Straight pride? Oy vey....

[conuly]

I think this is all a result of confusing and conflating two different definitions of the word "pride".

The first has to do with a sense of accomplishment. I am proud to have gotten 3 As and an A- last summer. I am proud to have gone to Stuy (even though I didn't stay there).

The second has to do with simply not being ashamed. That's what people mean they have gay pride, or black pride, or autistic pride. They haven't accomplished any of these things, they simply mean that they aren't ashamed of them and don't wish to change them. They have to say that they're proud because they're all minorities. Mainstream culture would generally prefer that these people change, or pretend to change, or act as though they've changed. Mainstream culture encourages people to be ashamed of things they cannot help, if those things make them different. Mainstream culture kinda sucks, doesn't it?

Anyway, as I was saying, you can't really use "pride" in a sense of "not being ashamed" unless you're a minority. People who identify as straight really aren't a minority, and make all the laws, and therefore don't get a parade. Sorry, duckies.

Comments

[targaff.livejournal.com]

Just setting aside the majority of the post for a moment, I have to say that I do have an issue with parades, because I never really saw them as anything other than counterproductive. Yes, they're (basically) a celebration of not being ashamed and of being proud in who you are; but at the same time, it's a celebration of not being the "alleged" norm - it highlights the fact of being different and ultimately reinforces the isolation of that group as apart from that perceived norm. And it's also an effective way to polarise the issue for those who are to the opposite side of the middle ground on the matter by getting in their faces.

I'm not saying that parades don't serve a useful purpose, particularly in the pride aspect you're talking about; but I do find that they're as much a hindrance as a help in furthering the acceptance of those minorities by the world at large.

[leora.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure how much they help with acceptance, but I think they may serve a useful function in helping people still in the closet realize that they're not alone and being out is a possibility. That having a chance for happiness rather than hiding in misery for your entire life is a possibility. And some people really need that.

[targaff.livejournal.com]

*nod* I don't disagree, and certainly promoting an "it's okay to be [insert minority here]" message is one aspect of that useful purpose I mentioned. I'm just not at all convinced that the benefits outweigh the negative effects.

[wakasplat.livejournal.com]

I have a friend who wrote an article that included a section about a pride parade. It ended: "Outside the window we can see fireworks. I think of the scar on my forearm from the beating I received in a mental ward in 1971. I was incarcerated there for "maladjustment to the feminine role." Now I'm seeing a fireworks display over Manhattan in celebration of gay pride. I choke back tears." I think that pretty much sums up the importance of those things.

[conuly]

*hugs your friend via you*

[xmorningxrosex.livejournal.com]

I think parades do promote acceptance. Say you're in a small town of 10,000 people. You go to the bars, you sit in class, etc. but still don't think there's anyone there other than straight people...or maybe a couple really obviously gay people. So you think that gay people are in the minority. It's not 10% of the population, it's just those few obviously gay ones. But then your town throws a LGBTQ pride parade. You see a LOT of people there. Some are just supporters sure, but you realize that the girl sitting next to you in Math is there, and so is your science teacher. and *gasp* you never would have suspected them of teh gay!!1 I think it shows that LGBTQ people can be all types, and that they're everywhere - small towns, religious campuses, professional fields, sitting right next to you. And I think that can be eye-opening for some. "Oh, maybe I better not assume everyone here is straight...and maybe I should stop calling people fags because I don't want to piss people off." type of thing. It shows that being non-hetero is a normal thing, many people are, and just because they're into someone of their own gender doesn't mean they can't be someone you know or admire or deserve less rights.

I hope I explained that okay...