.

Each included figure corresponds with one color of the rainbow and has its own individual hairstyle.

VIRTUAL PRIDE EVENTS THIS YEAR

Some of the virtual events taking place this year include Brooklyn Pride in which organizers said they will not have a parade this year but will host a week of live and virtual events starting June 7, . 

The Denver Pride Parade will also be virtual and  on DenverPride.org. Last year, the virtual event attracted over 400,000 viewers on social media and across broadcasts.

The Twin Cities Pride in Minneapolis is hosting the Ashley Rukes LGBTQ Pride Parade which will go virtual this year as part of COVID-19 related precautions, according to IGLTA.

RAINBOW FLAG MEANING

When the flag was first created, each color in the rainbow design had a different meaning:

• Hot pink – sex
• Red – life
• Orange – healing
• Yellow – sunlight
• Green – nature
• Turquoise – magic/art
• Indigo – serenity
• Violet – spirit

RAINBOW FLAG COLORS

The rainbow flag has become widely known as a symbol for the LGBT community.

It is typically made up of six stripes that appear in descending order from red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet, which is positioned horizontally.

Originally there were eight colors in the flag, including hot pink and turquoise, with each having its own meaning.

The amount was later reduced to due to limited availability of the hot pink fabric.

NEW YORK'S PRIDE PARADE

According to estimates, 5 million people attended New York City’s annual Pride march in 2019.

This year, the march will take place on Sunday, June 27. The event will be a mix of in-person and virtual events.

In 2020, New York City canceled the Pride parade due to the coronavirus pandemic. It was the first time in half a century.

Instead, a number of virtual events took place to mark the 50th anniversary of the first Pride march in the city.

PRIDE MONTH SIGNIFICANCE

Every June the LGBT community celebrates Pride in a number of different ways around the world.

Parades are a prominent feature of Pride month, and across the world cities host street parties, community events, poetry readings, public speaking, street festivals and educational sessions.

Pride is also used as an opportunity to peacefully protest and raise political awareness of current issues facing the LGBT community.

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE STONE WALL RIOTS

According to the  "With Stonewall, the  spread to LGBT people in New York and beyond, who for the first time found themselves part of a community.";

The riots sparked an understanding and outrage for how the LGBTQ+ communities were being targeted and treated.

It led to many more riots and protests, calling for equality for all people, despite sexuality or gender orientation.

On June 28, 1970, the first pride parade began at the Stonewall Inn in commemoration.

STONE WALL INN HISTORY

The Stonewall Inn is a bar located in Greenwich Village in .

Since its first opening in 1930, it has served as a safe haven for the  community.

During the 1960's and 70's, homosexual acts were illegal in every state except for 

Most gay bars including the Stonewall Inn were operated by the mafia who bribed police to look the other way.