Pride Month: Five things to know about the celebration

In South Africa Pride Month is celebrated in October, but in many other countries the LGBTQIA+ community is celebrated throughout June.

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1. WHY PRIDE MONTH IS CELEBRATED IN JUNE IN THE US

June is dedicated to celebrating freedom, culture and support of LGBTQIA+ rights. The reason Pride Month is celebrated in June is because of the Stonewall Riots that broke out in Greenwich Village, in New York City on 28 June 1969.

2. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE STONEWALL RIOTS

The Stonewall Riots happened after the police raided one of the most popular gay clubs in New York city which led to the regulars protesting. The riots went on for three days with gay rights movements being formed such as the Gay Liberation Front and the Gay Activists Alliance.

A year after the Stonewall riots, the nations first Gay Pride matches were held. In 2016, the area around the Stonewall Inn was designated a national monument.

Most pride events take place during the month of June across the world. Pride month includes all members of the LGBTQIA+ community which is an acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer. This also includes gender fluid people or those whose gender identity shifts over time or depending on the situation.

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3. WHY ‘PRIDE’?

The term pride according to CNN is credited to a bisexual New York activist nicknamed the “Mother of Pride”. “Mother of Pride” organised the first Pride parade to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the Stonewall uprising.

4. WHY A RAINBOW FLAG FOR PRIDE?

The rainbow flag dates back to 1978 when artist Gilbert Baker was commissioned by San Francisco city supervisor Harvey Milk, one of the first openly gay elected officials in the United States (US) to make a flag for the upcoming Pride celebrations.

“Baker, a prominent gay rights activist, gave a nod to the stripes of the American flag but drew inspiration from the rainbow to reflect the many groups within the gay community.

A subset of flags represent other sexualities on the spectrum, such as bisexual, pansexual and asexual,” according to CNN.

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5. WHO ARE THE MAJOR FIGURES INVOLVED?

• According to People, Marsha P Johnson, a black transgender woman,  is said to be credited with throwing the first punch at the Stonewall Inn. She passed away in 1992 just at 46 years old after the police had found her body in the Hudson River.
• Sylvia Rivera was a drag queen who fought alongside Marsha P Johnson in the Stonewall riots. She created Street Transvestite Action revolutionaries (STAR) to help house homeless members of the LGBTQIA+ community and continued to advocate for transgender rights until her death in 2002.

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