Pride, Pleasure & Protest

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably seen a ton of protests sparking around the world. Some of you may have even participated. But, do you totally understand why you’re seeing (or protesting) and how many of these injustices intersect? Let’s discuss the Black Lives Matter movement and how that intersects with the Pride movement.

You’ve probably seen this image on your social media circles. This is Marsha P Johnson. See below for her importance in Pride.

via biography.com

The Pride Movement began with the Stonewall uprising on June 28th, 1969. The catalyst of the 5 day protest was Marsha P. Johnson, a Black trans-woman who threw the first brick or shot glass. Another frontliner, Sylvia Rivera, was a veteran of  the Stonewall uprising and a prominent voice for the rights of people of color. The Pride Movement and the Black Lives Matter Movement happening now are similar in the sense that LGBTQIA+ people of color like Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, and Storme DeLarvarie made pride at its core an intersectional movement from the  beginning of time. ALL Black people and non-Black poc are the frontliners of movements that result in change. 

Fast forward to today. This is Alex Palacios:

image via insightnews.com

Alex Palacios is a candidate for the Minneapolis Ward 6 who organized an event near the location of where George Floyd was murdered affirming “All Black Lives Matter”. He said, “Without intersectionality there will be no progress, no forward movement. When we center intersectionality, when we agree that we are not a monolith, that we are multi-layered in thought and identity, then that's when no one is left behind.” 

The lesson we can take away here is that all injustices truly stem from this system built by and for white, straight men. Keep learning, keep fighting, keep supporting! Always remember, no justice, no peace.