So now that it's June, I need to say something, and people need to listen. Kinda long but extremely important post ahead. Possible general trigger warnings too.
Most people are probably expecting me to wish you all a "happy pride month", right? Of course you're allowed to expect that, of course you're allowed to want that, but here's the reality. Pride is a complicated thing if we're really being honest with ourselves. Can we agree? I'm not gonna say it's smoke and mirrors, because it's not entirely so, but also. It's not that way in every aspect about it, it's not that way all the time. Pride is such a beautiful thing to have and to be a part of, I'm not disagreeing, I'm not saying this to be mean, I'm not saying this to scare you, I'm just telling you to listen.
The reality right now is that things are kinda fucking scary. I'm gonna talk about particularly in the US, because that's where I am and where I can talk about my own experiences from, but god knows this isn't the only place.
It's not like people in the LGBTQ community don't already have enough to deal with, not like we're not already dealing with our own struggles and fears. Be that the idea of coming out, relationship with faith, coming to terms with any kind of reality, relationship with yourself, what have you. On top of all of it, we have to deal with the government. The government who wants to kill is. The government who is killing is. This country, this world, is actively trying to eliminate LGBTQ people and any evidence of us. All of us. But especially the trans community. And especially those in the trans community and are not white.
Our fuckass president is literally murdering us. Is he himself taking direct part in any killings? Is he himself pulling the trigger? Is he himself holding the knife? Is he himself lacing any pills or leaving us to bleed out or tying the noose? Maybe not. But he is actively hunting us, there is a legitimate fucking genocide going on, and if anything even slightly happens to any of his attack dogs, any of his followers, then he just cuts the rope and sends another one loose without even a goddamn breath of hesitation and doubt. And there are not nearly enough people who give a fuck, even less so who actively do anything, not nearly enough people who care about any of this.
Pride is supposed to be something that makes you feel welcome, something that makes you feel included, something that makes you feel safe. It is supposed to be happy and beautiful. And it is, so much of it is. Have we taken so many steps forward with so many things? Absolutely. But we've also taken a whole fucking lot of steps back. There's so much good, there's so much beauty, there's so much hope. But there is also so much hate, and so much regressing, and so much despair.
I have been to pride events in any sort only a few times in my life. And it was some of the best moments I've ever had. I felt welcome, I felt safe, I felt seen. I've met people who aren't just online, I've felt comfortable enough to do things like wear my binder or say someone fem presenting looks nice, I've been genuinely emotional because I'm so happy. But it's a little bit fucking hard to do any of that and feel happy all the time when this is what's going on. I don't ever plan on driving anyway, but I don't feel like I could ever get my license because my name and gender are illegal. I have never felt safe enough to try to go in the opposite public bathroom. I do not feel like I can go to a pride event anytime soon even though god I want too because I am terrified. I am afraid to be alive in a world that loudly and unabashedly does not want any part of me to exist. Not by sometimes even our own community, not by doctors, not by the government, not by Trump, not by the world.
Guess what, fuckers? We're not going anywhere. We have been here this whole time and we always will be. Hate to break it to you. Even when you try to keep us in boxes, even when you try to lock our cages, even when you make us jump through every hoop. We are still fucking here. We are here and we are angry and we are goddamn exhausted.
I encourage people to reblog this, reblog more than once if you want even, I don't care. You have my permission to screenshot this and share it other places so more people see it if you'd like. Don't just talk about this in June too, this is not just a thing during this month, we need people to listen to us all year. Give as many people the chance to see this as they can. LGBTQ or not, just spread the word. Please. Because this is the reality. You are allowed to be mad, you are allowed to be tired, you are allowed to be upset. Whether you're part of this or not.
So yeah, happy pride month, here we go again.
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