I have been wondering: What is pride? Personal I have gone through quite a gowning experience over the last several years. I've grown to accept who I am and am happy with my sexual orientation. Yet, pride is such as strong word. My feelings are a lot more neutral. I am gay. It's just one of the thousands of pieces that make up who I am. While I'm happy with who I am, enjoy volunteer with GLBT groups, and love talking about GLBT issues, I still don't know what pride is. It just seems to strong for anything I feel regarding my sexual orientation. Perhaps my perception of pride is wrong. I'd be interested in hearing what you think pride is and what it means to you.
I have no stance on it as it is. But to me, I believe pride is what it means, being proud of who you are. It doesn't need to be taken to the extent of marching and parading around in underwear, but that could be a bonus However, I would never see myself doing that. But as long as you are happy with who you are and proud, I think that's pride =) Anyone can have pride. But if you goto the LGBT side of things, I think in my opinion, pride is accepting who you are, accepting those around you, and being able to live with who you are. Rainbows and all that, they are just symbols of pride, almost like any other flag, such as an American or Canadian flag.
Your feelings are pretty common. There's a lot of confusion - among gays AND straights - about what exactly there is to have "pride" in. I mean, we didn't do anything to "earn" our homosexuality. As you said, it's just a part of us, and just as people don't feel proud of being left- or right-handed, why should we be proud of our sexual orientation? The fact that people are having trouble grasping the concept is actually a very positive sign. Because it all boils down to one thing. Pride is the opposite of shame. For years, decades, centuries, to be gay (or bi, or otherly non-straight) was to be ashamed. It was not just considered "abnormal" - it was considered something to be ashamed of. Gay people would rather die (and some, in fact, did) rather than let their sexuality become known. And this wasn't a few cantankerous old folks on the outskirts of town who believed this. Everybody did. It was a given. Gays were freaks, and were outcasts in one way or another. The whole Gay Pride idea is a way to counteract those feelings of shame. The (now outdated) cry "We're here, we're queer, get used to it" was our way of saying "No, FUCK you. I will NOT be ashamed of being homosexual. There's NOTHING wrong with being homosexual." It was a statement of solidarity, a statement of defiance, a statement of (for lack of better word) pride. Some of you probably have seen me post this video here, but I think it's worth posting again. (I'll post the original lyrics, too, although he changes a few lines in the live clip.) Give them a quick read, watch the video if you'd like, and catch me at the tail end. [youtube]zHG2LJGfEdw[/youtube] The British Police are the best in the world I don't believe one of these stories I've heard About them raiding our pubs for no reason at all Lining the customers up by the wall Picking out people and knocking them down Resisting arrest as they're kicked on the ground Searching their houses and calling them queer I don't believe that sort of thing happens here Sing if you're glad to be gay Sing if you're happy that way Pictures of naked young women are fun In Titbits and Playboy, page three of The Sun There's no nudes in Gay News, our one magazine But they still find excuses to call it obscene Read how disgusting we are in the press The News of The World and the Sunday Express Molesters of children, corruptors of youth It's there in the paper, it must be the truth Sing if you're glad to be gay Sing if you're happy that way Don't try to kid us, but if you're discreet You're perfectly safe as you walk down the street You don't have to mince or make bitchy remarks To get beaten unconscious and left in the dark I had a friend who was gentle and short Got lonely one evening and went for a walk Queerbashers caught him and kicked in his teeth He was only hospitalised for a week Sing if you're glad to be gay Sing if you're happy that way So sit back and watch as they close all our clubs Arrest us for meeting and raid all our pubs Make sure your boyfriend's at least 21 So only your friends and your brothers get done Lie to your workmates, lie to your folks Put down the queens and tell anti-queer jokes Gay Lib's ridiculous, join their laughter 'The buggers are legal now, what more are they after?' Sing if you're glad to be gay Sing if you're happy that way Tom's not singing about "once upon a time" here. This isn't a "You know, it used to be pretty bad for homosexuals" song. He's singing about the present day - 1979. Before you were born, sure, but not by much. I was nine years old at the time, and that's pretty much how things were. The papers did consider homosexuality a perversion, and getting "queer bashed" was a very real fear. What Tom is doing right here, to me, epitomizes what Gay Pride is. He's being defiant. He's saying "You might say I'm a pervert, or beat me or my friends up, but I am NOT going to cower in the closet. I'm gay, you fuckers, and there's nothing wrong with that." Lex
I think it's not really right (and can be dangerous) to be proud of something you didn't achieve, but were born with or acquired through no action of your own. i think pride should be in one's own achievements and actions. For example. being proud that you came out as gay, not proud that you were born gay.
Pride is when if someone asks if you are gay, you reply with, "Damn straight!" As Lex said, it's the opposite of shame. And quite frankly, you can be proud of being gay. You are living life the way you see fit, even if society says that it's wrong. If that isn't a characteristic to be proud of, I don't know what is.
I think that's a little different. It's a description of being proud of your courage to be who you are despite the frowning eyes of many in society. It's not strictly speaking pride in actually being born gay.
Oh come on. Now, you are just being picky. Being out is a central part of gay pride. Being proud of being out of the closet is equivalent to being proud of being gay.
To me, pride is the absence of shame, not a dictionary definition granted. I didn't achieve being gay so don't see that I can take credit for it.
I agree with Pseudojim. I'm out and 'proud,' but proud more that I'm living my life as ME, and not hiding the facts about who I am.
To me, pride as the LGBT community uses it has always meant being proud of yourself and the things about you that make you whole, and naturally, since you're proud of these aspects of yourself, that you feel you shouldn't have to hide them. Of course, you don't have to be outwardly gay to be prideful, but to me at least, pride means being out of the closet, plain and simple. "Out and proud," as they say.
Hmm to me pride is being happy and unashamed of who you are not feeling second class because of who you love
