Pride Month, Blackness and Identity

Identity is one of the most important things we have as humans, so the literal function of Pride month makes my heart smile. The idea that people get a chance to deeply celebrate a part of their identity unapologetically and that others get to support is dope, you know, like how we all feel in February for Black history month. LGBTQIA+ is not a monolith but representation and creating space is for evergreen and Pride month allows for that for each person, individually and collectively.

According to my research, Pride month is not perfect and by research, I mean asking Black gay and lesbian friends about stuff. Most of the Pride Month events we’re seeing aren’t for the Blacks and LGBTQIA+ experiences are lumped together in name, but lived separately in life. I say this to point out that everything isn’t for everyone, so when you’re sharing Pride events know who the audience is.

There’s definitely people doing great work for the Black LGBTQIA+ communities, but like everything else for Black people, there’s a need for more. More frequency, more variety, more inclusive and exclusive experiences and that requires more people to create spaces. One of my fondest DC memories when I moved back in 2015, was Friday nights at a small bar called Darnell’s. If you ever went, you know the vibes, it was a wonderful dive bar party with the most diverse array of people in the room, with the most fabulous often being Darnell himself and it was great. It’s since closed, but we need more people like Darnell, that unapologetically create spaces.