Pride + Hope

“Hope is a passion for the possible.”

- S?ren Kierkegaard

Dear Ones:

I had an interesting conversation with a well-meaning ally recently. They asked me if I was excited that it was Pride Month. They were curious about my perspective as a queer person on the parades and the corporate sponsorships and an entire month designed to celebrate my community. Prior to that conversation, I don’t know that anyone ever asked my opinion about Pride. I suppose it was just assumed that I’d be waving rainbows and singing Cher for the entirety of June.?

But the truth is - I’m not feeling particularly exuberant. I’m grateful for the hard fought battles that have earned me the rights I enjoy today. I celebrate the activists that demanded that people like me are viewed as equal under the law. But around the world, the outlook for LGBTQ+ individuals is not particularly rosy:?

• 67 countries still have national laws that criminalize same-sex relations between consenting adults

• Here in the United States, the ACLU is tracking 516 bills written to strip LGBTQ+ people of rights.

• According to research out of UCLA, most LGBTQ+ employees in the United States have experienced workplace harassment due to their identity.

While the current reality may be far from rainbows and Cher songs, I would advocate that one of the most powerful things we can do as a community of LGBTQ+ individuals and Allies is to have hope.??

Hope is not just an abstract concept - a wish and prayer for things to get better. Academics have been studying hope for over thirty years and have directly correlated the feeling of hope with a sense of meaning, well-being, and personal/professional success. As it turns out, hope matters. Research into hope started with Snyder’s Hope Theory in the early 1990s. Snyder and his colleagues believed that hope was comprised of two components:

• WayPower: This refers to your ability to think of multiple pathways or routes to achieve your goals. It's about brainstorming different options and having a flexible approach.
• WillPower: This is your agency thinking, the belief in your own ability to take action and follow through on those plans. It's the motivation and determination that fuels your journey.

Modern researchers have added two more powers to the mix:

• WePower: This focuses on the importance of social connections. It's the belief that you can tap into resources from your social network, like friends, family, or mentors, for support and encouragement as you pursue your goals.

• WhyPower: This argues that finding meaning and purpose in your goals (having a strong "Why") ignites goal-directed energy and motivation, boosting hope. This sense of purpose is both individualistic (serving your own sense of direction) and potentially contributes to the greater good.

So why all this academic theorizing in a post about Pride? Sometimes we humans need structures to support us as we navigate complexity. And for many of us who hold identities in the LGBTQ+ rainbow, Pride month is complicated. But in the midst of all of that, I hold hope that we can shift the paradigm and co-create a world that is more welcoming to future generations.

I hold that hope because I see a number of different ways I can increase inclusion in my work and my world.

I hold that hope because I believe that I will follow through on this work.

I hold that hope because I don’t walk this path alone - I know my husband and my friends will support me in my pursuit of equity.

I hold that hope because this work matters and reminds me of why I chose this path.

No matter what identity you hold, this world can feel hopeless at times. This Pride month - to honor all the giants on whose shoulders we stand - I invite you to reconnect to your hope and let it inspire you to action.?

We all need a little more hope these days.