Written by Shayla, PPCWNY Volunteer
I had never attended a pride parade until this summer, and I experienced what it was like to attend multiple parades with an influential organization — Planned Parenthood.
As a young, bi-racial, woman, and someone who identifies as bisexual I am constantly thinking about many aspects of my identity, and how others see me. What is special about Pride is that it celebrates an invisible part of a marginalized group of people. There are no questions asked. You can be there as an ally, or as part of the community, and everyone is simply happy to be there. While judgments can be made based on characteristics such as race, sexuality is something that you have to choose to share with someone. Personally, partly because it can’t be seen, it is something I don’t always think about, especially considering it is another aspect of my identity that makes me less privileged. However, during the parade your sexuality/gender becomes something you can truly be proud of, hence the name. Not only that, but you can witness the joy that it brings to others.
Pride is really a celebration of self-expression. Most days I don’t walk around stating that I am bisexual. People can think what they want based on arbitrary ideas about dress and behavior, but whether I want to let others know is up to me. Many people hide their sexuality depending on the circumstance. Personally, it is not something I hide, but it is also not something I get to express on a day to day basis. Pride allows everyone to acknowledge the existence of a prominent community, and there is still individual choice in expression. You don’t have to identify with any of the letters in LGBTQ+ on the day, or label yourself, but you can if you want to. That’s the beauty of Pride, it is a time to recognize all.
As I’ve learned about the concept of intersectionality, we can understand it as different aspects of a person’s identity that are inextricable from each other. Yes I am a bi-racial, bi-sexual woman.. None of these traits can be looked at individually. I am just as much one as I am the others. And again, sexuality being a part of identity you can’t see, makes Pride that much more powerful. Pride allows a group of people to share a part of who they are that is often surrounded by tension, hate, and danger. Because of this, it is easy to naturally want to hide your sexuality/gender expression, but on the day of the parade it is a collective choice. Everyone is celebrating and the feeling is “hey I see you, and it is okay.” That’s the general emotion that I felt across all three parades. It’s bigger than sexual orientation. I get this feeling of simply, “be who you are, express yourself, and celebrate who you are.” This is especially powerful to me as a young, black woman.
Attending the events with Planned Parenthood in Buffalo, Syracuse, and Rochester was one of the most uplifting experiences I have ever been a part of. We had people thanking the organization for their work, tears of joy and relief, and across the board people cheered louder for us than surrounding floats. It was a reminder of all of the good there is out there, and all of the support that exists for this important organization. If anything, it made me want to be a part of something as influential and necessary as Planned Parenthood. It was an incredible experience to be affiliated with an organization whose slogan is “Care. No matter what.” That perfectly emulates the idea of a successful Pride event. We simply need to see each other, and care about each other. It’s about empathy and understanding, whoever you are, whatever views you have, and however you choose to express yourself, we can all celebrate our individual selves and experiences together.
