Back to Our Roots

‘Pride is a Protest!’ isn’t just a sentence that’s printed on tote bags. As Swantje Mohrbeck describes, it’s a sentence to remind everyone that Pride is more than just the big happy party it sometimes appears to be.

Part celebration, part protest, today Pride celebrates the LGBTQ+ community and reminds us of the injustices that are still being faced by its members. But caught between topics like corporate Pride, Pinkwashing and Pride being used as a tourist attraction, amongst other things, the everpresent question of what and who belongs at Pride can sometimes seem a bit daunting.

When we venture to explore the roots of Pride we can find an ever-changing image of what Pride should be. Pride has always reflected not only the diversity of the LGBTQ+ community but also the societal challenges and norms of the time during which it is taking place.

When we look at what is considered the beginning of Pride as we know it today - when activists in the United States chose to commemorate the Stonewall riots - we should take into account the prior decades of LGBTQ+ activism and organising, and the traditions of the so-called ‘Reminder Day Pickets’ that were held annually from 1965 to 1969 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Annually, on July 4, members of the Eastern Regional Conference of Homophile Organisations (ERCHO) would picket the Independence Hall to bring attention to the fact that civil rights were still denied to members of the LGBTQ+ community. After the Stonewall riots, the group proposed that instead of the annual Picket, a demonstration should be held in New York to commemorate the uprising. They also contacted other LGBTQ+ organisations of the time, proposing to show support nationwide. With attendees in the thousands this first gathering, under the name Christopher Street Liberation Day, exceeded everyone’s expectations.

Later, Foster Gunnison Jr, a member of ERCHO would remark on the positive outcome, saying: “Each of these 5,000 homosexuals had a new feeling of pride and selfconfidence, for that was one of the main purposes of the event - to commemorate, to demonstrate, but also to raise the consciences of participating homosexuals - to develop courage, and feelings of dignity and self-worth.”

This reflected back to the world that the act of standing up for yourself is unchangeably interwoven with experiencing the feeling of self-worth. Pride has always been many different things, and might very well mean something a little different to every single one of us, but no matter who we are, where we come from and what our story is I think none of us will be quick to forget our own first Pride.

I remember standing on a bridge overlooking the canal in Amsterdam, I remember the music growing louder and seeing boats decorated with rainbows, I remember strangers inviting me to join their celebration and I remember feeling like I truly belonged.

I think back also to a memory of waiting in line in front of a club in Athens, my friends already tipsy, and me trying to hide my nervousness. I had never been to a queer club before, but I had been to Pride, so this should be easy, right? I remember feeling reassured, thinking if I can go to Pride I can go anywhere, after all, I belong here.

Having recently moved here, this will be my first time celebrating Pride in Ireland and I couldn’t be more excited to find out more about all its different facets. Today I am not nervous anymore if I want to go to a queer club, I don’t worry what people might think about me, if I’m too much of this or too little of that- partly thanks to Pride.

So in the end no matter if protest, party, or a bit of both, I think the most important thing is that, as long as we can all find that space that makes us feel like we belong, be it on the dance floor, marching in the parade, on a stage, or watching from the sidelines, Pride is exactly what it was always meant to be: Empowering.