In The Know on Celebrating Pride Year Round

Are you in the know on how to celebrate Pride year round? I'm Grace Hallen, Digital Marketing Specialist at Brandpoint, and on this edition of In The Know, I'll be talking about how you can stay involved with local LGBTQ+ organizations long after Pride Month wraps up.

Pride Month is coming to a close across the United States and here in the Twin Cities, it’s been amazing to watch communities come together to celebrate. We're lucky to house some amazing celebrations here in Minnesota, like the Twin Cities Pride Festival and Parade, which is the largest free pride parade in the nation. But our state also has lots of resources and events perfect for continuing the celebration and support all year long. Support for the LGBTQ+ community shouldn't drop off on June 30th. Here are a few upcoming pride festivals and LGBTQ+ events in Minnesota that will keep you In The Know on pride all year long:

• South Central Minnesota Pride Festival – Sep 9-10
• Duluth Superior Pride – Sep 3-4
• St. Cloud Pride Week – Sep 11-18
• MN POC LGBTQ Pride – Black Magic Weekend – A Summer of Soul – Aug 18-22
• Out for Democracy: The Pride at Work 2022 Quadrennial Convention – Aug 18-20

For more events, check out Pride Twin Cities. They post fun events like trivia nights and sports events.

Here is a list of other ways to stand with the LGBTQ+ community year round, inspired by this INC article:

• Be a better ally – there are many ways to be a better ally. In the workplace, being an ally might mean adding your pronouns to your email signature, addressing others with gender neutral pronouns, educating yourself and joining a resource group or your company’s D&I program.
• Attend community events – attending local LGBTQ+ events and continuing to educate yourself by connecting with others in the community is a great way to practice allyship.
• Support LGBTQ+ local business – it’s so important to support local businesses, and you can show your support by shopping at businesses owned by LGBTQ+ individuals. MeetMinneapolis has a great list of LGBTQ+ owned businesses that has options around the cities.
• Follow LGBTQ+ influencers – this helps you stay informed and exposes you to LGBTQ+ perspectives. Following people who give a voice to marginalized communities is extremely important.
• Listen to more voices – similar to the above, consuming forms of media that express unique perspectives goes a long way for continuing to educate yourself. This can be anything from TV shows, podcasts, movies, books, etc. that feature LGBTQ+ individuals and their stories.
• Dive into history – understand the importance of the Stonewall Riots and everything that’s happened to get us to where we are today. Pride is more than just parades and parties, so inform yourself on Pride Month's background and history.
• Donate or volunteer – show your support by donating your money or time to an LGBTQ+ nonprofit or organization. The Trevor Project is a great organization that provides mental health resources including 24/7 confidential suicide prevention and crisis intervention services for LGBTQ+ individuals.

Pride Month is a great reminder of how far we've come and a great reason to celebrate, but it's so important for us to continue supporting minority communities, including LGBTQ+ communities, all year long.

Thanks for reading and catch you next time on In The Know!

-Grace Hallen

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