Our Learng & Development Advisor, Josh Pollard, wr about his experienc of growg up as a gay person the midst of sectn 28, g out and why Pri is still need today.
Contents:
I’M A GAY MAN. HERE’S WHY I DON’T CELEBRATE PRI MONTH
”Advertisement - Contue Readg Below5 Glo Butler, Comedian Bridget Badore“What pri means to me is a celebratn of all of our gay and trans anctors that have fought for any of to walk the streets and even have an inty. ”Advertisement - Contue Readg Below7 Jam L, Head of Bs DevelopmentJam L“I am a gay Asian man and proud to be part of the LGBTQ+ muny. Pri is to feel whole bee as a gay Asian man, my culture and my sexualy are prent and regnized.
Gettg back to Hoton's song, I thk is so praised wh the gay muny not jt bee of the inic late diva herself, but bee of what says: 'I need a man who’ll take a chance, on a love that burns hot enough to last/I wanna dance wh somebody/feel the heat wh somebody who lov me.
The difference between what means to be a gay person on the Right and a gay person on the Left is beg far more profound than mere polil disagreement. Although there is much discsn about the legimacy of gay nservativ, we often don’t articulate why we reject our socially assigned muny, or how difficult that separatn n sometim be. The very ncept of “gay” rights and activism to force a sexual revolutn is the basis of today’s liberalism.
WHAT DO THE RABOW MEAN FOR GAYS?
Gays did not beg by askg for marriage or to be viewed as everyday cizens; the movement grew om social rejectn and tentnal unter-culture behavrs and worldviews. Beg gay was more than jt same-sex attractn, was a liftyle of rebelln and creativy. Like most gays my age, I have a set of mon social experienc, but I am told I am not entled to enjoy or appreciate them.
I grew up wh a generatn of gay movi, magaz, onle chat rooms, micians and, of urse, drag queens. But by rejectg what LGBT is today, I am expected to forfe all cultural experienc lkg me to the gay muny.
Much of how society views me is stctured around media imag of gay men, ually origatg om “Will and Grace, ” “Ellen, ” and RuPl. My iends, fay, workers, and those wh whom I engage onle hold a certa set of expectatns for me to happily fulfill as their gay iend.